Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

I'm on a journey to make my home and family more green.  What do I mean by green?  My own personal definition is - taking steps to eat healthier (organic, non-processed, and attempting to have a productive little garden), waste less (anything from packaging for an item I buy to eating leftovers in the refrigerator instead of letting them go bad to recycling and composting for sending less to the landfill), use products that not only are easier on the environment but also on our bodies (shampoos, toothpaste, dishwasher detergent, laundry soap, etc.), respecting/loving God's Creation, and teaching my family about these things along the way.  It's not always easy and it's definitely a lifestyle change.  What I've found is that it's easiest to incorporate these things one or two at a time.  Once I get comfortable and make it a part of my everyday life then I know it's time to add another thing.

My latest addition on my journey is making my own dishwasher detergent.  It is very simple and considerably cheaper than buying the environmentally friendly version at the store (although I have bought that in the past also).

Here's my recipe that has worked very well for me these past 3 months:

- 2 cups borax

- 4 cups baking soda

- 1 cup kosher salt

- 4 ounces citric acid

- distilled white vinegar (for the rinse cycle)

Measure out and mix together the borax, baking soda, salt, and citric acid.  Keep it in a container that will not get your detergent wet.  I bought my container and spoon at a local kitchen store but you could use just about anything.  I use 2 scoops for the main wash and 1 scoop for the pre-wash.  I don't know exactly how much that measures out to be but I'd guess that one scoop is about 2 tablespoons.

You can find the borax in the laundry section of your store.  It's pretty easy to find.  I bought my citric acid from Amazon.  I didn't use the citric acid at first but after my dishes kept turning out foggy after they'd been washed, I did some research and found that the citric acid will prevent the foggy and streakiness.  It has worked incredibly well.  I bought a large container of it - this way I don't have to worry about ordering it on a regular basis since the one container will make about 35 batches of detergent.  The salt is added to help act as a scrubber for the dirt on the dishes.  I've played with this recipe for the past 3 months and found that this one works best for me.  I also pour in a little bit of distilled white vinegar into the rinse aide (twist off cap in the inside door of the dishwasher) which helps to disinfect and also with streaking.

Feel free to post any of your own dishwasher detergent recipes and how they work for you!