All Natural Homemade Dish Detergent without Borax (and desiccant)
2013
There is a lot of controversy over the safety of borax. As a popular ingredient in many natural recipes, the debates can get pretty heated. I personally resonated with this article from Crunchy Betty (borax is not the same as boric acid)… and I still occasionally use borax for some cleaning purposes. And when I first started making my own homemade dish detergent I used a recipe that called for borax.
For the most part I was really happy with the homemade dish detergent recipe. It did the job. It was easy to make. It was a lot more natural than the commercial stuff I was previously using. And it was pretty frugal, to boot. But I did notice that it left a strange film on the few plastic items we use. (Still working on getting the plastic out completely. Baby steps.) I didn’t feel great thinking about my little girl consuming borax… even in tiny amounts.
After some research and testing, I was able to make a homemade dish detergent recipe without borax. And it works just as well. Maybe even better, actually. And since I’m still not entirely convinced about the safety of borax, why not skip it. Right?
But before you make your homemade dish detergent:
One thing I noticed about this recipe, compared to my borax one, is that the mixture did clump up. Luckily, making your own desiccant is super easy. A desiccant absorbs the moisture that is in the container, keeping the intended product drier and less clumpy. Depending on the humidity level in your home, some of your home homemade cleaning products may need a desiccant to keep them from clumping. (Things like powdered laundry detergent or dishwasher detergent).
So are you ready to make some toxic-free, borax-free homemade dish detergent and desiccant? Good! These are just two of the 70 recipes you’ll find in my ebook Toxic Free. Check it out for more great resources to toxic-free living.
Desiccant
Ingredients:
Powdered white or bentonite clay
Fabric pouch: child’s sock, end of a pair of pantyhose, or a piece of cheesecloth
Directions:
Put 2 tbsp. of clay in your fabric pouch of choice. If using the sock or pantyhose, simply tie a knot at the end. If using cheesecloth, place clay in the middle and then tie ends together to form a little pouch. Place inside airtight container. Replace as needed.
Homemade Dish Detergent without Borax
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups citric acid
1 1/2 cups washing soda
1/2 cup baking soda
1/2 cup sea salt
Directions:
Mix to combine. Use 1 Tbs. per load.
If making your own cleaning products doesn’t appeal to you, be sure to check out some quality, safe, and non-toxic cleaning products for purchase in here.
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Thank you!!! I’ve been needing a new dish detergent recipe! Question – will this work if you wash dishes by hand and let it dissolve in your dishwater?
I was wondering the same thing as you Rachel
That’s a great question, Rachel! I honestly don’t know as I’ve never tried it. If you do that sort of thing with normal powdered detergent it would probably work just as well I’d guess.
Great idea! There is still a lot of controversy about the toxicity of Washing Soda and Baking Soda. Thoughts?
OH man… that’s a good question. Let’s be honest, pretty much EVERYTHING is toxic at certain levels. Water can kill you if you drink too much. Baking soda (and washing soda) can be very toxic if you use too much… but the amount in this recipe is hardly anything I’d worry about.
Bah, I just came across this article that says it’s impossible to know if Vitamin C is GMO after it’s been processed : /
“It’s a difficult and lengthy process to test before the processing,” said Larry Cunningham, a spokesman for the world’s largest grain processor, Archer Daniels Midland of Decatur, Ill.
“Then by the time the acids and enzymes and heat and so forth are applied, it makes it impossible to detect any evidence of biotechnology.”
http://www.organicconsumers.org/Organic/vitccontro.cfm
The company I just mentioned tests after processing, so that’s no good. I buy acerola powder for internal use, but that would be way too expensive to use in a cleaner. Looks like this company (https://fonorow.com/cart/) has a GMO-free,corn free version but again it’s too pricey. Can anybody recommend a good non-GMO source for Vitamin C?
Oh man, that stinks! Let me look into it and see if I can find one. Thanks for the heads up, Heather. You are always so on top of things!
Hmmm, it looks like my first comment didn’t go through but my second one did . . . so sorry for the lack of context.
Basically just said that I use acerola powder for internal use but I’d been avoiding most Vitamin C since I learned the majority of it is made from GMO corn. Then I came across a company that says their Vitamin C isn’t derived from GM sources and wanted to pass it along, only to realize their testing is inadequate according to the Organic Consumers Association. So bummed!
Oh nuts. I hate it when comments get lost in my spam folder. (Which is what I’m guessing is what happened.)
The vitamin C thing bums me out… not only because it’s hard to know what to brand to trust, but also because if we didn’t allow GM foods we wouldn’t have to worry about dumb things like this. Thanks for the heads up, Heather!
I use organic black cherry powder for vitamin C and as an anti-inflammatory for fibromyalgia and arthritis. I couldn’t stomach the taste of acerola.
Does this recipe pelletize?? I’ve seen some recipes containing Borax that do ( http://www.budget101.com/myo-household-items/homemade-dishwasher-pellets-3916.html ).
That’s a great question. I’ve never even heard of “pelletizing” these things. I’ll have to look into it.
I have been using this detergent for a few weeks, and at first, I loved it! Then, a film started to form on the dishes, and they didn’t get as clean. I use vinegar as a rinse, and that still isn’t preventing the film. Any suggestions? I’ve just been hand washing while trying to figure out what’s going on. Thanks!
Hi Lindsay,
Do you know if you have hard water or not? I’d start first by running an empty load with some vinegar and a couple lemon peels. You can play with adding a little more salt if hard water is your issue… or more citric acid as it’s a natural rinse aid, too. Let me know if any of those help.
I’m having the same issue– it was fantastic at first– better than any of the “natural” dish detergents I’ve tried lately, but now everything is coming out cloudy, which is totally bumming me out. We don’t have hard water, so that isn’t the problem here. I’ll try adding more salt to the mix and see if that makes a difference, because I really don’t want to go back to store bought who-knows-what-is-really-in-this detergents.
Hmmmm… yeah, play around with the mixture a bit. More salt or maybe more citric acid will help with the cloudy issue.
Riddle me this,
Can I use Kosher Salt? Is Sea Salt a must? I realize that it has more minerals than kosher, but just checking! Thanks in advance,
~Dani
You could probably use a regular kosher salt just fine.
Would this recipe work with Epsom salt rather than sea salt?
I normally resist the temptation of leaving a comment on a blog, but I couldn’t this time because this is my second time brought to your website.
The first time was when I was looking for information about liquid intake. You wrote on the topic, detailing how your habit of water intake—too much and too frequent—was affecting your health and how changing it made a difference. One of the comments left on the blog was, I thought, nasty and also baseless. Then you wrote a very thoughtful response to it. I was impressed!
Thank you for the dishwasher detergent recipe. It’s been working pretty well. Keep up with the good work!
Aw, thank you!