Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

I the thing that excites me to the most about my 365 challenge is when I run out of something I can replenish whatever it is without ever stepping foot in the grocery store.

Well, that is what happened when I decided to try out some homemade dishwasher detergent. My go-to store bought detergent was Finish Powerball Ultra Dish Tabs, I liked their performance and I could buy them in a large quantity for a reasonable price, but there came a day when I went to go start the dishwasher and I was OUT!

So instead of hand washing the abundance of dishes or making an extra trip to the store, I went with plan C and decided it was time to try my own. While I was looking for just the right recipe to try, I came across this post by houselogic who provided some at-home trials with different homemade dishwasher detergent recipes {I absolutely loved reading about these rather than taking the time to test them myself, thanks houselogic}! I also came across this post by Sisters Shopping on a Shoestring whose go to recipe was also the houselogic's #1 pick. This recipe combination is used quite frequently across the Internet, but I appreciated the Sisters' insight on lemonade packets versus citric acid.

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

1 cup borax

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup salt

1/4 cup citric acid
20-30 drops of lemon essential oil (grapefruit or orange works great too)

Mix is all together and store in an airtight container. Use 1 tablespoon per load. 

And then of course there came the day that I ran out of my homemade dishwasher detergent and when I went to go make some more I realized I was also out of Borax ... these are the times when my love for my challenge can get even more challenging! I was in desperate need of running the dishwasher {ours runs at least once a day and if we skip a day ... we have dishes reproducing like rabbits 😲}, so to the rescue came this post by Sherri Griffin and it's been working its wonders. 

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent without Borax

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup citric acid

1/4 cup baking soda

1/4 cup salt
20-30 drops of lemon essential oil (grapefruit or orange works great too)

Mix is all together in an airtight container. Use 1 tablespoon per load. 

I have run into some problems with clumping with both of these recipes but I think the main reason was due to the container I was using wasn't the best. I've since sent it through the food processor and have it stored in mason jars.

All in all, I think I prefer my original recipe with borax, but in a pinch {or if you are leary of using Borax here's a great article from Wellness Mama to help you not be so leary and also this funny post about eating your homemade dishwasher detergent from Crunchy Betty} the second version is a great alternative. 

Lastly if you are curious about how these homemade ingredients compare to those in commercial dishwasher detergents, Little House in the Suburbs offers some science behind them. 

365 List by Category

And to make it easier to find something more specific, here is a list sorted by categories. 

Snacks

Beef Jerky*
Caramel: sauce, fruit dip, candies*
Cream Cheese Fruit Dip*
Flavored Sunflower Seeds
Fruit Cups*
Pudding: Vanilla*

Condiments

Apple Butter*
BBQ Sauce
Chocolate Sauce
Dill Pickles*
French Dressing
Fruit Topping: quick & easy*, with pectin
Jam: pectin free raspberry, pectin free blackberry*, pectin free strawberry, strawberry, jalapeno*
Ketchup
Maple Syrup
Mayo
Peanut Butter
Relish*
Ranch*
Salsa*: fresh, canned
Soy Sauce
Thousand Island Dressing*
Teriyaki Sauce
Wine Vinegar

Breakfast

Bagels: plain, cinnamon & sugar, jalapeno
Biscuits*
Cinnamon Rolls*
Granola*
Sausage Gravy*

Milk & Dairy

Butter
Buttermilk*
Half & Half*
Pasteurized Eggs*
Ricotta Cheese*
Shredded Cheese*
Sour Cream
Whipped Topping*
Yogurt

Herbs & Spices

Celery Salt*
Herbs
Italian Seasoning*
Pizza Sauce Mix*
Pumpkin Pie Spice*
Spaghetti Sauce Seasoning Mix*
Steak Seasoning*
Taco Seasoning*

Baking

Baking Powder*
Brown Sugar*
Cake Flour*
Cooking Spray*
Extract: Vanilla*
Evaporated Milk
Marshmallow Fluff*
Pie Crust*
Self-Rising Flour*
Sweetened Condensed Milk

Canned Goods

Applesauce*
Canned Beans*
Chicken Broth
Cream of Something Soup or mix
Pumpkin Puree
Refried Beans*
Tomato Sauce

Produce

Fresh Produce: garden plot
Garden Starters*

Meats & Deli

Coleslaw*

Breads & Bakery

Bagels: plain, cinnamon & sugar, jalapeno
Bakery Cakes: Ella Scharlach Cake, DIY Decorating*
Cinnamon Rolls*
Cookies: refrigerator/freeze cookie rolls, Lofthouse*
Pizza Dough*
Tortilla Shells

Frozen

Rice & Pasta

Mac & Cheese*
Noodles

Health & Beauty

Antacid Relief
Bath Salts*
Bronzer*
Conditioner: Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse
Deodorant
Dry Shampoo*
Eye Make-up Remover
Face Powder*
Face Wash*
Facial Moisturizer*
Hair Detangler*
Hair Putty: Shealoe
Mascara
Moisturizer
Shampoo: No-Poo
Shaving Cream
Sugar Scrub
Toothpaste

Household

All Purpose Cleaner*: Norwex clothes, orange infused vinegar
Ant Bait*
Dishwasher Detergent*
Laundry Soap*
Stain Remover: gel*, spray
Washing Soda
Windex*

Outdoors & Auto

Armorall*
Car Wash*
Garden Fertilizer: compost bin
Garden Pesticide: Weed Killers, spray
Tick Repellent*

* - has been completely replaced with homemade version ... no more store bought

The ones not marked are items I have tried and either due to time, money, or taste I am still working to find a way to replace them that works best for us. My goal is to be able to eventually mark all items with an asterisk! As of 2/1/2016 we have 105 items of our 365 tried.

365 List

As I continue to plug through my 365 challenge {see my original plan and an update, because with life comes change} and the number of homemade items I have made continues to grow, I decided it would be wise to compile a complete list of items so to see the bigger picture. :)

List of store bought items we have tried - (click here, to see these items by category)

1. Cooking Spray*
2. Buttermilk*
3. Ranch*
4. Peanut Butter
5. Taco Seasoning*
6. Croutons
7. Jam: pectin free raspberry, pectin free blackberry*, strawberry, pectin free strawberry, jalapeno*
8. Breadcrumbs*
9. Half & Half*
10. Brown Sugar*
11. Fresh Produce: garden plot
12. Maple Syrup
13. Shredded Cheese*
14. Cream of Something Soup or mix
15. Sour Cream
16. Spaghetti Sauce Seasoning Mix*
17. Bread
18. Garden Starters*
19. Canned Beans*
20. Flavored Sunflower Seeds
21. Garden Fertilizer: compost bin
22. French Dressing
23. Car Wash*
24. Chicken Broth
25. Noodles
26. Soy Sauce
27. Ricotta Cheese*
28. Pasteurized Eggs*
29. Pizza Dough*
30. Mayo
31. Yogurt
32. Caramel: sauce, fruit dip, candies*
33. Ketchup
34. Ant Bait*
35. Baking Powder*
36. BBQ Sauce
37. Chocolate Sauce
38. Cake Flour*
39. Self-Rising Flour*
40. Wine Vinegar
41. Pudding: Vanilla*
42. Extract: Vanilla*
43. Evaporated Milk
44. Sweetened Condensed Milk
45. Garden Pesticide: Weed Killers, spray
46. Toothpaste
47. Deodorant
48. Shampoo: No-Poo
49. Conditioner: Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse
50. Hair Detangler*
51. Shaving Cream
52. Sugar Scrub
53. Fruit Cups*
54. Moisturizer
55. Face Wash*
56. Eye Make-up Remover*
57. Tortilla Shells
58. Refried Beans*
59. Tick Repellent*
60. Mac & Cheese*
61. Beef Jerky*
62. Whipped Topping*
63. Fruit Topping: quick & easy*, with pectin
64. Hair Putty: Shealoe
65. Stain Remover: gel*, spray
66. Thousand Island Dressing*
67. Coleslaw*
68. Pizza Sauce Mix*
69. Bagels: plain, cinnamon & sugar, jalapeno
70. Teriyaki Sauce
71. All Purpose Cleaner*: Norwex clothes, orange infused vinegar
72. Salsa*: fresh, canned
73. Face Powder*
74. Cookies: refrigerator/freeze cookie rolls, Lofthouse*
75. Dill Pickles*
76. Laundry Soap*
77. Applesauce*
78. Bakery Cakes*: Ella Scharlach Cake, DIY Decorating
79. Bath Salts*
80. Mascara
81. Antacid Relief
82. Biscuits*
83. Sausage Gravy*
84. Washing Soda
85. Granola*
86. Cinnamon Rolls*
87. Bronzer*
88. Armorall*
89. Butter
90. Herbs
91. Facial Moisturizer*
92. Windex*
93. Italian Seasoning*
94. Marshmallow Fluff*
95. Cream Cheese Fruit Dip*
96. Steak Seasoning*
97. Celery Salt*
98. Pickle Relish*
99. Tomato Sauce
100. Pumpkin Pie Spice*
101. Pumpkin Puree
102. Pie Crust*
103. Apple Butter*
104. Dry Shampoo*
105. Dishwasher Detergent*
106. Granola Bars
107. Foaming Hand Soap

* - has been completely replaced with homemade version ... no more store bought

The ones not marked are items I have tried and either due to time, money, or taste I am still working to find a way to replace them that works best for us. My goal is to be able to eventually mark all items with an asterisk! 

Please note that items that have not been linked to a post are ones that I have tried and am working on getting a post up for these {hopefully sooner than later}!

Fears & Offenses

I've been fighting this post God for quite some time to just sit down and write what has been pressing heavily on my heart. The biggest fight was to admit the real reason for not finishing this which ironically was my own fear of causing an offense! After ninety-gazillion of my own excuses and a gentle nudge from a sweet friend reminding me God doesn't take 'no' for an answer, He finally reverted to getting the megaphone out, turning the volume to its highest setting, and using His Dad voice to yell "It's worth the risk ... TRUST ME!" through my morning devotion yesterday, "Abandon it All." 


I feared my heart would be misinterpreted. I feared my sincerity would come across hypocritical. I feared I would open the door of vulnerability. I feared I would offend someone. While I don't hold tight to what people may think of me, I feared this post would be read with an offensive mind rather than one of openness. If I have already struck a nerve, I ask that you please continue reading ... give yourself the opportunity to breakthrough the offense that is trying to stop you and allow me to go deeper. 

A while back, I heard on the radio {and have since looked into it out of curiosity and more proof :)} that we are born with only two natural fears: the fear of loud noises and the fear of falling. Which leaves all other fears to being learned through experience. Talk about an interesting insight! This has really challenged me to stop myself as soon as I feel that first tinge of fear, fright, panic, terror, apprehension, or trepidation and re-evaluate my emotions to discern if they are intuitionally warranted or just habitual from a prior experience in which I have chosen to now avoid all together. 

Sometimes at the first sign of fear (or any of those other feelings), we react by stopping dead in our tracks and shutting the door in which to never return without ever once questioning it. What really is the cause for the fear? Is it a natural reaction that has been learned through a previous experience? Or is it the fear of the unknown or the fear of what will come? Or is it actually warranted, like the tug on your conscience or that 'momma feeling' you get when something just isn't right? Unless it is your intuition or gut instinct {which there are days I wonder if we have forgotten what this is ... sigh, another day, another post maybe}, no matter the cause of these fears they have the potential to overtake our life and hold us back if we are not careful.

And then there are our offenses, although a completely different emotion, these can have the same effect on us. In one instance we may allow a single circumstance {even if it's completely taken out of context} to adamantly dictate how we think or how we will react. Hurtful words spoken, words and actions read into, false accusations made, resentment. rejection, disagreement, conflict of interest, and the list could continue. However, whatever the offense is, if we hold onto it for too long it will eventually become a part of who we are and will only build up more anger, spread more strife, and ultimately hold us back also. 

Fears and offenses are ugly beasts that can stand in our way, blind us from the facts, cause us to tear down rather than build up, and create boundaries that only limit our ability to truly love one another like Jesus loves us, unconditionally. This doesn't mean we have to agree with one another, but it does mean we need to lay down our offenses and push through our fears so true love can be seen. The true love that casts out all fear and has no boundaries, not one! We need to learn how to truly love so we can step outside of the box of seeing things as one side vs. the other and instead seeing it as love vs. hate. 

It's not going to be easy, hard work never is, but especially when it seems impossible to face some of the largest giants you have ever seen.