DIY Dishwasher Tabs
Learn how to make your own dishwasher tabs from scratch! This recipe is great for cutting grease on dishes and also works well with hard water. Most of the ingredients can be found at a bulk store.
Most store-bought dishwasher tabs come in a stiff plastic bag with a zip top. Many municipalities can’t recycle this kind of plastic.
I have found one brand of dishwasher tabs that comes in plastic free packaging from The Unscented Company. Their dishwasher tabs come in a cardboard box and contains no plastic insert or plastic packaging of any kind. You can usually find these dishwasher tabs at the Bulk Barn or Canadian Tire (be sure to call the store to see if they have them in stock) or your can order directly from the Unscented Company and have them delivered. I like to keep some on hand in case I run out of my homemade dishwasher tabs.
So let’s get to it! Here’s what you’ll need:
1 cup baking soda
1 cup washing soda (see notes below)
1/2 cup citric acid (see notes below)
1/4 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon castile soap (see note below)
5-10 drops of essential oils (optional)
3 standard ice cube trays
Spoon or extract bottle
A few notes about the ingredients:
This recipe is Borax free. The safety of Borax has been questioned and Health Canada suggests minimizing your exposure as a precautionary measure.
Washing soda is easy to make at home. Fill a cake pan about 1/2 inch thick of baking soda. Bake this for 60 minutes at 400 degrees F, mixing halfway through. Voila! You now have washing soda!
Citric acid is available at Bulk Barn. You can also order this from online retailers.
I bought my Castile Soap locally (Harmony Market, Orangeville, Ontario). If you’re not in the area, you can order it online. Try to find a brand that does not contain palm oil (palm oil is leading to deforestation in some countries). I have also tried making this recipe without the Castile Soap and it worked fine.
I use lemon extract instead of essential oil.
Instructions:
Mix all the dry ingredients.
Add the castile soap and essential oil. Mix well.
Now the tricky part: add the vinegar in small amounts at a time. Your mix will foam and bubble. Keep mixing it or it will harden.
Work quickly to add spoonfuls of the mix equally into the 3 ice cube trays. Press the mixture into each ice cube compartment. I use a “Clubhouse” brand extract bottle to press the mixture (it has a rectangular bottom about the same size as the ice cube compartments), or you could use the back of a spoon. Wipe off any excess that sticks to the back of the spoon or extract bottle as you go.
Set your trays aside for a day. I leave mine overnight on the counter. Be sure to keep them out of reach from children or pets.
Pop them out of the tray and store in a jar with the lid slightly open (otherwise they will get soft and crumble).
Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from: https://pinsandprocrastination.com/homemade-dishwasher-detergent-tabs-borax-free/