DIY Dishwasher Detergent = Fail.

There's this little website known as Pinterest, which I'm sure many of you are familiar with.  It's filled with inspiration for just about everything, and I have many ideas saved to my "boards."  This recipe for DIY Dishwasher Detergent has been on my list of to-makes, and we were finally running low on the tablets we currently use.  I wanted to try this just to see how well it works, plus it's much cheaper than store-bought detergents or tablets.  Several reviewers stated that this combination of ingredients, along with using vinegar as a rinse aid, yields better results than expensive, name-brand detergents.  We've tried it for a several washes now, and I can't say that it does the job very well.  It just doesn't cut through grease and oil. Plus it clumped up into one solid rock inside of my container.  I had already typed up a post for it with photos, so I'm still going to share it with the recipe.  If anyone has any suggestions for tweaking the recipe, please let me know! I'm still up for homemade dishwasher detergent, as long as it works!

Dishwasher Detergent:

1 cup borax

1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

1/2 cup Lemishine  (a water softener)

1/2 cup Kosher salt (table salt also works fine)

*all ingredients (besides the salt) can be found on the laundry aisle*

Use 1 Tablespoon per load

Jesse had a nearly empty canister of protein powder, so I swiped it, gave it a wash, and dumped my ingredients directly into it.  Once all were added, I gave it a shake to mix everything together

Thankfully this canister came with a scoop, so I cleaned that too, then added 1 Tablespoon of water.  I used this as a guide to create a marking so that I will know that I have the right amount of detergent each time!

Then I added a label so no one gets confused.  Plus it's cuter that way. :)

IMPORTANT SIDE NOTE:

While we are talking about dishwashers, if you have never thoroughly cleaned the inside of your dishwasher, I highly suggest doing so.  I did not grow up with a dishwasher, so I don't know a whole lot about them - especially how to clean one.  I also stumbled upon a tutorial on Pinterest of how to clean your dishwasher, found here.  This blogger used CLR to clean the inside, which I didn't have on hand (and wouldn't be so sure about using anyway).  My biggest priority in ours was removing and cleaning the filter.  (I'm just gonna throw it out there and assume that the dishwasher in our trailer has NEVER been cleaned since it came off the line in 1987.  I will refrain from details- just know it was disgusting! No exaggeration.  Hopefully you will not experience what I did when you clean yours.  If you do, I may be more willing to share my story with you.)  After cleaning the filter, I used a brush to scrub down the inside walls with a baking soda paste.  I returned the filter to its proper position, dumped about 1/2 cup vinegar into the bottom, then ran it through a cycle without any dishes inside.  Now it's squeaky clean!