We are in love with making homemade everything when it comes to cleaners—it saves so much money and is an enjoyable small afternoon project. From our DIY dryer wool balls and laundry detergent, we couldn’t resist not to post about DIY dishwasher detergent cubes. You’ll help save the environment without the use of toxic chemicals.

How toxic? Glad you asked! Gail Seymour from Life 123 gives a list of harmful chemicals in consumer dishwasher detergent…

·         Chlorine bleach is a common respiratory tract irritant that also finds its way into the environment and forms toxic compounds stored in the fatty tissue of animals.

·         Sodium hydroxide is a severe skin irritant that can cause blindness if it comes into contact with your eyes, but is commonly added to dishwasher detergent as a degreaser.

·         Sodium lauryl sulfate might be one of the most common detergents found in the home and is prevalent in shampoo and hand soap, making worrying about it in your dishwashing detergent seem a little pointless. According to the Journal of the American College of Toxicology, laboratories around the world use it as a skin irritant.

·         Propylene glycol might help soften baked-on foods and allow the other chemicals in your dishwasher detergent to do their jobs. But it's also a carcinogen that alters skin structure, helping those same chemicals to penetrate your skin and find their way into your bloodstream.

Seymour makes a valid point—while you may think your dishwasher cleans all of the soap off of your dishes, there is still a small amount of residue on your dishes that you are inevitably coming into contact with, if not consuming.

Let’s move onto the natural and greener ways of doing things, shall we? There are a TON of different homemade dishwasher detergents out there. From liquid to powder form, there is still measuring involved which can be an inconvenience—until we stumbled across dishwasher detergent cubes from Louise’s Country Closet. With a few simple ingredients you will be on your way to cleaner and safer dishes in no time.

Stuff you need:
Stirring Spoon
Bowl
1-2 Ice Cube Trays
1 Cup Borax
1 Cup Washing Soda
1/4 Cup Epsom Salt
Lemon Juice

Feel free to omit the Borax if it’s something you don’t feel comfortable with. Then, mix all of your ingredients together; when you add the lemon juice, your mixture will become foamy. Pour your detergent into your ice cube molds. Allow your mixture to harden (usually takes 24 hours) and pop your cubes into a sealed container. At your convenience, you already have a pre-measured solution the next time you run your dishwasher. Oh, and just as an FYI— you can use a few splashes of white vinegar as a rinse aid to your dishwasher for extra shiny dishes - plus, vinegar is a natural disinfectant.

Natural Dishwasher Detergent Cubes made in your Kitchen