Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

I hate that cleaning products cost so much.  I hate that cleaning products are so toxic.  I have been seeing a lot of recipes for homemade detergents and I think I'm ready to try some.

I decided to make my own dishwasher detergent first.  It was a simple recipe and it was modified to work with hard water.  We have very hard water here.

I've used this a few times and my dishes come out sparkling clean!  This is especially impressive because I am not one of those people who rinses off dishes really well before I wash them.  I put them in there dirty.  And I often leave the food to dry onto the dishes.  Good job detergent!

Ingredients:
1 cup baking soda
1 cup borax
1/4 cup fruit fresh
1/4 cup salt

Put the baking soda in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.  You are turning it into washing soda by doing this.  Alternatively, just use washing soda.

Mix all of the ingredients together.  I put them in a peanut butter jar and shook it up.

To wash your dishes, put 2 tablespoons detergent plus 2-3 drops dish soap in the detergent cup.  Add 1/2 cup vinegar to the dishwasher and run it.  All done!

Linked at http://www.littlenaturalcottage.com/ and frugallysustainable.com