Have you started to look around your home to find what you can make or do without? When things in the economy look so uncertain, many of us try to find ways to save money.
Some people have been doing this for ages, and it's nothing new to them. For many of us though, with the shortages in grocery stores and supermarkets it seems like making things ourselves might be the way to go.
Bread
Diapers
Masks
Cleaning supplies
Just to name a few of the many.
For many people cleaners are one of the first things to be moved over to the DIY pile. And given that you can make your own for a fraction of the price, saving you hundreds of dollars a year, we get it!
But before you rush off to check your cabinets and get the hottest recipe off Facebook or Pinterest, take a moment to consider these facts.
We surveyed the top 20 posts about DIY dishwasher detergents, including posts from Huffpost and The Spruce and The Kitchn. (Scroll down to the bottom to check out the breakdown of the most common materials.)
From looking at these recipes we found 3 major issues.
1) Vinegar
2) Not prepping your dishwasher beforehand
3) Dish soap.
Vinegar
Roughly 1/3 of the posts we surveyed called for vinegar. While vinegar DOES work for dissolving light sediments on your dishes, it's not the most effective for daily grime. Whether you use it as part of the detergent or put it into the rinse compartment as some suggest, not enough of it gets out to be effective for your dishes.
On top of that, if you read our post about vinegar, then you know that it can be a serious issue. As we pointed out then, we've had many clients destroy the seals and gaskets on their dishwashers this way. Even if you just 'use it occasionally' to clean out the grime and build up in your dishwasher, you are still cutting down the lifespan of your machine.
Prepping Your Dishwasher Beforehand
Now, out of the sites reviewed, we found only 1 that suggested preparing your dishwasher prior to switching over. As Heather of Mommypotamus points out,
"It's important to clear away mineral deposits and or other residue from your dishwasher. Otherwise the citric acid will loosen them, and they will redeposit on your dishes."
"Aha," you say,"I just won't use citric acid, problem solved!"
Except if you look at our list again dear friend, you'll see that 17 of the 20 sites we checked called for citric acid either as part of the detergent recipe or as part of the rinse aid paired with it as Heather does.
And with good reason. While the commercial detergents have enzymes to break down food, grease, and grime, citric acid does the same. It also suspends the sediments i the water, preventing them from settling back on the dishes.
So if you /do/ want to go homemade, your best bet is going to be using citric acid as part of the recipe.
Dishsoap.
It makes so much sense to use it. If you can use it for your hands or washing things in the sink, why can't you use it in your dishwasher? Even Huffpost used it!
Because, quite frankly, there's a host of problems with using it.
No matter the amount you use, it cuts down on the amount of cleaning your dishwasher can do. According to Travis Robertson of Sears, over on The Kitchn, any amount of dishsoap is going to create suds. Even if you don't see them spilling out, they are there.
This means that
- Your dishwasher can't spray or circulate the suds the way it would a water and detergent solution.
- The suds are likely to create a film on your dishes and WILL create one inside your dishwasher. the suds are difficult to flush out, no matter the age of your dishwasher, so it sits and builds up.
- It all boils down to the same thing according to Robertson "lots of suds and no wash action."
Dish soap works as well as it does because of the mechanical motion of washing by hand. Because your dishwasher doesn't have that type of motion, it's not effective.
On top of that, with build up inside the washer, or if it leaks because of the amount of suds, the gaskets, synthetic parts, seals and plastics can all be damaged. if that happens, you can very easily void your warranty, which means you'll be paying for all repairs out of pocket.
If you look at our graph, you'll see that only 2 of the sits surveyed suggesting using dishsoap. This is only representative of the number of sites that listed it as an ingredient, not the ones that suggest to use it on its own as a replacement.
"So is there any hope for doing this? Or do I have to give it all up?" we hear you crying.
Fret not! You still can use DIY recipes, such as the one over on Mommypotamus. There are just a few precautions that we suggest taking.
- Avoid any recipes that call for vinegar or dishsoap.
- Make sure that you ONLY use as much as is needed. Just like with commercial detergents you CAN have too much.
- Be sure to prep your dishwasher before you make the switch.
- Keep notes. Not only is every dishwasher different, but you also have to consider how hard or soft your water is, and how much food you leave on your dishes before putting them into the machine. All of these things will affect the dishwasher and determine which recipe is going to work best for your family.
So yes, it can be done, but it might be a process to find exactly what works for you.
We want to hear from you. Are you making anything at home in light of the Stay At Home order or just because groceries have run short? Have you used your own dishwasher detergent in the past? How did it work? Let us know over on our Facebook post! Help us share effective ways to cut back on costs so that all of us can benefit in these strange times.
Remember, if your dishwasher is giving you trouble and you live in any of the areas we service let us know! We're still here for you and we want to help. You can click over here and schedule an appointment today.
