added this 17 years ago
Automatic Dishwasher Powder
What you need:
1 cup washing soda
1 cup borax
4 - 6 drops citrus essential oil (I use bergamot)
What you do:
Put all of the ingredients in a container with a lid. Shake well.
Use one tablespoon if you have soft water, and two tablespoons if you have hard water. You may need to adjust the washing soda and borax ratios depending on the efficiency of your dishwasher and the type of water you have.
Preparation Time:
2 minutes
Cooking Time:
Servings:
Recipe Category:
SO HOW'D IT GO?
I make a similar recipe, but I replace the Borax with Baking Soda. I also use white vinegar as a rinsing agent. I add 2 tablespoons per load.
I don't use the Borax because it's very toxic, and if you're using a gray water system it will kill your plants.
I wanted to like this, but it just didn't do the job. It left some sort of residue on the dishes. Better for me to just get an eco brand of regular dishwasher powder.
I guess I have to write a stern letter to Arm&Hammer!!! Who does animal testing anymore?!!
Crumbs. Is there another available brand of washing soda that isn't linked to animal testing?
If you're having trouble finding washing soda, try calling a pool supply store and asking for sodium carbonate. I've never purchased it this way, but I do know that it's used to adjust water pH levels. You might also want to hunt around bargain stores and look for it packaged as Soda Ash.
as soon as my current dishwasher soap runs out (soon i'm sure) i will be giving this a try...if you're in toronto, you can get borax (amoung other cleaning chemicals and such) at Grass Roots on bloor at bathurst (east of honest ed's) in bulk. for the rest of you non-torontonians, you can check out grassrootsstore.com.
and while we're on the subject of arm & hammer...i just found out they do animal testing. not cool >:(
(see wildatheart-online.com)
Lenorre
Actually, other way round...
This is a quote for Wikipedia.com
Hammer claimed that his father had named him after a character, Armand Duval, in La Dame aux Camélias, a novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. In fact, according to Carl Blumay, his biographer and former press agent, Hammer was named after the "Arm and Hammer" symbol of the Socialist Labor Party (SLP), in which his father, a committed socialist, had a leadership role at one time. (After the Russian Revolution, a part of the SLP under Julius' leadership split off to become a founding element of the Communist Party USA.)
Despite popular myth, the relation between Hammer's name and the household product Arm and Hammer baking soda is coincidental. The pun was not lost on Hammer, though: during the 1980s, he attempted to buy Church and Dwight, makers of the Arm and Hammer line of products. He did succeed in buying a sizable minority interest and eventually sat on its board of directors.
Yeah, Borax will be in the laundry aisle. I actually always thought Borax WAS the brand and 20 mule team was just their catch phrase because it's the only kind you ever see but it does seem Borax is the chemical name. It is in a green box near the bleach...
Washing soda is something different and will also be in the laundry aisle - huge yellow box like an Arm and Hammer baking soda box. It is not the same chemical as baking soda. You can't find it everywhere, though. I used it to rescue a load of stinky laundry in PA (left it in the washer for days) and I have looked for it out here to use on stinky diapers but it is really hard to find around here. I don't know why it can be so hard to find, it's great stuff!
In the States, borax is sold in the detergent aisle of any large supermarket. 20 Mule Team is a famous brand, or Arm and Hammer.(The founder's name was Armand Hammer, very cute.)
Where does one find washing soda and borax? I'd really like to give this one a try...
What is the chemical name for washing soda? I need it to translate into Spanish.
Washing soda is sodium carbonate. Just in case, it's NOT the same as "baking soda", because that's a bicarbonate of sodium... Hope this helps!
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