How to make your own dishwashing liquid at home?

Most dishwashing liquids contain synthetic substances that are difficult to wash off from the surface and can cause allergies.

To protect your family, you can create their natural analogue from soap, soda, coffee and other harmless ingredients.

Homemade pastes and liquids are suitable not only for dishes, but also for stoves, tiles, faucets, microwave ovens and other kitchen surfaces.

We'll tell you how to make dishwashing liquid with your own hands below.

Why prepare your own cleaning products?

The main active component of dish gels is synthetic surfactants (surfactants).

Compared to regular soap, they dissolve grease better, do not leave streaks, and do not lose effectiveness in cold and hard water.

But high surface activity complicates the removal of surfactants from dishes. Even if objects seem clean, a thin film remains on them, which, along with food, passes into the digestive tract.

Natural products such as soap or baking soda have less affinity for the surface, so washes off easily from dishes.

The composition of industrial products is described only in general terms (for example, “non-ionic surfactants”, “anionic surfactants”, “preservative”, etc.), therefore the presence of allergens in them cannot be excluded. Homemade gels, as a rule, have a simpler set of components. If you are allergic to any of them, you can replace it or choose a different recipe.

Recipes for natural and effective formulations

Homemade gels and pastes are prepared from components that can be found in the kitchen of any housewife:

• laundry soap,
• soda,
• vinegar,
• lemon and mustard powder.

To remove complex contaminants, the contents of the first aid kit will be useful: ammonia and hydrogen peroxide. By changing the proportion of components, the housewife can obtain a liquid, gel or paste.

Laundry soap gel

How to prepare the gel for dishes made from laundry soap:

• grate half a soap bar;
• pour 200 ml of cold water and heat the mixture over low heat or in the microwave;
• stir until smooth, cool;
• pour in 20-30 ml of ethyl alcohol or 60 ml of vodka;
• Stir thoroughly and pour into a gel bottle.

With soda

Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, helps soften grease and remove burnt-on food particles. Based on it, a thick paste is prepared for cleaning surfaces and a hissing liquid for removing complex contaminants.

Soda paste

Ingredients:

1. 50 g laundry soap.
2. 50-60 g of baking soda or soda ash.
3. 100-150 ml of water.
4. Essential oils of tea tree and lemon - optional.

To prepare, you need to finely grate the soap, beat it with hot water and cool slightly. After this, add soda in portions, stirring the mixture with a blender.At the final stage, add aromatic oils and adjust the consistency of the product. Beat the gel until a fluffy thick mass is obtained.

It is recommended to use a small spoon to dispense soda paste, because... After cooling, the soufflé becomes quite dense.

Liquid with peroxide and soda

Ingredients:

• 25 g of soda (2 tbsp);
• 30 ml hydrogen peroxide;
• 150 ml water.

Soda is mixed with hydrogen peroxide and then diluted with boiling water, stirring continuously. The finished product can be poured into a standard container with a dispenser.

With mustard

Mustard has good emulsifying properties, which allow it to dissolve fat in the same way as soap or surfactants. The powder particles serve as a soft abrasive. They effectively remove fresh carbon deposits, congealed grease and other stubborn dirt.

To prepare the mustard product you need:

1. Heat 0.5 liters of water to a temperature of 90°C.
2. Add 1 tbsp. mustard powder.
3. Stir with a whisk or silicone spatula until foam forms.
4. Remove from heat, cool and pour into a suitable container.

To avoid boiling the gel, you need to add the powder in small portions and heat the pan only over low heat.

Mustard-soda paste is suitable for removing burnt food. It is prepared according to the following recipe:

• dilute 1 tbsp. mustard powder with hot water;
• add 0.5-1 tsp. soda (the finished mixture should have the consistency of sour cream);
• beat, cool.

With soap, coffee and mustard

Coffee-soap gel has a more complex composition than other home remedies, but it allows you to wipe off almost any type of dirt. To prepare it, you can use dried grounds.

How to make coffee gel:

1. Grind a bar of soap, pour 300 ml of warm water.
2. Add 1-2 g of citric acid and 20 ml of borax in glycerin.
3. Leave the mixture for 2-3 hours.
4. Add 50 g of mustard and coffee, 100 g of soda.
5. Mix to form a paste, if necessary, dilute with warm water.

Instead of coffee, you can use ground chalk or eggshells as an abrasive. Prepare the product with coffee grounds immediately before use or store it in a container with a wide neck to avoid clogging the dispenser.

With lemon

Lemon juice thins and flavors the homemade product, making it more similar to the commercial formulation.

To prepare lemon gel you need:

• grate 50-70 g of soap on a fine grater;
• pour 250-300 ml of hot water, melt the resulting mixture in a water bath;
• if there are any lumps in the mixture, break it up with a blender;
• pour in 30-40 ml of lemon juice, 15-20 ml of glycerin, 20 ml of ethyl alcohol;
• stir, pour into a bottle with a dispenser.

After cutting the fish, you can rub the board with half a fresh lemon and leave it for a few minutes so that the unpleasant smell does not remain on the washcloth and hands.

With vinegar

Vinegar is good for cleaning delicate surfaces and stain removal. The following products based on it can be used in the household:

1. A mixture of salt and vinegar - for washing stainless dishes and faucets.
2. Table vinegar (6-9%) – to add shine after cleaning tiles, stoves, greasy pots and baking trays.
3. A mixture of mustard powder, soda and vinegar (1 part each) - for caring for porcelain dishes.

With glycerin

Glycerin is an alcohol that has no detergent properties., but binds water well and promotes foam formation. In industrial gels it is used to moisturize the skin and protect hands while washing dishes.

The optimal glycerin content in homemade gels is no more than 5-10%. In higher concentrations, it has the opposite effect, accumulating water from the surface of the epidermis and dehydrating the skin.

How to prepare gel with glycerin:

• prepare a thick gel from laundry soap;
• dilute to a liquid consistency, cool;
• pour 15-20 ml of alcohol and 25-50 ml of glycerin for every 100 g of soap;
• add natural flavors;
• stir, pour into a convenient container.

The moisturizing component can be added to other formulations. It is poured in last, observing the consistency of the gel.

With ammonia

The soap-ammonia composition helps to remove not only grease, but also scale, soot and all types of plaque. The product is effective in both hot and cool water.

To prepare a gel with ammonia you need:

1. Grate laundry soap and mix 4 tbsp. chips with 300 ml of cold water.
2. Place the container on low heat or a water bath.
3. Heat almost to a boil, stirring constantly.
4. Remove from heat, cool slightly.
5. Add 4 tbsp into the warm soap mass. mustard powder and soda ash, stir thoroughly.
6. Slowly pour in 3 tbsp. ammonia, without ceasing to stir.
7. Pour into a gel bottle, close tightly and leave for at least 1.5 hours.

Shake the finished product slightly before use. You need to prepare the gel with ammonia in a well-ventilated area.

Features of application

When cleaning with homemade gels the following nuances need to be taken into account:

1. To increase the emulsifying properties of natural ingredients, you need to wash dishes in hot water. If its temperature is below 400C, then greasy marks and stains may remain on the surfaces.
2. If the water hardness (pH) is high, you need to use a product with soda. To soften old grease, you can soak the dishes in hot water with 2-3 tsp. sodium bicarbonate.
3. Baking soda, salt, and other abrasives should not be used to clean items with thin coatings (such as gold plated).
4. It is recommended to use soap and ammonia gels only with gloves.
5. Teflon coated surfaces should not be exposed to acids or abrasives. Before washing, they need to be soaked in warm water with soda, and then gently rubbed with a paste of laundry soap.
6. Aluminum cookware does not tolerate prolonged soaking, boiling in soda, or the action of alkalis and acids. If improperly cleaned, a matte layer of oxides will form on its surface. This effect also has a positive effect: less carbon deposits form on highly oxidized dishes.
7. Vinegar and lemon are not used to clean copper cookware.

Storage rules

Homemade dish soap should be stored in a dry place at room temperature, otherwise the mass may thicken. Direct sunlight on peroxide- or lemon-based gels leads to oxidation of the components.

If the composition does not contain natural preservatives (for example, alcohol), then it can be used no more than 1.5-2 weeks from the moment of preparation.

Pros and cons of homemade gels and pastes

Benefits home remedies for dishes are:

• simple composition;
• low cost;
• the ability to select a convenient consistency;
• harmless for children and allergy sufferers.

The disadvantages include the following aspects:

• the need to combine several recipes for severe or old stains;
• labor-intensive preparation;
• high cost of funds;
• short shelf life;
• poor foaming, especially in cold water.

Useful tips

For fans of homemade dishwashing products The following tips will be helpful:

1. To eliminate the smell of laundry soap, you should replace the hot water in the recipe with an infusion of pine needles or dry zest.
2. If home remedies are used occasionally, then you don’t have to prepare a gel from soda or mustard, but pour the dry powder directly onto a sponge.
3. To quickly wipe off carbon deposits or a thick layer of fat, you need to boil the dishes with grated soap, soda and PVA glue (30-40 g of each component per 1 liter of water).
4. When washing lightly soiled glassware, you need to soak it in warm water with the juice of half a lemon, and then rub it with a clean sponge without detergent.

Video on the topic of the article

Universal ECO dishwashing detergent, video recipe:

Conclusion

Products based on soap, soda, mustard and other natural ingredients are a safe analogue of modern dish gels. For maximum efficiency, use mild hot water for washing. To remove the pungent odor of the product, you can use zest, pine infusions and essential oils.