Hi all, as promised I am also now putting up the recipe for homemade washing up liquid - very eco friendly and cheap! I got it from our office cleaners, greenmop.co.uk who have just won a green award so I'm dead chuffed to take their recommendations on being a bit greener.
Washing Up Liquid Recipe:
3 x litres boiling water
6 x drops tea tree or lime or lavender essential oil (or just use lemon or lime juice!)
1 x heaped tablespoon soap flakes (DriPak make these)
1 x heaped tablespoon of soda crystals (DriPak again)
1 x tablespoon white vinegar
Mix together and place into containers with a funnel - again the 2 pint plastic milk bottles are good for this as they have handles, and you are re-using rather than recycling!
Add the drops of essential oils once the water has cooled down as otherwise the oils will evaporate with the heat of the boiling water.
Shake before use, add water as needed.
This is a guideline and you can adjust to suit your preferences. I find I can usually dilute with a little more water in the container near the sink too.
I worked this out at £0.10p per litre but costs may vary according to what you pay for the dry goods.
I also came across this interesting site for greener cleaning tips:
http://www.savingadvice.com/blog/2008/06/24/102178_recipes-for-homemade-cleansers.html
So £0.10p for 1 litre - compared to around £2.40 for 1 litre of fairy liquid, which is full of other chemicals. Saves £2.30 per time, perhaps say £2.00 a time if you allow for your 5 minutes work.
12 comments:
hi there,
ive made some of this following the recipe but think i must have done something wrong or need to alter something!
i find it does not cut the grease off the plates etcor hold it off, so everything ends up with a layter of grease over it. what can i do to stop this?
also, it doesnt seem to be very bubbly. do i need to add more soap?
Hi Annie,
Try varying the quantities - you may like to add more vinegar as this is a natural way to cut through grease and maybe some more soda crystals.
Please don't worry about bubbles. We're all mentally brainwashed to think that more bubbles = cleaner, which is not the case. More bubbles normally means more chemicals.
Vary the recipe as you see fit until it matches what you prefer from washing up liquid. It will depend on the kind of foods you eat, the amount left on plates, could even depend on the water in your area, plus your personal preferences, as to how your recipe is customised.
Let us know how you get on x
cheers hun. i will add more of both of those and see if it gets better :)
Thanks for that - just noticed this. 10p - sounds good to me.!
Welcome Ceridwen great to see you here and hope that you find interesting bits, would love to hear any comments you have as this blog is more about what I am learning along the way but would be most grateful for any tips you have! Have a lovely weekend x
I'm going to make this tomorrow! thanks very much :) xxx
I have also had the greasy problem with this recipe but have found adding more vinegar & less soap helps.. Also have used my homemade laundry liquid for my dishes which is the same recipe but with borax added.. This is a wet version of the dishwasher powder recipe so just make sure u rinse afterwards. This recipe cuts through grease & creates less scum in the wash bowl.
Thanks, it has been a while since I made any but maybe when I get some time I'll have another go x
Would this work to disinfect stuff that had been used for raw meat/chicken???
Hi there, I would imagine if you add tea tree oil this will up the anti bacterial stakes. Hot water, vinegar, tea tree and the soap should do it!
Thanks for this! How long will it store for roughly? (not that i'm expecting it to last very long with the amount of washing up I do!):)
Hi I found I used it before any separation happened, but even if it separates you just shake to combine, always a good idea to have a shake before using anyway.
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