Every now and then I find our dishwasher isn’t working quite as well as it should. I only use our Lemon Dish Powder as I don’t want to put all the toxins that are in regular commercial dishwasher onto my families plates, glasses and cutlery, nor do I like all those terrible smelling chemicals wafting around the kitchen and then going down the drain.

Over time all dishwashers require a clean of their own (see the article below for how to do this using only Wendyl’s Premium White Vinegar). After I’ve done this, I then use the Tea Tree Dishwasher Liquid for a few washes to give the machine a clean through its pipes; this seems to bring the whole thing back to life and once again we have super clean sparkly dishes.

This recipe is quick and easy to make and will refresh your dish washer, I find that only using this instead of the powder doesn’t continue to work as well, but you may have a different result. Remember to always add Wendyl’s Premium White Vinegar to the rinse compartment instead of commercial rinse aid. And don’t ever make this recipe with regular dish wash liquid or you will have a big foamy mess to clean up.

 

Tea Tree Dishwasher Liquid*

1/2 cup filtered water

1/2 cup Green Goddess Hemp & Eucalyptus Organic Dish Wash Liquid or Dr Bronners Castile Liquid Soap (don’t use normal liquid soap such as Sunlight as it will be way too bubbly and could harm your machine and create a foamy mess)

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

5 drops tea tree essential oil

1/2 cup Wendyl’s Premium White Vinegar (double strength)

In a squeeze bottle, mix water and soap together and add lemon juice, tea tree oil and then vinegar. It should go white and cloudy. Use 2 tbsp per load or just fill the dispenser.

*Your dish washer warranty will state that you must use only approved powders and tablets. Choosing a natural alternative is up to you (and I’m sure the big chemical cleaning product manufacturers would prefer you didn’t as they often have reciprocal deals). Our dish washer, and the previous one when we moved house, have been perfectly fine as long as we looked after the machine, which is something you have to do anyway.