I've been making my own dish tabs for years, but recently I tried a new recipe that is sooo much easier to make than the one I've been using. You only need 3 ingredients to make these homemade dish tablets. They will leave your dishes clean and sparkly and will help save you time and money!
I made a quick video showing how easy they are to make in real time...check it out below!
What you will need to make Homemade Dish Tablets:
You can click the links to find the products listed below...these are affiliate links that I may receive a commission for if you buy.
1 Cup Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon Dish Liquid (any brand will do)
Start by adding one cup of baking soda to a large bowl.
Add ¼ cup of citric acid.
Add 1 tablespoon of dish liquid.
Mix well using a whisk or you can use your hands like I do...I just think it is easier to mix it well this way.
Push the mixture into silicone ice cube molds. I used two different molds so I could use all of my mixture.
Wait about 10 minutes and level them off with your hand. They expand just a little bit, but much less than the old ones I used to make. Once you level them off, they shouldn't expand much more.
Let sit for at least 4 hours or overnight. They will harden like store bought dish tablets. Now just flip your molds over and push the tabs out.
They are ready to use! Use one tablet per load of dishes. Just place directly in your dishwasher and run a normal washing cycle.
Store them in an airtight container and keep them dry until time to use them. Happy cleaning!
Want to add a little cuteness to your homemade cleaning solutions? Grab my Free Printable Cleaning Labels HERE!
Looking for more home tips and cleaning recipes? Find hundreds of them HERE on my Home Tips Page!
Frances Steele says
Where can I buy the Citric Acid????
Jessica says
Hi, Frances! You can usually find it in the canning section of the grocery store near the canning jars, or you can buy it here online... Citric Acid
Riti says
They are easily available at any Indian grocery store, if you have any nearby. They are cheaper than somewhere else.
Dana says
Can YOU just add aa tablespoon instead of using molds?
Aaryn says
I had the same question. I've seen other recipes almost identical that leave in powder form. Given that and therefore assuming it's okay, the follow up question I had was how much powder per load. And your suggestion of 1 tablespoon seems to be about spot on, as in a separate comment Jessica said that this recipe makes about 20-24 tablets, and there is 1.25 cups of dry ingredients, so 1.25 cups / 20 tablets = 1 tablespoon. Hope that is helpful if anyone else is looking for this answer!
Caylee says
Is itric acid necessary? Or is there anything I can substitute it with? I have baking soda and Dawn dish soap would it be okay to just make them from that
brian says
You could also use acetic acid, but ypu need an acid to start the chemical reaction with sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) to generate the carbon dioxide that helps clean your dishes
Jane says
No. An acid is needed for the baking soda to be activated & work.
Tracy says
I regularly make and sell bath bombs and I buy my citric acid on Amazon. For single recipes of toilet bombs or others provided here the small bottles from grocery store is perfect! Hope that helps you
Alicia says
Check with local health food stores. It would be found with seed sprouting supplies.
Jocelyn elona says
Can i use vinegar instead of citric acid?
brian says
Vinegar in its liquid state will immediatly catylize the reaction, generating carbon dioxide. You want that reaction to happen IN the dishwasher, as it helps clean your dishes. Vinegar is just watered down acetic acid, so you could distill a dry crystalline solid acetic acid from vinegar and use that, or just buy anhydrous(dry) acetic acid.
Michael Grayson says
I have used the inside of apple cider vinegar capsules with luck as a replacement for the citric acid! And the bottle was super cheap. Only downside is having to break open the capsules.
Stephanie says
Walmart has it.
brian says
I can find it in the baking section in my grocery store
Beth says
I was going to ask the same question. Where do we find citric acid
Nicole R says
i found it at Walmart where they have the Mason jars for canning. I was looking in the spice aisle. thank goodness for the Walmart app. it'll tell u exactly where its at. Good luck
Teresa says
Walmart has it, some grocery and hardware stores. I ordered mine on ebay and amazon.
Gina says
I don't know when you asked your question, but it can be purchased on Amazon.
Natalie says
I couldn't find any at my local store, so I just ordered online (Amazon).
La says
Walmart by Canning Supplies
Jessica says
They have some at Hobby Lobby
G5 says
Hobby lobby
Kari says
What do you mean "place them directly in the dishwasher"? My dishwasher has a two-part soap dispenser with a covering lid where I place tablets? Place there, or just "toss" in the dishwasher before starting?
Jessica says
Some of the molds that I have used don't fit in the dispenser. If it fits, you can add it there, if not, just toss it in before you start your dishwasher!
Tracy says
How big of a tab do you use per load? I have a few molds and they are all different sizes.
Jessica says
Hi, Tracy! Mine are about the same size as an ice cube. Hope this helps!
Janna says
Does it leave a film? I made some with Baking soda , salt, borax vinegar and it leaves everything with a white film:( thanks
Jessica says
That's the greatest thing about these tablets...no film since they don't contain too many ingredients!
Judy says
Can you use these in a dishwasher
Becky says
Hi there! I made these per the recipe & I am actually getting a film. We have REALLY hard water & no way to soften it. Is there a coordinating rinse aid you can make & use? Or is there something else I can do? Maybe add a little more acid or dawn?
Jessica says
Hi, Becky! Try adding vinegar or store bought rinse aid to your dishwasher. There should be a compartment that you can fill. It should help with hard water spots!
Pibe says
Make sure the salt dispenser is always full. It helps to make water soft
Jessica says
Do you think regular plastic ice trays will work?
Jessica says
Absolutely...regular plastic ice trays will work perfectly! Thanks for asking!
Grace says
Can you explain what the citric acid does for the dishes? I've never made these so I'm curious what an ingredient used in canning would contribute to the cleaning process. Thanks!
Jessica says
Citric acid is used to remove lime particles and help with hard water. Hope this helps!
Jessica says
You are using about 3/4 cup in the recipe, so any size jar will do. Hope this helps!
Latasha says
How many tablets come out of one batch?
Jessica says
Hi, Latasha! It depends on the size of your tray. I usually get 20-24 tablets out of each batch. Hope this helps!
angie says
Are you to use 1/4 cup of citric acid or 3/4 cup?
Juliet says
Hello Jessica,
Couldn't figure out how to leave a new comment.Just got a new apartment with my husband a kids so these well work great a buget friendly! I think I figured out to help puffing up. I add 2 1/2 tbsp dish soap ,2 cups baking soda to 1/4 cup cetric acide, mixed the baking soda and dish soap in the citric acid seem d to help. Thanks so much for this diy
Stephanie says
Where we used to live, the tap water turned the inside of my dishwasher orange. I was able to get rid of it by running a load with just citric acid
Sarah says
Can you use castile soap for the dish soap?
Jessica says
Hi, Sarah! You can absolutely use Castile soap instead of dish soap...you may need to add a little more to get the right consistency though. Great idea! ~Jess
Elizabeth Walsh says
So when it puffs up and you scrap off the top, should you pack it down? Or leave it?
Suzanne says
How many batches can I get out of the bottle of citric acid?
Jessica says
Hi, Suzanne! At least 2-3 batches from the small container of citric acid that I showed.
Suzy says
Do these really work as well as regular tabs?
Jessica says
I sure think so!
Becky Lamboley says
I tried making them and they didn't harden. Very soft and crumbly. Help, what did I do wrong?
Sarah says
I had the same issue but managed to fix it the second time (I think, I'm still waiting for it to dry) In the second time I added only two teaspoons but one at a time. I added one tsp, mixed it in, then added the second and mixed that in. That gave me a much more stable mixture that seems to have worked like the instructions say it should.
Good luck!
Candace says
do you need finish to reduce spotting? or do you jot have a problem with it when using this?
Jessica says
I use vinegar as a rinse aid and it works great to keep spots away! ~Jess
DEAN says
DEAN SAYS AT
HOW MUCH VINEGAR FOR THE RINSE AID?
Pat says
Just fill the place where you would put a rinse aid, with vinegar.
Tonia says
Young Living has an essential oil that you can add to the vinegar rinse. It helps with spots and also helps clean your dishwasher. It is Jade Lemon
Michelle says
My tablets won't stop expanding. I'm I doing something wrong?
Janice says
Hi Jessica,
Just found you on Pinterest. I have allergies and therefore am eliminating as many toxins in my house as possible (they exist everywhere don't they?!) I have been looking for a dish tab cleaner and found yours. I like your idea except that store boughten cleaners have toxins in them :-(
I am wondering if u think substituting Castille soap would work in its place? For me....that would satisfy my need to use products that are pure.
Jessica says
Absolutely, Janice! Castile soap will work great! I'm with you on eliminating as many toxins as possible...good luck! ~Jess
Diane says
I would like to know how to get the baked on stains off the upper part of my microwave?
Jessica says
Hi, Diane! Try making a paste using baking soda and water to use to scrub it off.
Heather says
Pour a little bit of vinegar in a cup and microwave it until it boils. Turn off the microwave and leave the door closed for 3-5 minutes, so the acidic steam can work to loosen the gunk on the inside of your microwave. Open and wipe clean. No scrubbing.
If you have no vinegar, boiled lemon water works also
Jessica says
I do this all the time for my microwave. If the gunk been sitting for a while, I will let the vinegar sit for at least an hour after warming before wiping the microwave clean. This does wonders.
Angi says
I take put a bowl of lemon water in the microwave and run it for 2 minutes (small bowl), everything usually wipes right off afterwards. You can also put bakin soda in a bowl, add vinegar and while it's foaming use a toothbrush to scrub off the baked on stuff. I do that on my oven door (sprinkle baking soda then spritz with vinegar) and it comes clean even better than when using commercial oven cleaner
Billie says
Put a cup of vinegar or lemon juice in microwave and turn it on for 1 minute. Let it cool and everything just wipes right off.
Chellsea says
If I don't have citric acid can I replace it with something else?
Jessica says
Hi, Chellsea...the citric acid is really needed for these. They help to harden the tablets and also help get the dishes sparkling clean. Hope this helps!
Rhonda says
Could you use lemon juice instead of the citric acid?
Heather says
Citric acid works really well, but some say lemon kool-aid and or lemon juice works also... I was just worried about the yellow dye staining my machine
Mrs. Carol Duchscher says
How long do they keep for. Can you make a lot and keep it stored in a jar or a reusable dishwasher tablets container
Jessica says
They should keep for up to 6 months. I make a large batch and store them in an airtight container and keep them under my sink. Hope this helps!
Marlene says
I have the same problem as Michelle- but notice no replies for her or the other one that had a problem with them not hardening. Posting those replies are helpful for others as well. Thank you!!
Kathy T says
Love the thought of the 3 simple ingredients but I'm having a terrible time with the mixture foaming up. I've been working for 15 minutes and it's still foaming and not packing into mold. Any ideas how to stop this. I used dawn simply clean, soda and citric acid. Thanks for your time
Jessica says
HI, Kathy! I usually walk away while it is foaming up and come back once it has stopped. Then I swipe away the excess and fill another tray...it just makes more. Different dish liquids make foam more than others, so times may vary. Hope this helps! ~Jess
Jayna says
For the foaming issue, I tweaked the recipe by using 1/2 cup citric acid and only 1 tsp of liquid dish. My tabs puffed up some but did not foam out of control like they did with the original recipe. I used the Ecos brand of liquid dish but I plan to try Dr. Bronner's liquid soap in my next batch to test it out.
Sheila says
Hi there... I'm just wondering, the inside of my dishwasher is stainless steel, are the dishwasher tabs safe to use?
Jessica says
Should work just fine...all of the ingredients are safe for stainless steel!
Elizabeth says
Where can I buy your jars and other containers and ive trays?
Lindy says
Hello! I was looking to see what dawn soap had in it and noticed the dawn soap label specifically says not intended for dishwasher use. Would you recommend any other soap to use as replacement?
Jessica says
Hi, Lindy! They are really referring to the fact that you aren't supposed to use a great deal of it in the dishwasher. There isn't enough used in each of these to affect it. The only reason you shouldn't use much is because of the sudsing. No worries with these!
Heather says
These tabs work really well. I've tried a few recipes, and so far this one is the best. I have hard water so I added some salt to this recipe, but even without the salt it worked. No grease at all, no yucky film... It did swell up alot, but it stopped after a little while, I just removed the excess and made more tabs... One recipe like this will give you about 1 regular sized ice cube tray full (approx. 14 tablets) I multiplied it by 4 and filled 4 trays
Valerie says
Will the acid and dish soap break down the plastics and rubber inside the dishwasher over time? These sound awesome and I have all the ingredients. I'm just concerned about the long term effects. How long have you been using them?
Jessica says
Hi, Valerie! No, they won't...citric acid is in sooo many products that we buy at the store and is actually really mild. It causes a fizzing action and helps remove stuck on foods and stains from your dishes and your dishwasher too! Hope this helps! xoxo Jess
Stephanie says
I do not have a dishwasher!! Can I use the Dish Tablets in a sink full of hot water! I love the idea of them.
Jessica says
TO be honest, dish liquid is all that you need for a sink full of dishes, but you could sure give it a try! xoxo Jess
Stephanie says
O.k thanks. I am going to try them. I have a white kitchen sink and it may just help with keeping that cleaner also.
Chez says
Hi Jessica! Just giving your recipe for these tabs a try, I've tried another type but they left a film on a lot of my dishes & left some very spotty. I was wondering if I can swap the baking soda for washing soda? I feel like with our kind of water the baking soda my have been what left a film. What do you think? Thanks!
Kevalyn says
These tabs work so well. I also added a few drops of lavender, lemon and orange essential oils to recipe . They smell so good and leave my dishes clean. I used a regular ice cube tray to mold. They are slightly larger than the brand I usually purchase but I haven't had any issues with leftover residue . Will definitely make more of these instead of purchasing tablets.
Melanie says
These work amazingly well! I was literally taken back by how much cleaner my dishes and dishwasher were than with the store bought stuff! Unfortunately my tree nut allergic son had an allergic reaction around the time I mixed these and I realized later that the citric acid had a tree nut cross contamination warning. I've been unable to find citric acid that is tree nut free. Does anyone know of any?
Becky says
If I were you I'd play around with the baking soda, dish soap, and I would add some lemon essential oil. If you mix a dryer mixture you should at least be able to form the soap with a mold. It may not be hard though. Maybe even use a small ice cream type scoop (small) to put into dishwasher instead of molding. Just a thought
Aairyn says
Holy moly I've been reading all these comments and I would just like to say that you are a real trooper with all the replying and advice! I love these tablets, just came back for the recipe again to make a new batch. Thank you!
JoAnne says
I made these for the first time a few weeks ago. When I put the mixture into my ice cube trays, it kept expanding longer than 10 minutes. So much was coming out, that I had to repack the ice trays. Once they finally stopped expanding, I let it be for several hours. When I tried to take them out of the ice trays, just about ALL of them crumbled into a giant mess. I did one batch with blue Dawn and one batch with the Meyer's Lemon Grass soap. They both came out like this. What could I have done wrong?
JoAnne says
I should mention that I made these for my toilet. I do plan on also making them for my dishwasher once I run out of the store bought detergent.
Rose says
I have just made this recipe twice but it turns to a fuzzy liquid, does it set over a period of hours? Your pictures dont look liquid like mine do.
Jean says
The three ingredients for the toilet bombs and dishwashing tablets seem to be the same, is that right?
R says
I just made these tonight, I have to let them sit overnight but so far I'm optimistic! They've been sitting for about 30 minutes. The consistencylooks similar to your photos, although they aren't rising like you mentioned. I hope that won't affect how well they work.
Monique says
Just made these and they keep expanding no matter how often I scrape the overflow.......what gives?????
Crystal says
I love this recipe but I also find it hard with the expanding. So, I changed the way its molded. I mix all the ingredients and leave them in the bowl to expand. I wait until it not expanding much anymore, then I take a tablespoon measuring spoon, put some mixture in it and pack it down real hard and then tap it out. It makes a tab that's round on one side and flat on the other and then I let the tabs sit out in the air until they dry and harden and then I put them in an airtight container.
Kim says
wll try this method next time, thanks for sharing ;)
T says
Awesome!
Sloane says
I have had this same issue whenever I use Citric Acid in most of my diy products but after MANY fails I think I found the trick to getting these to not bubble up as much. For me what has worked best is when you are adding any liquid to the citric acid to to add the liquid as slowly as possible little by little with constant mixing while adding the liquid.
Chris says
Hello Jessica,
Thank you for what you do. I love thieves all purpose cleaner. Any suggestions on how I can incorporate it into the dishwasher tabs?
Donna says
You don't have to make squares...get a small coffee scoop and scoop one scoop into the dishwasher soap dispenser and close it. Start washer!♥️
Alexandra Anderson says
Do you just keep the rest in an airtight container when you do this? Does the mixture get too hard to use if you didn't mold them? Also, do you use a tablespoon per load of dishes or? Thanks!
Tori Rockwell says
I halved this recipe added some orange essential oil drops and put it in my stinky washing machine. No more stinky machine and no more aour laundry! Never buy cleaner pcks again.
Denise says
These work like magic! Thank you so much for sharing!! I'll never buy them at the store again
Christine says
This sounds awesome! I would really like to make them, but my husband said he is worried about the drain getting clogged and likes the ones we buy because he thinks they've put research into it to make sure it doesn't do that. I know that this is almost the same thing as what they make just without all the chemicals. You can even see on top of the tabs that there's dishsoap in them, but how can I convince him? Is there an article you can point me to? I've tried googling it already and no one seems to know what I want.
Jessica says
I just made a another batch of your toilet bombs. I didn't realize this was the same recipe. They work so great can't wait to try them in the dishwasher. Thank you.
Tammy says
Hi Jessica,
I have made these a couple of times now and can not get them to harden. I have also watched the video several times. Are you loosely packing them in the trays? I love how they clean. I have just been scooping the cleaner into my dishwasher but I really want this to come out correctly and cannot figure out what I am doing wrong. What are your thoughts?
Tammy
Jessica says
Hi, Tammy! Sorry you are having so much trouble. It may just be that you live in a different climate and they need less liquid. I put mine in while wet, and then dry them overnight. They should definitely come out hardened. Try less liquid and see if that helps!
Sarah Vacca says
I always add a splash of vinegar in my dishwasher. So how will this affect the recipe?
Danica says
Are these okay to use in energy efficient dishwasher models?
Jessica says
Yes they are!
Leigh says
Hi, I followed the reciepe, mine expanded loads (might have put too much mixture into the ice cube trays) could this be th reason why they crumbled when I took them out of the tray?
Nicola Hambley says
I made these exactly to the recipe, but they crumbled... why might that be? I’m now just left with the mix again. Trying to make them to add to my eco hampers I’m making for Christmas presents. Thank you!
Jessica says
You may want to take your mixture and add a little more vinegar to it. In some climates, if the air is really dry, you may need to add a little more moisture. Hope this helps!
Cheri zkunkel says
My tabs expanded as I made them. I'm wondering if the dish detergent had vinegar in it. I don't think they should that.
Cath says
Adding salt will help with the hard water film 😊
Lindsey Hulks says
Hi. Just tried to make these I'm in UK so used bicarb, Citric acid and washing up liquid and ended up with a massive foam mess, where did I go wrong?
Thanks
Sheri says
Has anyone seen any negative effects on their dishwasher (gumming up the dispenser, corrosion, etc.)? I have a brand-new dishwasher with a stainless steel tub, and would really hate to damage it!
Hannah Salzl says
Would castile soap work instead of dish soap? I make dish soap with a mix of water and castile soap anyway, so could I use that or straight castile? If so, which would you recommend?
Jessica says
Absolutely!
H says
Hi,
Read your recipe.(erom the netherlands)..i'd like to try. Do you know of using this will harm the diswasher in any way?
Thanks you
Jessica says
Hi! These will not harm your dishwasher...so no worries! Have a beautiful weekend!
Donna says
I have never made successful dishwashing tablets before but these are Amazing!!!!! I am super fussy with my dishwashing tablets too and these are BETTER than any leading brand. My mixture expands a lot and is more like a fluffy texture than what is shown in your bowl, could I be doing something wrong? I find keeping them in the fridge stops them.from crumbing too.
Meghan says
I just made my first batch of these, Half of them hardened up and turned out great. The other half keeps puffing up while it's drying and the top layer is flaking off. It'll be fine to use as powder, but what made some of them keep puffing up for this long? A little too much dish liquid?
Anel Pienaar says
Can I use tartaric acid instead of citric acid?
Jessica says
I'm not sure that would work for this.
Diamond says
Can i add like fresh lemon or lemon oil to give a scent
Jessica says
I would only add lemon, lime or orange essential oils, and only a few drops, or they may not dry well.
Katie says
I just wanted to say this is recipe is amazing. Thought I'd have a look around as we ran out of store brought yesterday. And my pots have never been so sparkling. Not buying shop brought again.
Natalie Milton says
My tablets keep puffing up! I've patted them down now about 4 times...wondering if its to do with the washing up liquid i used (Ecover)...due to the repetitive puffing up im thinking it might be easier to add bicarb, citric acid and dishwasher liquid loose each time into compartment rather than make tabs?...
Faith says
Any ideas on how to make this into a powder form? For a household of 6 it’s too much work to make tablets. I made these and love them but they were used in less than 2 weeks.
RW says
Thanks for the recipe. It worked great! My dishes are sparkling after the first load. My spouse just commented on how it seems the dishes are cleaner the past few days. (I had been using a gel forever.) We have hard water (limestone caves) and I did not use any rinse agent, glasses came out very clean, no spotting. I've shared this with several friends already and will try to pass the word.
They were puffing up after I put the mix in the mold, so I made little "one teaspoon-sized" pods, let them foam in my 2 teaspoon ice cube molds (silicone), then came back and tamped them down. Will use either two or three for a load. One batch made 45 teaspoons. Should be 15 to 22 loads.
This is very similar to the laundry pods I've made for many years. Just different ingredients. (6T Borax, 6T Arm&Hammer Washing Soda, and 4T Dawn liquid. Makes about 16 pods of 2teaspoon size.)