Can I make automatic dishwasher detergent?

Not from a tested published recipe. The extension publications that print homemade cleaner recipes (Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Penn State, New Mexico State, Mississippi State and UF/IFAS) give none for an automatic dishwasher [1][2][3][4][5][6][15], so no recipe appears here. What you will find instead: what a commercial dishwasher product contains and why, according to its safety data sheet; the safety classification those ingredients bring; the phosphorus caps that shape every formula; and the packaging rules for alkaline powders. For your own kitchen, a commercial detergent used as your dishwasher's manual directs is the tested option.

What the extension publications cover, and what they do not

The Georgia, Kentucky and Missouri documents are one recipe set, so this is fewer independent sources than it looks. Recipes for this job circulate online, but none appears in these tested, published sources, and the safety facts below explain why that matters for a product that goes into a closed, heated machine.

What a commercial dishwasher product contains

A safety data sheet lists hazardous ingredients with concentration ranges, so it is the best public view of a real formula. Seventh Generation's SDS for its automatic dishwasher packs (July 27, 2018) lists [7]:

The SDS notes that "Where ranges are shown, the exact concentration has been withheld as a trade secret" [7]. Its pH is 9.2 to 10.2 as a 1 percent solution [7]. The SDS gives no function for any ingredient; the types in the table are what each ingredient is.

Alkalinity, enzymes, and the safety label they bring

That formula, which contains no hydroxide and no chlorine, still carries the signal word DANGER on its SDS. The classifications are Eye Irritation Category 2A, "Causes serious eye irritation," and Respiratory Sensitization Category 1, "May cause allergy or asthma symptoms or breathing difficulties if inhaled," based on its ingredients [7]. For eyes, the SDS says to flush with large amounts of water for at least 15 minutes [7].

Two lessons for anyone formulating one:

1. Enzyme powders are a respiratory hazard to the maker. Blending loose enzyme and carbonate powders in a home workshop puts you in the dust. The sensitization classification on a finished, packed product is a warning about what the raw powders can do. Dust control is on should I make solid cleaning products?.
2. Washing soda alone is an eye irritant. Its own SDS gives Category 2A and a pH of 11.4 [8].

Is it an FHSA hazardous substance?

CPSC defines corrosive as a substance "which will cause destruction of tissue by chemical action upon contact," and an irritant as one "not corrosive" that on contact "will induce a local inflammatory reaction" [9]. A product that is either, and that "May cause substantial personal injury or illness during customary or reasonably foreseeable handling or use," needs FHSA cautionary labeling with a signal word, hazards, the hazardous component's name, precautions, first aid and "Keep out of the reach of children" [9]. Classify your own formula on is your cleaner a hazardous substance?.

Child-resistant packaging

16 CFR 1700.14(a)(5) requires special packaging for dry household substances with 10 percent or more "free or chemically unneutralized" sodium or potassium hydroxide [10]. Sodium carbonate, citric acid and sodium percarbonate are not named in that paragraph [10]. A carbonate-based powder like the one above is therefore not caught by (a)(5), while a powder that adds sodium hydroxide for extra alkalinity can be. Check every ingredient against the full list on child-resistant closures.

Phosphorus: the cap that shaped modern formulas

At least sixteen states have capped household dishwasher detergent at 0.5 percent phosphorus by weight since July 1, 2010, down from phosphorus levels as high as 8.7 percent, according to Consumer Reports [11]; Vermont's statute now allows only a trace [14], and New York's caps dishwasher products at 0.5 percent for commercial users too [13]. That is why current products rely on carbonate, citrate and silicate. Most state texts read exempt commercial and institutional dishwashing; New York does not. The states, the wording and how to count phosphorus are on phosphorus limits for detergents.

Never mix in the machine

A dishwasher is a closed box with hot water and spray, which makes it a bad place for an accidental mix. New Jersey's health department lists some dishwasher detergents among products that react with bleach, and its case files include a restaurant worker overcome after opening a dishwasher that held a lime remover and bleach; the details are on what is hiding in store-bought cleaners. Do not add bleach, vinegar or a descaler to a load that already has detergent in it unless the detergent and machine makers both say to.

Your dishwasher's manual

No dishwasher manufacturer's statement on homemade detergent is cited here. Your machine's manual and its maker's care pages are the authority for what goes into the dispenser, how much, and whether a rinse aid is needed. Read them before you put anything homemade in.

If you want to sell one

A dishwasher product is a full formulation project: alkalinity, enzymes, dust control, phosphorus caps, FHSA labeling, possibly child-resistant packaging, a moisture-proof pack, and, in California, ingredient disclosure for a general cleaning product that cares for "dishes, or other wares" [12]. Unit-dose packs add the questions on laundry packets.

Deciding what to make and what to buy

Dishwasher detergent is one of the jobs where the tested product is the sensible home choice. Others are sorted on what you can make at home, and what to buy.

References

1. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension (Pamela R. Turner and Sharon M. S. Gibson), *Green Cleaning: Recipes for a Healthy Home*, HACE-E-73-1, revised October 2018, read October 22, 2026. https://site.extension.uga.edu/greenway/files/2024/09/10.18_Green-Clean-Booklet_update.pdf
2. Kentucky Cooperative Extension, *Green Cleaning: Recipes for a Healthy Home* (recipe cards), January 2010, read October 22, 2026. https://fcs.mgcafe.uky.edu/sites/fcs.mgcafe.uky.edu/files/green-cleaning-recipe-cards.pdf
3. University of Missouri Extension (adapted by Kandace Fisher-McLean), *Green Cleaning: Recipes for a Healthy Home*, GH201, read October 22, 2026. https://extension.missouri.edu/media/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/Pub/pdf/hesguide/foodnut/gh201.pdf
4. Pennsylvania Integrated Pest Management Program, *Greener Cleaner Recipes* (hosted by Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Entomology), undated, read October 22, 2026. https://extensionentomology.tamu.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2011/05/Green-cleaning.pdf
5. New Mexico State University, *Green Alternatives to Toxic Household Products and Hazardous Waste*, Guide G-313, revised February 2019, read October 22, 2026. https://pubs.nmsu.edu/_g/G313/index.html
6. Mississippi State University Extension Service, *Stain Removal Guide*, Publication 1400, undated, read October 22, 2026. https://extension.msstate.edu/sites/default/files/publications/publications/p1400.pdf
7. Seventh Generation, Inc., *Safety Data Sheet: Automatic Dishwasher Detergent Packs (Lemon)*, FM000005-01.2, July 27, 2018. https://whatsinproducts.com/app/webroot/files/brands_pdf/1642350451.pdf
8. Church & Dwight Co., Inc., *Safety Data Sheet: Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*, version 1.0, October 2, 2015. https://uwaterloo.ca/fine-arts/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/arm_and_hammer_washing_soda_10-02-2015.pdf
9. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, *FHSA Requirements* (business guidance), undated, read October 22, 2026. https://cpsc.gov/Business--Manufacturing/Business-Education/Business-Guidance/FHSA-Requirements
10. Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, *16 CFR 1700.14, Substances requiring special packaging*, read October 22, 2026. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/1700.14
11. Consumer Reports, *Phosphorus ban on dishwashing detergents goes into effect in 16 states*, July 2, 2010. https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2010/07/phosphorus-ban-on-dishwashing-detergents-goes-into-effect-in-16-states-manufacturers-roll-out-new-cleaners-nationwide/index.htm
12. California Health and Safety Code section 108952, via California Public Law, verified October 19, 2026, read October 22, 2026. https://california.public.law/codes/health_and_safety_code_section_108952
13. New York Environmental Conservation Law section 35-0105, via New York Public Law (text last modified January 7, 2022), read October 22, 2026. https://newyork.public.law/laws/n.y._environmental_conservation_law_section_35-0105
14. Vermont General Assembly, *10 V.S.A. 1382*, current text, read October 22, 2026. https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/section/10/047/01382
15. UF/IFAS Extension (Amanda Griffin and Randall A. Cantrell), *Homemade Household Cleaners*, FCS3319, Release Date October 7, 2025. https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FY1449