Citric Acid for Natural Home Cleaning

Using citric acid for natural home cleaning is a safe and green way to kill bacteria, some fungi and mildew. It effectively removes soap scum, hard water stains, calcium deposits, limescale and rust. It is excellent as a dishwasher rinse-aid and is a wonderful fabric softener.

Citric acid is an acid compound naturally found in citrus fruits. It is used as a preservative in green cleaning products as well as food.

Usage

• Pour a maximum of one teaspoon into your dishwasher dispenser for a sparkling result.
• Run an empty dishwasher cycle with one tablespoon of citric acid to clean the interior of your dishwasher.
• Create a glass cleaner by diluting it with water (30ml per liter).
• Eliminate limescale deposits from taps or kettles using this product.
• For thorough cleaning and disinfection of countertops or chopping boards, use a more concentrated solution (125ml per liter of water).

Tips

Store in a tightly closing container to prevent caking.

NB: Before use, please ensure that your dishwasher’s salt compartment (normally located in the floor of the machine) is topped up with plain salt (sodium chloride).

NB: When changing over from conventional dishwasher detergents and rinse aids, it is really important to first prepare your machine by clearing away deposits that are likely to have built up in the pipes, nooks and crannies of your machine. Otherwise, these deposits will be loosened by the cleaning action of the natural dishwasher salts and citric acid rinse aid, and redeposited on your dishes!

To prepare your machine, put 1/4 – 1/2 cup of citric acid in the bottom of your empty dishwasher and start a normal wash cycle. After a few minutes (3-5), interrupt the cycle and allow the solution to soak in the machine for a couple of hours. Then resume the cycle and allow it to finish and drain the solution away. If your machine does not allow you to interrupt the cycle, instead run the longest cycle available with the citric acid in the bottom of the machine as above.

Fill the dishwasher detergent dispenser (1-2 tablespoons) and wash as normal.

Use a 30ml:1 litre solution of citric acid or ordinary white vinegar, as a rinse aid, to avoid cloudy streaks on glassware etc.

Clean your dishwasher’s filters regularly. This is very important, as otherwise the debris caught in the filters will be redeposited on your dishes.

If you have very hard water, or if you find that you start getting deposits on your dishes after using these products for some time, you may need to clear away build up from inside your machine and pipes. To do this, run an empty cycle with 1-2 tablespoons of citric acid in the main dispenser. (In severe cases, repeat the initial preparation routine described above for preparing your machine – run a long cycle with 1/4 – 1/2 cup of citric acid in the bottom of the machine.)

Pair with The Apothecary Dishwasher Salts for clean and sparkling results without no harsh chemicals. Learn how to make your own laundry softener and dishwasher rinse-aid here. Be sure to also look at this guide to learn how to clean your shower heads, espresso machine and kettle with citric acid.

Warning

Breathing in citric acid dust can cause nose and throat irritation. It can also be an eye and skin irritant. Protect skin and eyes and establish appropriate ventilation while working with citric acid.

Plastic Free Shipping

Product will be shipped in an unbleached brown paper bag made from recycled paper. It is 100% biodegradable, compostable along with any food waste or recyclable as long as it has no residual food in it. Energy was still used to make the bag during manufacturing, therefore we’d like to encourage all customers to reuse their paper bags at least three times to reduce their carbon footprint. We pack each online order in a reused box which we collect from deliveries made to us by our suppliers or donated by friends and family.  We seal the boxes with 100% fully biodegradable packing tape.