Test Kitchen: How To Make " Homemade Dish Detergent"

Another test completed in my test kitchen includes making my own dishwasher detergent.  The money savings did not play into this decision.  Instead, I was interested in seeing if something will work better than my current store bought items. 

I think my dishwasher may be on the fritz, last leg, etc.  I use Jet Dry and all sorts of goods to try to make sure that my dishes no longer have a cloudy effect.  I read an article about homemade dishwasher detergent.  This article talks about the discontinuation of phosphate in dish detergents that have resulted in cloudy effects on dishes.  People have been replacing dishwashers.

Sounded very similar to my plea, so using the article (http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/02/homemade-dishwasher-detergent-revised.html) I went about locating the simple ingredients to be combined for homemade dish detergent.

1 cup washing soda
1 cup Borax
1/4 cup Kosher Salt
2 packets of Lemon Kool-Aid (unsweetened)

Combining these with a couple drops of dish soap, I ran a load of dishes and hoped this would mean not spending any money on a new dishwasher.  I would rather buy new shoes or carpet for my bedroom.

Well, this is the result.  There went my dreams of not buying a new dishwasher.  I call this one a failure in my test kitchen.  However, that may not be fair.  It really could be the dishwasher at this point, and if that is the case...my test kitchen has too many outlying variables to reach a solid conclusion.