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Sometimes we need a little something to help freshen the garbage disposal, and since I love creating “cleaning bombs”, I decided to make some specifically for my garbage disposal. (You can see my toilet bombs here and shower bombs here.)
What You’ll Need to Make Garbage Disposal Bombs
- 1 1/2 Cup Baking Soda
- 1/2 Cup Citric Acid (This can be a bit hard to find, but I eventually found it in the canning section at Walmart. You can also purchase it on Amazon, but it ends up costing more.)
- 40 Drops Lemon Essential Oil- Not sure where to buy essential oils? Check out this post.
- 40 Drops Orange Essential Oil
- Citrus Zest (Optional)
- Water (Preferably in a spray bottle)
- Silicone Mold
This recipes makes approximately 24 Garbage Disposal Bombs
I will have you know that I tried several recipes for these bombs. Some involved using dish soap, but I found these bombs would take forever to dry and would crumble when they were removed from the mold. I also tried omitting the citric acid. This version held up really well, but dissolved so quickly in the water that I’m not sure they really did a great job freshening. The recipe above was, by far, my favorite; they held up well, and took longer to dissolve.
How to Make Your Own Garbage Disposal Bombs
Start by thoroughly mixing 1 1/2 cups baking soda and 1/2 Cup Citric Acid. Then add your essential oils. The oils tend to create little “blobs” within the baking soda, so make sure to really work them in.
If you happen to have a lemon or orange sitting around, you can zest it and add the zest to the mixture as well. (I happened to have a lemon on hand, so I added lemon zest to the mix.)
Using a spray bottle, spray water onto the mixture several times (be prepared for a little fizzing at you add the water). After a few sprays, check the mixture’s consistency. As soon as it holds its shape in your hand, stop adding water. The mixture may seem a bit crumbly in the bowl, but if it holds its shape, you’re good.
Firmly press the mixture into a silicone mold, and allow it time to dry. This will take several hours (overnight) sitting on the counter at room temperature.
Pop the garbage disposal bombs out of the mold once they are dry and store them in an airtight container until you are ready to use them. I decided to “pretty up” the container with a chalkboard label, and fancy lettering using my Cricut.
When the time comes to freshen your garbage disposal, add a couple of the garbage disposal bombs to the disposal while running a slow stream of cold water, allowing the bombs to break apart and dissolve. Turn on the disposal for a few seconds, and you’re done.
*Please keep your hands and other objects out of the garbage disposal at all times!
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I would really like a guideline on about how much water this recipe takes
It really isn’t very much, which is why I recommend just spraying a bit into the mixture until it achieves the correct consistency. I don’t really know the exact measurement as I have only ever used a spray bottle and I’m not sure how much that equates to.
I kept looking at the picture and I thought the essential oil must be the citric acid (which didn’t make sense at all)! I finally looked at the recipe and followed the link to Amazon. I just wondered why you didn’t add the container of citric acid in the picture with the other ingredients. I’m glad I read it thoroughly and found the link. These sound amazing but I really could have screwed up this recipe. I’m not much of a cook, either. 😉
I can see why you might be a bit confused. Sorry about that. I updated the recipe to include to citric acid but didn’t update the images. Might have to look into that.
I read your note on how they would expand a little…. ?? Mine expanded ALOT!! ??
mine too- it became a mess ;(. maybe i put too much water in 🙁
Hi Erin, such a great post. Thanks for perfectly explaining the process in detail. Hopefully will be able to execute it soon.