How To Create A Reed Diffuser With 10 Essential Oil Blend Recipes

Jennifer Lane - Certified Aromatherapist on 11/07/2022

How often do you enjoy the sweet, tranquil scent of essential oils? Maybe you use them in your home or office to create a welcoming atmosphere. Or maybe they're just something that makes you feel good when inhaling deeply. Whatever the reason, diffusers are an affordable way to fill your space with these scents. One popular type of diffuser is a reed diffuser which uses passive diffusion for gentle fragrance without heat, flame, or electricity. Read on to learn how to make one!

Want to learn how to make your own reed diffuser? Reed diffusers with essential oils can freshen up any room, try them in a bathroom, living room, bedroom, even an office.

Homemade reed diffusers will not only cost you less, but they are also better for your health since there are no toxic chemicals in them. Store-bought versions are made with unknown fragrance oils and additives. Make your own natural air freshener with 100% pure essential oils.

Best Essential Oils for Reed Diffusers

Good news...you can use just about any essential oil in your homemade diffuser! This doesn't have to be complicated, just pick an aroma or scented oil that you like to inhale.

How to Make A Reed Diffuser

It is fairly simple to create a DIY reed diffuser, you just need a few ingredients (affiliate links):

Narrow neck glass bottle
Rattan Reeds (or bamboo skewer sticks)
Essential Oils
Fractionated coconut oil
Rubbing Alcohol or Vodka

You can recycle an old reed diffuser bottle and make it new again with one of these recipes, or start from scratch.

You may choose to substitute the fractionated coconut oil for another carrier oil (base oil) like safflower oil or sweet almond oil.

Tip: If using bamboo skewer sticks, cut off the sharp tip with pruning shears, that is what worked best for me. The skewers are too thick for regular scissors to cut and pruning shears are commonly used to cut sticks :)

Essential Oil Reed Diffuser Tutorial

Step 1: You need 20 drops of essential oil for each 1/4 cup of fractionated coconut oil. Use a funnel to add 1 tablespoon alcohol, fractionated coconut oil, and essential oils to the bottle.

Step 2: Gently swirl to mix together, then add the reeds into the bottle. Let the diffuser sticks soak up the oil for one hour, then flip them over so the oil-saturated end is sticking up.

Step 3: Enjoy the aroma, you will occasionally need to flip the reeds to freshen the smell. You will need to replace the reed diffuser oil every 1-2 months if the scent fades, or the oil evaporates.

Reed Diffuser vs Ultrasonic Diffuser

A reed diffuser is not as powerful as an ultrasonic diffuser. Using a reed diffuser for aromatherapy is a form of passive diffusion (evaporation) that offers a gentle scent.

If you are looking for a more intense aroma, you will need an ultrasonic diffuser that will mist the aroma into your space. They require power (plug or USB) in order to work. Learn more about ultrasonic diffusers.

For me, I prefer to use an ultrasonic diffuser daily in my home, but I do have a reed diffuser in my bathroom for a continuous gentle aroma.

Essential Oil Ideas:

Single essential oil (like spearmint or sweet orange)
Essential oil blend from your favorite oil company
Make one of the diffuser recipes shared below
Create your own oil blend

10 Reed Diffuser Recipe Blends

Using essential oils can be a great way to steer clear of chemical fragrances. There are nearly endless essential oil blends to make a custom reed diffusion, here are some ideas for you to try:

1. Bedtime Blend

12 drops of Lavender essential oil (Lavandula angustifolia)
8 drops Roman Chamomile oil (Anthemis nobilis)

2. Citrus Fresh

10 drops Lemon essential oil (Citrus limon)
10 drops Orange essential oil (Citrus sinensis)

3. Spark Creativity

7 drops Bergamot (Citrus bergamia)
7 drops Lemon Oil (Citrus limon)
7 drops Cardamon (Elettaria cardamomum)

4. Calming Blend

7 drops Bergamot (Citrus bergamia)
7 drops Lavender Oil (Lavandula angustifolia)
7 drops Frankincense (Boswellia carterii)

5. Cleansing Blend

10 drops Lemon (Citrus limon)
10 drops Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)

6. Citrus Forest

6 drops Lemon (Citrus limon)
6 drops Orange (Citrus sinensis)
8 drops White Fir (Abies alba)

7. Invigorating Blend

10 drops Peppermint (Mentha piperita)
10 drops Orange (Citrus sinensis)

8. Room Refresher

7 drops Orange (Citrus sinensis)
7 drops Lime (Citrus aurantifolia)
7 drops Peppermint (Mentha piperita)

9. Pumpkin Spice

7 drops Clove oil (Eugenia caryophyllata)
7 drops Cinnamon oil (Cinnamomum zeylanicum)
7 drops Orange oil (Citrus sinensis)

10. Herbal Bouquet

12 drops Lavender oil (Lavandula angustifolia)
8 drops Rosemary oil (Rosmarinus officinalis)

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How To Create A Reed Diffuser With 10 Essential Oil Blend Recipes
– Loving Essential Oils (2024)

FAQs

What is the best ratio for a reed diffuser? ›

We recommend starting out with an 80/20 ratio of diffuser base to fragrance oil.

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How to make a reed diffuser with essential oils? ›

Edens Garden Essential Oil Set

Pour sweet almond oil or safflower oil in 1/2 cup increments into the ceramic or glass vase.
Add 30 - 50 drops of essential oils per 1/2 cup of base oil. ...
Give the vase a good shake or stir to mix oils.
Stick in 5 - 8 reed diffuser sticks.

More items...

Jan 31, 2020

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How do you make a strong smelling reed diffuser? ›

Flip the reeds over regularly

This will improve the distribution of scent throughout the room. You should aim to flip the reeds of your diffuser weekly or once every couple of weeks to get the most out of the aroma.

What is the ratio of essential oils to carrier oil for a reed diffuser? ›

Steps for Making Reed Diffusers

If you're using an oil base, you will blend a mix of 30% essential oil to 70% base oil. You can experiment with the percentages to see what works best for you.

What is the best carrier oil for reed diffusers? ›

What is the best carrier oil for reed diffusers?

Fractionated Coconut Oil. Extracted from coconut trees all over the world, fractionated coconut oil differs slightly from regular, or "refined" coconut oil, as it does not become solid at room temperature. ...
Sweet Almond Oil. ...
Argan Oil. ...
Grapeseed Oil. ...
Rosehip Oil.

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What are the proportions for a diffuser? ›

Most essential oil diffusers use 100 ml of water.

The recommended amount of essential oil for a diffuser with a capacity of 200 ml is 6-9 drops. Large size essential oil diffusers need around 200 drops of essential oil.

Diffuser Size	Number of Drops
200ml	8-10
300ml	11-15
400ml	16-20
500ml	21-25

What are the disadvantages of reed diffusers? ›

Cons: Scent Intensity: While reed diffusers offer a subtle aroma, they may not be as potent as candles, particularly in larger spaces. Limited Scent Selection: Reed diffusers typically come pre-filled with specific fragrances, limiting customization options compared to candles.

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Why can't I smell my essential oils? ›

Olfactory fatigue is a temporary, naturally-occurring, inability to distinguish a particular scent after prolonged or repeated exposure. Overexposure to any scent can lead to what is known as “habituation”, an experience-based sensitivity adaptation. Your olfactory receptors essentially go “blind”.

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What is the best percentage for a reed diffuser? ›

As a general rule, the ideal fragrance-to-base ratio for reed diffusers is somewhere between 10 and 20% fragrance. In other words, you will get a good scent throw by using 10% fragrance and 90% base, or 20% fragrance and 80% base for a stronger scent.

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How full should a reed diffuser be? ›

If the fragrance oil comes in a separate container, the next step is to pour the oil into your vessel until it is approximately ½ to ¾ full. Don't fill it all the way to the top, or it might overflow when you add the reeds in. Skip this step if your diffuser vessel came with the oil already inside.

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What to mix with essential oil for a reed diffuser? ›

Heavier oils, such as olive oil or jojoba oil, will take longer to travel up the reeds, so for quicker results, stick with lighter oils, like sweet almond. Some folks add a bit of alcohol (either rubbing alcohol or vodka) to their mixture to help speed up the process of the oil moving through the reeds.

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What is the ratio of oil to scent in a diffuser? ›

Recommended Mixing Ratio: Fragrance should be added to the diffuser base at a ratio of 20 to 25%. This means for a mixing ratio of 20% every 800ml of base would require 200mls of fragrance. If mixed at 25% every 750ml of base used would require 250mls of fragrance.

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How much fragrance do you put in a reed diffuser? ›

Step 1: Create a Diffuser Solution

Using a second container, weigh out 1 oz (28 g) of fragrance oil. Then pour the fragrance into the container with the 3 oz (85 g) of reed diffuser base and gently stir.