Making your own nontoxic cleaning products will take you no time at all – using simple recipes that will supply you with enough cleaning product for months of cleaning! Below are some simple recipes that I have compiled that can help you save and clean your home!
All-Purpose Cleaner
2T vinegar
1 T Borax
Hot water
a few drops of a mild dish detergent
10 drops of essential oil, optional
In a 16 spray bottle put vinegar, borax and hot water. Swish around until borax has dissolved. Add the drops of dish detergent and fill the rest of the bottle with water. Add the essential oil (I like using orange or lavender).
In the kitchen, use vinegar-and-water spray to clean countertops, lightly soiled range surfaces and backsplash areas.
In the bathroom, use vinegar spray cleaner to clean countertops, floors, and exterior surfaces of the toilet.
For really tough bathroom surfaces such as shower walls, pump up the cleaning power by removing the sprayer element and heating the solution in the microwave until barely hot. Spray shower walls with the warmed generously, allow to stand for 10 to 15 minutes, then scrub and rinse. The heat helps soften stubborn soap scum and loosens hard water deposits.
SOFT SCRUBBING CLEANERS
Here is one for cleaning counter tops, sinks or any area that needs some scrubbing without the worry of scratching the surface.
Homemade “soft scrub” Type Cleaner #1
There are no measurements necessary for this one. Simply put a small amount of baking soda in a bowl and add liquid dish detergent until you have smooth paste or frosting like substance. This very well on sinks and counters and won’t scratch the surface
Creamy Soft Scrub Cleaner #2
Simply pour about 1/2 cup of baking soda into a bowl, and add enough liquid detergent to make a texture like frosting. Scoop the mixture onto a sponge, and wash the surface. This is the perfect recipe for cleaning the bathtub because it rinses easily and doesn’t leave grit.
Note: Add 1 teaspoon of vegetable glycerin to the mixture and store in a sealed glass jar, to keep
the product moist. Otherwise just make as much as you need at a time.
Homemade Soft Scrubber #3
1/2 cup baking soda
Liquid Castile Soap
5 drops Lavender essential oil and/or 5 drops Tea Tree essential oil
WINDOW CLEANERS
Window Cleaner #1
1/4-1/2 teaspoon liquid detergent
3 tablespoons vinegar
2 cups water
Spray bottle
Put all the ingredients into a spray bottle, shake it up a bit, and use as you would a commercial brand. The soap in this recipe is important. It cuts the wax residue from the commercial brands you might have used in the past.
Window Cleaner #2
This one can be made right in your spray bottle.
½ t mild dish detergent
3T vinegar
2 cups water
Put all these ingredients into a spray bottle. Shake this up some and use it just like the commercial variety.
Homemade Glass Cleaner Recipe #3
Mix in a sprayer bottle:
- 1 cup rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
FURNITURE POLISH
Furniture Polish #1
1/2 teaspoon oil, such as olive (or jojoba, a liquid wax)
1/4 cup vinegar or fresh lemon juice
Mix the ingredients in a glass jar. Dab a soft rag into the solution and wipe onto wood surfaces. Cover the glass jar and store indefinitely.
This "salad dressing" recipe for furniture polish avoids the danger of silicone oil, found in most commercial polishes and sprays. Silicone oil can penetrate tiny cracks in furniture finish and enter the wood, causing problems in the event refinishing is needed.
Lemon juice dissolves dirt and smudges, while olive oil shines and protects the wood:
Furniture Polish Recipe #2
Mix in a sprayer bottle:
- 1 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
Shake well and apply a small amount to a flannel cleaning rag or cleaning cloth. Spread evenly over furniture surface. Turn cloth to a dry side and polish dry
Keep a clean spray bottle filled with straight 5 percent vinegar in your kitchen near your cutting board and in your bathroom and use them for cleaning. I often spray the vinegar on our cutting board before going to bed at night, and don’t even rinse but let it set overnight. The smell of vinegar dissipates within a few hours. Straight vinegar is also great for cleaning the toilet rim. Just spray it on and wipe off.
Nothing natural works for mold and mildew as well as this spray. I’ve used it successfully on a moldy ceiling from a leaking roof, on a musty bureau, a musty rug, and a moldy shower curtain. Tea tree oil is expensive, but a little goes a very long way. Note that the smell of tea tree oil is very strong, but it will dissipate in a few days.
2 teaspoons tea tree oil
2 cups water
Combine in a spray bottle, shake to blend, and spray on problem areas. Do not rinse. Makes two cups.
TOILET CLEANERS
Everyday toilet cleaning #1
Sprinkle some baking soda and lemon juice into your toilet and walk away. Eventually you’ll want to return and scrub it with a toilet brush.
Toilet Bowl #2
Make a thin paste of Borax and lemon juice. Flush the toilet to wet the bowl and rub the paste unto the toilet bowl ring. Let this sit for two hours. Scrub and then flush to rinse. Make sure the paste is thin but not too runny.
Toilet Bowl Cleaner #3
Mix 1/4 cup baking soda and 1 cup vinegar, pour into basin and let it set for a few minutes. Scrub with brush and rinse. A mixture of borax (2 parts) and lemon juice (one part) will also work.
FLOOR CLEANERS
Homemade Floor Cleaner #1
1 cup white vinegar
1 gallon warm water
Mix in your cleaning bucket and use this to clean vinyl type floors.
Wood Floor Cleaner
½ cup vinegar
1 gallon water
The most important thing to keep in mind while cleaning wood floors is that they can not get overly wet. When you use the above mixture, dip your sponge mop into the solution and squeeze until almost dry. Then mop. Never put the cleaner directly on the floor. Dry any streaked or wet area with a clean towel as you go along the floor.
Hard Floor
To clean hard floors, add 1/4 cup of white vinegar to a bucket of water. Then add 5-10 drops of lemon, pine, spruce, If the floor is especially dirty, add several drops of dishwashing soap. This will clean even the dirtiest floor.
1/4 cup white vinegar to a bucket of water
5-10 drops lemon, pine, spruce
Liquid castile soap if needed
Floor Cleaner
Add 1/4 cup white vinegar to a bucket of water. Add 10 drops of lemon oil and 4 drops of oregano essential oil. Oregano oil has powerful antiseptic properties!
1/4 cup white vinegar to a bucket of water
10 drops lemon oil
4 drops oregano oil
Carpet Freshener
To make a carpet freshener, add 16-20 drops of essential oils to a cup of baking soda. Mix well and place in a covered container overnight so that the oil can be absorbed. Sprinkle over your carpet the next day and then vacuum the powder up.
1 cup baking soda
16-20 drops essential oils
Vacuum Cleaner
You may also saturate a disposable cloth or tissue with several drops of essential oil and place it into the collecting bag of your vacuum. This will diffuse a pleasant odor as you clean.
If your vacuum collects dirt into water, simply add a few drops into the water reservoir before cleaning. This refreshes both, the carpet and the room.
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