Natural Household Cleaning Tips: Recipes For All Purpose Cleaners
Clean Surfaces With A Natural All Purpose Surface Cleaner
There are plenty of natural cleaning ingredients that you probably already stock in your pantry. Vinegar (acetic acid) removes grease, stains and is an excellent water softener. Washing soda (sodium carbonate) cleans clothes, softens water, cuts grease and increases the cleaning power of soap. Lemon juice, my personal favorite, cuts through grease, removes stains from clothing and is a bleach alternative. Organic vegetable oils condition and create a protective coating over wood. Here is a wonderful all purpose cleaner that can be prepared from these ingredients.
What You Need
- 3 Tbsp vinegar
- 1/2 tsp washing soda
- 1/2 tsp vegetable oil based liquid soap
- 2 Cups hot water
- juice of 1 lemon
What To Do
- Mix ingredients in spray bottle or bucket
- Apply and wipe clean
Give Your Tiles & Counter-tops A Scrub Down With Ammonia
Ammonia is good for almost everything. Even though its aroma is quite strong, it can be allayed when mixed with other ingredites. Here is a recipe for a terrific, nontoxic, all-purpose cleaner that is almost odorless. Suggested by Greenpeace, the environmental organization, it is perfect for scrubbing linoleum, walls, bathroom and kitchen tiles and even rugs.
What You Need
- 1/2 Cup ammonia
- 1/4 Cup vinegar
- a handful of baking soda
- 1 bucketful of warm water
What To Do
- Mix ingredients in a bucket
- Apply to tiles or counter-tops and wipe clean
These are great recipes for natural, green cleaning! My only question is, Can you make these solutions ahead of time and keep them in a spray bottle for later use? Do they ever “go bad” since some contain lemon juice?
Hi Julie,
Thanks for your question. They actually do “go bad” over time since they are made with natural ingredients. Anything with lemon juice though can be kept in the fridge for up to about a week.
Thanks,
Reenita
Hi Reenita,
First of all thanks for this green living website.
My question : Is it ok to keep couple of open boxes of baking soda and / or few bottles of white vinegar over the kitchen cabinets ( out of reach and out of sight )
Thanks
Rajesh Shetty