Homemade, inexpensive, and efficient cleaners for me.

All purpose:

1/2 c. vinegar, 1 c. ammonia, 1/4 c. baking soda mixed together well--This works great for walls, wood, appliances, etc.  Leaves behind a clean, crisp, smell.

Room/Fabric Freshner:

tap water and several drops of essential oil such as lemon or peppermint, shake up well, spritz about rooms or lightly on furniture and curtains to freshen

General Cleaner:

a few drops of hand dishwashing liquid in warm water to clean and freshen counters, etc.

Disinfectant purposes:

bleach or vinegar, depending on the situation

I don't "do" spring cleaning.  Just keep at it all year round so it's not a huge chore.  We do wash all windows inside and outside several times a year so I guess that is the one big cleaning job for the spring.

 

 

 

Brandy:

Is anyone starting spring cleaning? Do you use commercial or home made solutions for deep cleaning?

I found this on the DS site:

Conscious Cleaning

It's got a long list of nonhazardous cleaning solutions for just about everything.

rolo:

All purpose:

1/2 c. vinegar, 1 c. ammonia, 1/4 c. baking soda mixed together well--This works great for walls, wood, appliances, etc.  Leaves behind a clean, crisp, smell.

I've seen the vinegar and  baking soda mixture recommended in other places as well, but not sure what it's supposed to do.  If I remember my messy school science experiments vinegar and baking soda neutralize each other and the end result is just salt water.  Just seems like an expensive way to make salt water to me is all.

 

I'm interested in how to use vinegar as an upholstery cleaner as well.  My livingroom furniture is in need of something...

http://frugalliving.about.com/od/vinegar/Vinegar_Frugal_Wonder.htm?terms=vinegar

I just wet a rag  with  cheap white  vinegar, then wring it out thoroughly so that it is not sopping wet, then wipe away.  The smell is pretty bad, but dissipates quickly and leaves a fresh smell.  Much of the dirt is on the surface, so it is easy to remove in this way.  Probably wouldn't work if the dirt is really ground in enough to stain, but still worth a try.  I was amazed at the amount of dirt that came off onto the cloth!!
Patrink

Patrink,

I have heard many say that vinegar smells. It is strong at first then as it fades, it smells fresh to me. I have a home mixed air freshener made of water, vinegar and fragrance oil.

 

 

Thanks I will try this at home tonight!!

I'm actually referring to Mrs. Meyer's clean day cleaners, they are expensive cleaners, made locally- the spray is nice, you can add 2 T. of the all-purpose cleaner and water to the spray bottle.  It comes in great scents, my favorite is lavender!

Tracy 

I love Oxi-Clean or its generic & cheaper copy-cats for getting stains off the carpeting (I have light beige, & everything shows).  I don't have any upholestry, so don't know how it would work on that.  I also use Oxi-Clean in place of Borax or bleach as a laundry additive (to Tide). 

I use both, but saw a wonderful tip for cleaning grungy bath tubs. Use baking soda and lemon juice. Works wonders.