Today we have a guest post from River about homemade cleaning products. Check out River's impressive Writer's Resource website or personal blog.
Every frugal homemaker needs to know the basics about homemade cleaning products. After all, managing your money and your house is what frugal homemaking is all about!
Homemade household cleaners not only protect your health and the environment, they will also protect your budget from bursting at the seams. An added benefit is that by protecting the health of you and your family, the environment, and your budget, you can also reduce the amount of stress in your daily life.
So rather than spend your money on countless cleaning supplies, each designed to clean only one kind of surface or another, go to your pantry and pull out some basic staples and let’s get busy cleaning! You’ll feel a healthy kind of tired as you drop into your favorite chair at the end of the cleaning day as opposed to that feeling that someone has a grip on your lungs and itchy bugs are crawling on your skin that you often feel after cleaning with strong commercial products laced with “clean” fragrances.
Here are the 8 basic essentials:
- White distilled vinegar
- Lemons
- Toothpaste
- Borax
- Salt
- Olive oil
- Baking soda
- Washing soda
Other supplies you will need to make your products:
- Spray bottle (how many?)
- Storage containers (look into milk jugs or glass – how many?)
- Measuring cup
- Dark-colored permanent marker or sticky labels and a pen
- Funnel
Optional supplies:
- Shaker canister (like the kind made for parmesan cheese)
- Stretchy band such as a colorful head band, or a large rubber band
- Extra spray bottles
Tools and materials you will need for cleaning:
- Old toothbrushes
- Rags
- Scratchy pad (made of plastic, not wire)
- Water bucket
- Mop
- Old newspaper and/or paper towels
Make your products
Although manufacturers and advertisers would like for you to believe that you must have countless different products to keep your house clean, you really only need four: 1) All Purpose Cleaner; 2) Wood Furniture Polish; 3) Glass Cleaner; and 4) Porcelain and Bathroom Cleaner.
You may eventually want to add to your inventory products for other kinds of cleaning that you do less often such as tile and grout or silver. These are addressed in other articles. For now, let’s just get started with what you need every day.
All Purpose Cleaner
1 empty gallon milk jug
½ cup borax
Warm tap water
Pour the Borax into your empty milk jug and then fill it half full with warm water. Put the cap on and shake well until the Borax is completely dissolved. Then finish filling with water and shake again. Using a funnel, transfer the mixture to one of your spray bottles and label both containers: All Purpose Cleaner.
To use, simply spray the surface you want to clean and wipe down with a damp rag. Go back over the surface again with a dry clean cloth to avoid any streaking.
Wood Furniture Polish
½ cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
Mix both ingredients directly into your spray bottle and shake well. Label your bottle: Wood Polish.
To use, be sure you shake well before you spray onto any wooden surface. Wipe clean with a soft rag. You may also want to add a teaspoon of lemon juice or a couple of drops of your favorite essential oil to add a clean smelling fragrance to your new product.
Porcelain and Bathroom Cleaner
Baking soda
White vinegar
Because these ingredients are to be applied separately, you do not need to mix them in advance or keep them in a special container. However, it is easier at cleaning time to have all your supplies in one place as opposed to going to the kitchen to get what you need to clean your bathroom. Therefore, you may want to put some of each ingredient into special container and keep them with your other cleaning supplies. (See tip below for ideas.)
To use, simply dampen the area to be cleaned with warm water, then sprinkle the baking soda over the surface. Spray vinegar onto the baking soda and scrub with a rag or unabrasive scratch pad.
Tip: fill a glass shaker (like something you would use for parmesan cheese) with the baking soda and label it: baking soda/bathroom cleaner. Fill a small spray bottle with white vinegar and label it: vinegar/bathroom cleaner. Then band the two together and keep them with the rest of your cleaning supplies.
Glass Cleaner:
½ cup vinegar
½ cup lemon juice
¼ cup water
Pour all 3 ingredients into your spray bottle and shake well. Label the bottle: Glass Cleaner.
To use, spay onto any glass surface and wipe off with a wad of old newspaper or clean paper towels. You can even use this on TV and computer screens – just spray onto a paper towel – not directly onto the screen – and wipe until the surface is clean and dry.
Try these recipes for home cleaning and enjoy not only a fresh, clean home, but the satisfaction of knowing you are not sacrificing the health of your family or the environment. You can enjoy not spending your money on unnecessary products as well!
Happy cleaning!
