Every homeowner strives to have a clean, germ free home. However, what many don’t realise is that even the cleaning products we use around our homes can contain some dangerous toxins.
This can have many unpleasant repercussions in our long-term health, especially in terms of allergies and respiratory diseases.
Fortunately, there are many green cleaning alternatives, which can provide us with a sanitary environment without the added danger.
And the best part is that the ingredients you need to prepare these solutions are easily found around every home.
Here are a few nifty green cleaning recipes for every part of the house
Green Cleaning for the Kitchen
A Green All-Purpose Cleaner
Finding the right all-purpose cleaner is difficult for all homeowners, because most brands produce a very strong smell, which can make some people nauseous.
Therefore, the key to the proper natural all-purpose cleaner is to achieve not only strong disinfecting qualities, but a pleasant mild scent as well.
Ingredients
3 tbsp. salt
1 cup white vinegar
2 cups water
Orange peels
All you need to do is mix one cup of white vinegar with two cups of water in a glass container.
(you either can use tap or distilled, depending on the quality of water in your region)
Then add the salt, stir a little, and add some orange peels.
Close the container and leave it for at least 24 hours in a dark space on room temperature.
After that, you can pour the liquid into a spray bottle and use it to clean countertops, the backsplash, the fridge, the sink and even the stove with it.
The vinegar is a strong disinfecting agent, and the orange peels blog the vinegar smell, providing your kitchen with a fresh citrus smell.
Natural Oven Cleaner Recipe
Ovens tend to accumulate a lot of grease and dirt over time, even if you clean them after each use.
Food particles tend to stick to all kinds of crevices and corners inside the oven. So, a good scrub and deep clean are a must from time to time.
Many people turn to heavy-duty detergents, which often produce dangerous fumes.
Here is a strong green alternative, which will produce similar results:
Ingredients
A bottle of white vinegar
A cup of baking soda
This is a very nice way to clean your oven in detail without much effort.
The best time to start the oven cleaning is in the evening, because the solution works best if it soaks for a long time.
Spread a generous amount of baking soda all over the inside of your oven. Make sure you cover all the corners.
Pour the vinegar in a spray bottle and spray the inside of the oven generously.
Then the acid and the base will start fizzing and working their magic on the grease.
Leave it to work overnight, and then just wipe and mildly scrub the oven before washing everything away with a damp cloth. All the dirt should be dissolved.
Homemade Dishwasher Cleaner Recipe
Many dishwasher detergents sold commercially contain elements like triclosan, which can be dangerous to our health.
It’s a good idea to avoid these toxins in our everyday lives.
There is an easy green alternative, which will help you sanitise your dishes safely.
Ingredients
1 cup borax
1 cup washing soda
½ cup salt
15 drops of lemon essential oil
Mix all those ingredients together and store them in a tightly closed mason jar in a dark cupboard with no direct sunlight.
Use 1-2 tablespoons per load.
If you want to provide your dishware with a glowing finish, you can also add half a cup of white vinegar to the rinse dispenser.
Safe Drain Cleaner
The drains are a very important, but often underestimated part of the kitchen. They gather a lot of dirt and grease from our plates over time, and they can easily get clogged.
A good natural way to clean your drains from time to time is to prepare a mixture of one-cup water, one-cup vinegar, half a cup baking soda and half a cup lemon juice.
Just mix everything and pour it into the drain. It will properly disinfect and deodorise it.
Green Cleaning In the Bathroom & Laundry
Green Tile Cleaner
There are actually a few natural ways you can try to clean your tiles. They all depend on the level of staining on the tile surface.
For light water spots and dirt stains – Get a sponge and a bowl of baking soda. Dip the sponge in some water, and then dip it in the baking soda and start wiping the tiles. You can gently scrub on the stained areas. After that rinse with warm water.
Set in dirt and tough stains – First use a sponge dipped in white vinegar to wipe the entire area. Then scrub everything down with some baking soda and a brush. Rinse with water once you’re done.
Mouldy stains on grout – Mould is tough to remove. You’ll need to mix a solution of 1 part 3% hydrogen peroxide with 1 part water in a spray bottle. Then spray the grout generously until it’s saturated. Wait for an hour, then scrub with a sponge and rinse with water.
Quality Homemade Cleaning Scrub
This homemade scrub is perfect for removing all kinds of stubborn gunk from sinks and bathtubs, as well as removing rust stains from around the bathroom.
You can use it for everything that needs some extra scrubbing.
Ingredients
½ cup borax
Half a lemon
Just dip the lemon in the borax, and then rub it on the surface or stain you need to clean.
Once you’re done, just rinse everything with some warm water.
NOTE: this solution is not recommended for expensive tiled surfaces like granite or marble, because they are porous, and the lemon acid can damage them.
Hard Water Stain Remover (for toilets)
Many homeowners dread cleaning the hard water stains on the toilet, because it requires lots of scrubbing, the usage of stinky detergents and the results are often depressing.
There are a few natural things you can try to remove the nasty hard water stains in your toilet:
Ingredients
1 cup white vinegar
1 tbsp. liquid dish soap
1/3 cup Epsom salt
Essential oil of choice (citrus is a good antibacterial one)
Mix all the ingredients in a bottle, close it tightly and shake well until all the salts dissolve.
Pour the mixture into the toilet bowl and leave it to work for at least 30 minutes. Scrub with the toilet brush and flush everything away.
For stubborn stains, you can try a paste of borax and white vinegar. Use it to scrub the stains away.
DIY Laundry Detergent
Finding a quality natural laundry detergent that won’t give you a rash is a hard task nowadays. Even the natural alternatives sometimes contain borax, which is not always safe for babies.
Here’s a borax-free recipe:
½ cup baking soda
1 cup washing soda
2 bars Castile soap
¼ cup salt
Essential oil of choice
Grate the Castile soap and mix it with the baking and washing soda, as well as the salt.
Add 15-20 drops of your essential oil of choice, depending on how strong the smell is. Place the mixture in a tightly closed glass jar.
Use 1-2 tablespoons per load.
You can also put a desiccant in the jar, to prevent lumps.
Green Cleaning Living Areas
Natural Wood Cleaner / Polish
Taking care of your wooden furniture is a tricky task, because you need something strong enough to remove the dust, yet gentle enough not to damage the surface.
The secret to a perfect wood cleaner and polisher is in the moderate usage of some olive oil
Ingredients
½ cup white vinegar
1 cup distilled water
5 tbsp. olive oil
Essential oil of choice
Mix all the ingredients in a spray bottle and shake well.
Add around 20-30 drops of essential oil of choice and shake again.
To use this solution, get a soft cloth, spray it with the mixture, and then wipe the surface.
Note: Avoid spraying wooden surfaces directly, as the excess detergent can damage the surface.
Eco-Friendly Silver Cleaner
Many classical homes have silver utensils or decorations proudly displayed somewhere around the house, or stored in boxes in the attic.
The proper silver care is important to the well-being of these items.
Ingredients
Aluminium foil
A bucket
1 cup baking soda
A few pinches of salt
Boiling water
Place the bucket in the bathroom and line the inside with aluminium foil. Place all the silver pieces inside.
Then pour the boiling water into the bucket, and add the baking soda and salt.
Let it soak for around half an hour and observe as the tarnish dissolves.
You will barely have to wipe the pieces with a clean cloth afterwards.
Natural Glass Cleaner
Many window cleaners have an obnoxious smell and they leave streaks on the window surface.
This green recipe can be used to clean not only windows, but also all other kinds of glass surfaces – mirrors, coffee tables, decorations, and more.
Ingredients
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup rubbing alcohol
1 cup distilled water
Essential oil of choice
Place all the ingredients in a spray bottle and shake to make sure it all mixes well.
Spray the glass surface, leave it to work for a few seconds, and then clean like regular, using either a squeegee, a rag or some newspaper.
The vinegar will disinfect the surface, the rubbing alcohol will take care of any stains, and the distilled water will prevent any streaks.
The solution is also perfect for cleaning shower glass.
Easy Carpet Stain Removal
Carpet stains and spills are extremely unpleasant, but they happen. The important thing is to remember to never rub the stain, just blot the excess moisture away with a clean cloth.
Then apply this mixture....
Ingredients
1 cup warm water
¼ cup white vinegar
1 tbsp. baking soda
1 tbsp. dish washing liquid
Mix all these in a spray bottle, shake well.
Once you blot the excess moisture from the stain, spray it with the mixture generously, so it can be saturated with the solution. Then wait for a few minutes for it to work.
Use a sponge to gently scrub in a back and forth motion if needed. Then get a soft towel and start dabbing until the stain disappears and the carpet dries.
About The Author
Jane Wilson is a mum, a blogger and a marketing executive from Melbourne. She represents the local branch of Fantastic Cleaners, a licensed cleaning company, which provides a wide range of services. She also runs a small blog called Modern Housewives, where she shares all kinds of home improvement and parenting tips.