The List
* 1. Vinegar
* 2.Baking Soda
3.Borax
4.Washing soda (NOT THE SAME AS BAKING SODA!!!)
5.Dish soap (I like Dawn)
6.Fels Naptha bar soap (For laundry soap only)
I started with just the ones that are (*) and moved on from there, this list just saves you a few trips to the store in your experiments. The ones you will use the most are Vinegar, Baking Soda, and Dish Soap. So for those items I go to Sam's. You can get 2 gallons of vinegar for under $3, a 13.5lbs bag of baking soda for around $6. The borax and washing soda are under $2 a piece and will last you a LONG TIME. You can find all of these items at your local grocery store. here are some pics of what you are looking for, I did not post a picture of the dish soap hopefully we all know what that looks like. I am a very visual person, so be prepared for lots of pics. When I went to the store it took me a while to find what I was looking for so this would have been helpful for me....
Cleaning Concoctions
Here are just a few of my favorites. Some of these I have tweaked a bit to make my own, but most of these can be found all over the Internet, in all different amounts and ratios. I take no credit, simply because I'm pretty sure my grandmother used these at one time or another. These are certainly not new just rediscovered in a way...
All-Purpose Cleaner
3T Vinegar
1t Borax (optional)
a few squirts of dish soap
Hot H20
Essential oil about 10 drops (optional)
In a 32oz spray bottle add the vinegar, borax, and dish soap. Then add the Hot H20, at this point you can add your favorite essential oil (like lavender, vanilla..) to the mix if you want... but don't over do it simply because it is oil and could make your mix too oily. When you are done put the lid on and give it a shake. The borax is optional. Technically the vinegar in it of itself is an antibacterial and will kill germs. If you leave out the borax I would add more vinegar. The borax just gives it a boost.
I like to keep a smaller spray bottle ( 1 parts vinegar to 1 parts H20) handy for small jobs
Softscrub Look-A-Like
are you folks ready for this...
BAKING SODA and H20!! Add enough H20 to make whatever consistency you like.
When I clean my kitchen sink I like to spray it down with my Vinegar& H20 bottle, then baking soda it up, let it sit and then wipe it off, it will leave your sink super clean!! Not to mention its not toxic, for all those little hands that like to reach up on the counter!!
Carpet Tips
If you find your self with a carpet mess... Dog poo/pee, Kid Vomit (I know its gross but if you have kids its gonna happen), and whatever other nasties you may come across...
AFTER you remove the nasty, spray your Vinegar&H20 of the carpet and sprinkle a healthy amount of baking soda down... let it dry overnight or until completely dry and vacuum it up... No trace it was ever there. I found this very handy when both my little one caught a stomach bug, yes this worked!!
Vinegar
Vinegar gets a category all to itself because it has become my new favorite wonder cleaner!! I use this on a daily bases!! I know what your thinking, her house must stink!!! No, not so. Once vinegar dries there is no smell.
I use it in my laundry in the rinse cycle, it helps as a fabric softener, and helps my clothes dry faster, I use 1/2 a cup.
Use it in the regular wash for stinky clothes.
Ya know when you forgot you ran a load of laundry the day before, and now your once clean laundry now reeks of mildew? Ya add 1/2 a cup of vinegar and put it on the rinse cycle, there all better!
You can clean your floors with it ( I don't have wood floors so I am not sure about wood). one cup per gallon of hot H20, and you can add essential oil to that too to make it smell good.
Add a little to your dish water to help scrub pots and pans.
I like to keep a little bottle of 1 parts dish soap to 2 parts vinegar, and fill the rest with Hot water. It really helps knock out the dishes quickly, and helps save you on your dish soap.
As a room deodorizer.... put a small dish of vinegar somewhere in the room and give it a few hours or overnight... and no smell!
There are soooo many other uses, and all you have to do is google it and you will get loads of info... these are just a few of my favorite uses
Ok well I have some more to give you but this all the time I have today!!
All-Purpose Cleaner
3T Vinegar
1t Borax (optional)
a few squirts of dish soap
Hot H20
Essential oil about 10 drops (optional)
In a 32oz spray bottle add the vinegar, borax, and dish soap. Then add the Hot H20, at this point you can add your favorite essential oil (like lavender, vanilla..) to the mix if you want... but don't over do it simply because it is oil and could make your mix too oily. When you are done put the lid on and give it a shake. The borax is optional. Technically the vinegar in it of itself is an antibacterial and will kill germs. If you leave out the borax I would add more vinegar. The borax just gives it a boost.
I like to keep a smaller spray bottle ( 1 parts vinegar to 1 parts H20) handy for small jobs
Softscrub Look-A-Like
are you folks ready for this...
BAKING SODA and H20!! Add enough H20 to make whatever consistency you like.
When I clean my kitchen sink I like to spray it down with my Vinegar& H20 bottle, then baking soda it up, let it sit and then wipe it off, it will leave your sink super clean!! Not to mention its not toxic, for all those little hands that like to reach up on the counter!!
Carpet Tips
If you find your self with a carpet mess... Dog poo/pee, Kid Vomit (I know its gross but if you have kids its gonna happen), and whatever other nasties you may come across...
AFTER you remove the nasty, spray your Vinegar&H20 of the carpet and sprinkle a healthy amount of baking soda down... let it dry overnight or until completely dry and vacuum it up... No trace it was ever there. I found this very handy when both my little one caught a stomach bug, yes this worked!!
Vinegar
Vinegar gets a category all to itself because it has become my new favorite wonder cleaner!! I use this on a daily bases!! I know what your thinking, her house must stink!!! No, not so. Once vinegar dries there is no smell.
I use it in my laundry in the rinse cycle, it helps as a fabric softener, and helps my clothes dry faster, I use 1/2 a cup.
Use it in the regular wash for stinky clothes.
Ya know when you forgot you ran a load of laundry the day before, and now your once clean laundry now reeks of mildew? Ya add 1/2 a cup of vinegar and put it on the rinse cycle, there all better!
You can clean your floors with it ( I don't have wood floors so I am not sure about wood). one cup per gallon of hot H20, and you can add essential oil to that too to make it smell good.
Add a little to your dish water to help scrub pots and pans.
I like to keep a little bottle of 1 parts dish soap to 2 parts vinegar, and fill the rest with Hot water. It really helps knock out the dishes quickly, and helps save you on your dish soap.
As a room deodorizer.... put a small dish of vinegar somewhere in the room and give it a few hours or overnight... and no smell!
There are soooo many other uses, and all you have to do is google it and you will get loads of info... these are just a few of my favorite uses
Ok well I have some more to give you but this all the time I have today!!
