Green Cleaning: Make Your Own Natural Cleaning Products

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We live in a time where chemical cleaners have been touted as being the best way to disinfect and clean your home. But there is a growing movement toward “green cleaning” and a rise in do-it-yourself cleaners. We take enough chemicals into our bodies throughout the day and they can be blamed for a number of ailments we suffer from. Sadly, it is not often that these cleaners are looked at as a potential cause. To lessen the impact of these chemicals on our health it can be wise to switch to natural cleaning products. They clean just as well, disinfect, and won’t be disastrous to your health.

Green Cleaning: Make Your Own Cleaning Products | DIY Cleaning Supplies | Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner | #diy #greencleaning #health

I have put together a list of ingredients that can be used to make multiple different cleaners. Following the ingredient list is a number of recipes for the natural cleaning products themselves.

Ingredients

In addition to the homemade cleaner ingredients, you will want to have a few spray bottles and jars on hand for mixing and using the cleaners. Use jars with plastic lids or place a piece of parchment paper under metal lid if mixing vinegar.

DIY Natural Cleaning Products

Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner

General Cleaner:

½ cup Borax
1 Gallon Hot Water

Mix borax and hot water in a bucket until the borax is thoroughly dissolved. This makes a gallon of cleaner for general cleaning. If you would like to mix it up in a spray bottle to have on hand, mix 4 cups of hot water with 2 tablespoons of borax. This will keep indefinitely in a spray bottle.

Best Cleaner for Grease:

1 tsp washing soda
2 tsp borax
½ tsp castile soap
2 cups hot water
10 drops essential oil (your choice)

Mix washing soda and borax in hot water until dissolved. Add soap and essential oil. This cleaner will keep indefinitely in a spray bottle.

Homemade Deodorizer

Baking Soda

That’s it. Baking soda can be used on carpet, upholstery, etc. Sprinkle the baking soda on the area to be cleaned and let it sit overnight, if possible, to give it time to work. Use a broom and/or vacuum cleaner to clean off.

You can also sprinkle baking soda in trash cans as well as place a box of it in the fridge to absorb odors.

Homemade Disinfectants

Vinegar of the Four Thieves

16 oz Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Tbsp dried sage
1 tsp each of dried lavender, rosemary, and thyme

Mix all ingredients in a jar and seal with a tight-fitting lid. As this involves vinegar, use a plastic lid or place a piece of parchment paper under the metal lid to avoid contact with the vinegar. Let all the ingredients sit for about 4 weeks shaking every few days to help the extraction along. After the four weeks, strain out the herbs and pour into a spray bottle. The mixture will keep indefinitely.

Toilet Disinfectant:

2 cups distilled white vinegar
A few drops of essential oil

Mix together in a spray bottle and use as needed.

Toilet Bowl Cleaner:

Baking Soda
Distilled White Vinegar

Sprinkle baking soda around toilet bowl and slowly drizzle the vinegar over it. Scrub with a toilet brush.

Drain Cleaner:

½ cup baking soda
1 cup distilled white vinegar
Boiling water

Dissolve baking soda and vinegar in boiling water and pour the solution down the drain. Plug the drain for several minutes and then flush with hot water until the clog breaks and the drain is clear.

While there are a lot of recipes for natural cleaning products for every situation imaginable, the recipes shared here will cover you for most of your cleaning needs. Keep in mind that most of these ingredients can be used by themselves to clean, whiten, disinfect, etc. Baking soda can be used as a deodorizer, as mentioned above, but also as a whitener. Lemon juice diluted with water can also be used to whiten clothing when soaked overnight and washing soda or borax can be used as a natural bleach. Further, borax can be used on coffee, chocolate, and blood stains as well as on mildew.