Natural Home Cleaning
Everyone loves a clean, sparkling, fresh-smelling home. But when you look at your shiny bathtub after a good scrub, it’s possible — depending on what type of cleaner you use — that you are inhaling harmful pollutants left over from that scrubbing agent. Studies by the Environmental Protection Agency have shown that levels of pollutants inside the home are easily two to five times higher than levels outdoors. Many home cleaning products greatly contribute to lowering air quality in the home. They can also leave compounds floating in the indoor air long after your cleaning spree has ended.
Conventional cleaning products contain harsh chemicals that can also be harmful to the environment. When you clean your kitchen sink and rinse that harsh solvent down the drain, where does it go? Choosing environmentally friendly alternatives not only keeps your home a healthy place for your family, but it also helps the earth.
Easy alternatives
Buying eco-friendly home cleaning products is one way to solve these problems. Another idea is to use kitchen items already in your cupboards for home cleaning. There are an astonishing number of simple, easy, and affordable ways that basic home ingredients like baking soda, lemon, vinegar, and essential oils can be used to clean, disinfect, and deodorize your home.
- Baking soda. It’ a natural cleanser, deodorizer, and scrubbing agent.
- Liquid soap. Mix a concentrated, eco-friendly liquid soap with other ingredients to form homemade cleaners.
- Vinegar. Use it to remove grease, wax, dirt, and mildew. White distilled vinegar is usually better because cider vinegar can stain some surfaces.
- Isopropyl alcohol. Pour a little on a cotton ball or paper towel to disinfect doorknobs, telephones, countertops, or any other surface (aside from wood, which it dries out).
- Essential oils. Tea tree, eucalyptus, and lavender oils can all disinfect as well as add a pleasant smell to your homemade cleaners.
- Lemon juice. A cleaning agent on its own, it can also add a nice, clean smell to your homemade cleaners.
The recipes
- All-purpose mildly abrasive cleanser. Baking soda, liquid soap, and an essential oil of your choice — tea tree, eucalyptus, or lavender —are a great team because of their disinfecting properties and combined scent. Use a generous amount of baking soda and mix in the liquid soap until you have a smooth pastelike consistency. Add a few drops of the essential oil and scrub away at your bathtub, sink, or toilet. If mold or mildew is present pretreat the area with hydrogen peroxide, and if there is grease use vinegar.
- Nontoxic furniture polish. A combination of oil and vinegar works to extract dirt from furniture as well as moisturize and protect wood. Olive oil and jojoba oil are good choices, and white distilled vinegar is best because apple cider vinegar can stain. A ratio of 1 part oil to 2 parts vinegar will work, and can be adjusted depending on the finish of the wood.
- Chemical-free oven cleaner. Who wants to put a rough chemical solvent in the same oven in which they will later bake food? A great alternative to conventional oven cleaners is baking soda and water. Cover the bottom of the oven with baking soda and then spray with water. Leave the mixture overnight and then spoon it out in the morning. It's that simple! Add a little lemon to the water for a fresh scent.
Keep your home’ air clean
Once you start experimenting with the ingredients above you’ll be amazed by how effective they are. If you’re curious about experimenting with more recipes, Care2.com has recipes for just about every surface, stain, and home cleaning project.
39 comments Have something to add? Share it here.
Log in or join the community to get involved.
we have for a long while use orgainc products to clean the house & also home made stuff to.Works just the same as the chemical products do and is much more safe on your health!peace
Some really good posts here! I just started buying Mrs. Meyer’s organic cleaning products..they are awesome and smell so good!
I found that the fresh lemons and limes from my back yard have many cleaning applications. To remove tough stains on my whites, I squeeze lemon juice on the stain, let it set in the sun for a few hours and wash as usual. Works better than chlorine bleach. Since lemons and limes are naturally acidic, they both have great antimicrobial properties. To sanitize a cutting board, I rub a half lemon or lime on the cutting boards surface, let it set for a few minutes and rinse. Once complete, I toss the used lemons and limes in the garbage disposal to act as a deodorizer. I just love the fresh scent.
oh also mouth wash works great for cleaning toilets. i have pets that like to drink out of them and its safe to use. when i first heard of it i thought thet it was crazy but it worked. now thats what i use
when ever i have to clean the microwave. i fill a mug with hot water and turn it on for 1 min. let the steam fill and wipe clean with a cloth. I also saved my kids receving balnkets and old bed sheet for rags. they work great. also if you use bounce sheets when the laundry is done they are great for dusting.
Does anyone have a recipe for homemade laundry detergent?
When we moved, I switched to mostly vinegar and baking soda. It has been great…cheap and simple.
I was caring for my father who had cancer. I got the best advice from a nurse. Since order was a major concern for my father who suffered terribly from colon cancer, colostomy, radiation colitus due to over severe over radiation…odor control was key. It isolated my father and also contributed to his depression. The odor was shameful. What the nurse shared with me was so key to him gaining confidence. Using peppermint oil and simply applying it to a soft cloth and then dusting the surfaces with it, gave his room a wonderful smell. The nurse also confided that peppermint oil is used in aromotherapy and aides in a sense of well being and healing! You can find it at Bath and Body works sometimes during the holiday months. Although, this year they did not sell the oil. It is easy to simply put a few drops on linens too. It is a simple pleasure that everyone can enjoy.
I have used some of the methods mentioned. I’ll use the some of the others soon.
I’ve been using the Method furniture polish from Target. Works great and I’m so happy to be off the Pledge!!! I feel so much better after I clean my house since switching to green products. No fumes, or strong smelling chemicals. I never dreamed it would make such a difference!
With the economy being as it is, as well as the aging process which has placed me on Social Security these days, being CHEAP wherever possible is very important to me. However, I refuse to lower my standards when it comes to clean and sanitary. I’ve begun using some of my old granny’s tactics. I don’t use products made for dusting anymore. I use old T-shirts and other cotton things that have seen better days. Admittedly, I use the wands and sticks that came with them (Swiffer) but I tuck in my own re-cycles to do the work. I save my used dryer sheets as they are excellent for cleaning windows, mirrors, and polishing up faucets, etc.
I shop wholesale online and I save a ton of money on safe cleaning products etc. The best products I’ve ever used.They are highly concentrated too which I love.
great tip for my steam cleaner. You can only use vinegar to clean a steam cleaner why not try keeping vinegar in while cleaning. Just be careful.
I usese vinegar instead of fabric softner. Does the same job. I also make my own laundry soap.
I’ve been cleaning with a line of non-toxic products for 5 years now. Because of them, my dear Mother was able to get off her inhaler for the last 9 months of her life. And I know I am healthier, as well.
Now my son and daughter-in-law are experiencing migraines, and every time I visit them I smell the chlorine bleach she uses to clean and it makes me sick. But, they don’t seem to think that had anything to do with their headaches…sigh….
I got a huge galon of white vinager and a huge box of baking soda, you combine in a spray bottle fill it with water and then add a 1/2 cup of baking soda and a cup of vinager and the rest of water, clean GREAT! THE TOILET NOT A PROBLEM 2 CUPS OF VINAGER AND SCRUB IT! you can leave it for 5 minutes moe when you finish scrubing. Lime, its is great with water, and baking soda to clean too!
I’ll shall try these
I started using the vinegar and water for windows, mirrors—works great since I have dogs that like to put their noess on the window :)
Have not tried the baking soda/lemon thing, but will do soon.
Someone had mentioned finding a natural polish for furniture. The Method brand from Target has a furniture polish that’s very good, doesn’t leave a film or buildup on furniture. It has an almond scent that’s not overpowering. Also, for stainless steel stoves cleaning with straight vinegar leaves them spotless.
cachingwednesday, I live in Kansas and use a local cleaning service. However, she is a great resource and might know of someone in Illinois. The website is www.aveenaclean.com. The owner is a friend of mine and an excellent eco-resource.