What Are Your Favorite Natural Cleaning Recipes?

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  • Obiora E
    Obiora E Posts: 517 ✭✭✭✭

    When I clean, I just use what is needed at the time period. I don't have nor use recipes. For most of my cleaning I use baking soda and/or vinegar (White Distilled or Apple Cider Vinegar). I use hot water, vinegar, and Ecos dish soap when I mop. I use baking soda on a rag for cleaning tile and the bathtub, and sometimes use both baking soda and vinegar. I use baking soda and/or vinegar for cleaning the commodes. I use Apple Cider Vinegar and newspaper for my mirrors.

  • TerryfromOZ
    TerryfromOZ Posts: 1 ✭✭✭

    Hi from OZ. Haven't had time to read all the posts but instead of vinegar if it's offensive, why not use alcohol or methylated spirit to dissolve citrus etc

  • Marjory Wildcraft
    Marjory Wildcraft Posts: 1,615 admin

    Believe it or not... I love just dirt and water. It's an amazing solvent...

    When I have something really grubby, I go outside and use dirt and water to do the rough scrubbing.

    I regulalry use a bit of dirt, or a nadful of grass or weeds as a scrubber. Especially for those dirty livestock waterers.

  • maimover
    maimover Posts: 359 ✭✭✭

    All of these comments are so inspiring. I live that you use dirt to clean/scrub with. A little off track but I just learned a few weeks ago to use salt to clean cast iron. It scrubs any food stuck with very little elbow grease. I can see how dirt would do the same. I’ve infused rosemary in vinegar before and grew a bunch of cinnamon basil this year and will be using it to make homemade cleaners for my friends this year for Christmas. The last couple of years I made skin care stuff, soaps, scrubs, and room sprays using essential oils so am really excited to be trying something new this year.

  • Hassena
    Hassena Posts: 345 ✭✭✭

    Our home, sounds like many of yours! :)

    We use Vinegar and baking soda. We clean our toilet often with just a brush to remove the well water line.

    We started to make our own castile soap! We love it! With the liquid soap, we can dilute for hand soap, shampoo, shower and add a few things to make liquid laundry soap.

    Here are two blogs where I got our starter recipes...http://nwedible.com/how-to-make-diy-liquid-castile-soap/ & https://thethingswellmake.com/easy-beginner-diy-liquid-castile-soap-recipe/

    Now we make a batch of Olive Oil Casilte and then make a batch of Coconut. Blend the two together based on what we are making a cleaning solution for.

    How about paper towels? My husband loves em, but I don't buy them. :) What sort of reusable towels are ya'll using?

  • shllnzl
    shllnzl Posts: 1,820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Hassena I have become very fond of e-Cloth products. They are designed to work with just water; you wash and dry the cloths on hot to kill any germs they pick up.

    However, I still use paper towels -- I find them invaluable for clean-up while cooking, especially after meat handling. I also find them the best solution to clean up pet messes, like cat hairballs. At least paper towels are biodegradable.

  • Meme Grant
    Meme Grant Posts: 13 ✭✭✭

    I live in the Azores, on the island of Santa Maria. Our biggest issue is the mold monster, it takes advantage of you at the slightest opportunity.

    There is nothing more demoralizing as finding the linnen for the guest house or your favourite jacket has been molded or mildewed.

    Take clove and tee tree oil, these do not have to be the fancy expensive ones, put drops on the mold/mildew marks and 5 to 6 drops in the washing machine with the soap and wash normally.

    I had my favourite towels with green and yellow spots. after treatment they looked like new.

  • shllnzl
    shllnzl Posts: 1,820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Meme Grant Thanks for the information. We sometimes get mold, even in the desert. Have you ever used these oils to get rid of mildew in old furniture?

  • Amazing how many cleaning products we DON'T need.

    I use just a few things that many of you have mentioned: white vinegar, baking soda, salt, and essential oils. For my main soap I order Oasis by the gallon on Amazon. I use it for dishes, clothes, hair, and just about anything.

    Here is how I make window washer that works well:

    Fill a large spray bottle 3/4 with white vinegar, add a few squirts Oasis, and 20 drops lemon essential oil. (I use Young Living oils also.)

  • Meme Grant
    Meme Grant Posts: 13 ✭✭✭

    shllnzl

    I have used them to remove mildew and mold on everything, leather, suede, and material... put the oil on and leave for a while, they remover gently with a warm damp cloth...

    For walls and wood I used vinegar and afterwards scrub with a paste of baking soda and water to remove the mold skeletons..if the base will allow me to do it without damage.

    Afterwards I spray with clove and tee tree oils...

    I do not use expensive oils for this...

    I guess you must get some wet days or have some leaks to get the stuff in the desert.

  • Meme Grant
    Meme Grant Posts: 13 ✭✭✭
  • shllnzl
    shllnzl Posts: 1,820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Meme Grant Yes, the desert can get wet at times and cause leaks.

    We inherited antique furniture from relatives in moldy places, so I thought you probably had the way to get rid of the last mustiness.

    (It is surprising how I can travel to a humid location, and on returning home, smell the mold spores in my suitcase. Maybe travelers the other direction smell desert dust. Or more likely, they complain about the pet hair on their clothes. Sigh.)

  • lmrebert
    lmrebert Posts: 363 ✭✭✭✭

    @merlin44 for laundry I order from a compNy called “my green fills”. For all else such as toilets sinks.. just sprinkle baking soda and a drop or 2 of tea tree EO and lemon or lemongrass and scour. For wood I do olive oil with lemon and just polish, for all else just a pint of water, tlbs castille soap, 1/4 cup vinegar, essential oils as you prefer, shake and clean!

  • water2world
    water2world Posts: 1,177 ✭✭✭✭

    @merlin44 Lots of great ideas posted---Makes me realize I can add to my basic cleaning to enhance the smell! My family will appreciate!

  • AN1981
    AN1981 Posts: 18 ✭✭✭

    I am right there with you! I love adding any citrus to my cleaning arsenal. Pine can be good too. I always have a spray bottle with vinegar and distilled water to spray down all sinks each night. Our water is SO hard!

  • dipat2005
    dipat2005 Posts: 1,290 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I once used baking soda and salt to get the black spots off my cutting board. It is about 47 years old and has a lot of grooves in it. It worked like a charm with heavy scrubbing! I usually use baking soda and vinegar. I am very allergic to essential oil, bleach, ammonia and pinesol.

    I am in need of a heavy duty cleaner for my toilet bowl that isn't too strong. Will hydrogen peroxide and soda work? Does anyone have ideas?

  • Merin Porter
    Merin Porter Posts: 1,026 admin

    I recently found out that 3% hydrogen peroxide is one of the few cleaners that will actually kill norovirus -- that, plus bleach. Thought that was interesting, and I had to put good ol' H2O2 to good use in our house last week, unfortunately!

  • Kuri and Kona
    Kuri and Kona Posts: 177 ✭✭✭
    edited April 2022

    I make my own liquid soap out of soapnuts that I boil on the stove in a big pan of water. I use that for washing laundry, shampoo, and sometimes dishes. For general cleaning, I mostly use water and vinegar, and sometimes essential oils if the mood hits. Sometimes I use baking soda. There is soap wort growing in my garden, and one of my products in the near future is to use it for cleaning as well.

  • Marjory Wildcraft
    Marjory Wildcraft Posts: 1,615 admin

    Hi @Kuri and Kona thanks for that. I've heard of using soap berries but didn't know the exact process. In Texas there was the western soap berry bush.

  • Marjory Wildcraft
    Marjory Wildcraft Posts: 1,615 admin

    thank you for this! living in Puerto Rico also has mold being a challenge.

  • Kuri and Kona
    Kuri and Kona Posts: 177 ✭✭✭

    @Marjory Wildcraft Soap nuts are so easy to work with. I use the same product for both shampoo and laundry detergent, and I have also used it to wash dishes. There are some recipes on the internet that give specific amounts to boil and how many minutes, etc., but recently, I just grab a big handful and boil in a huge pot of water (for about an hour). It keeps for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator, but I usually freeze some extra whenever I make a batch. It is definitely recommended!

  • Cornelius
    Cornelius Posts: 872 ✭✭✭✭
    edited April 2022

    I have been doing research for as an undergrad project on essential oils and their disinfectant ability. So far we have found that Thyme is actually the best of the ones we have tested (this has not been an exhaustive list). Lemon has been a failure and I believe Lime did work, but I would have to check my notes from last Semester. Lemon juice as well as vinegar failed. Note: This was all on E. coli.

  • Merin Porter
    Merin Porter Posts: 1,026 admin

    @AN1981 what is your ratio of vinegar to distilled water? I'm assuming you are able to keep the mineral residue from forming on your sinks by doing this? We've got super hard water, too, so I'm totally curious about how this works for you!

  • aztecex11
    aztecex11 Posts: 1 ✭✭✭

    For those toilet hard water stains I found apple cider vinegar, not the one with the mother, takes a lot off. I use a pumice scouring stick to get that ring off then pour in apv and if you do the swish and occasional soak can maintain pretty good.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,574 admin
    edited April 2022

    @Cornelius What was the strength of the vinegar used?

    I know the strong stuff works on salmonella.

    @Merin Porter I use 10% acetic acid by volume, straight, not diluted. You have to watch because it will damage some surfaces. I don't have any of those fortunately.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,574 admin

    Welcome @aztecex11! Please leave a short introduction in our Intros section so that we have a rough idea where you are from!

    https://community.thegrownetwork.com/categories/introductions

  • Kuri and Kona
    Kuri and Kona Posts: 177 ✭✭✭

    @Cornelius That`s interesting about the thyme. I have a bunch growing in my garden, so I wonder if I could do something with that.

  • raeannlewis73
    raeannlewis73 Posts: 2 ✭✭✭

    CDS Chlorine Dioxide Solution....without the bleach smells.


    https://kvlab.com/chlorine-dioxide-for-household-uses.html

  • marta271
    marta271 Posts: 15 ✭✭✭

    Honestly, i just use damp cloth and maybe a bit of dish soap for floors. I grew up in the times where we even didn't have access to cleaning agents we have now in the stores and somehow we survived in good health :D. The idea is though to clean often to maintain clean surfaces.