Do it Yourself Cleaning Products

With all of the strange words on a label today one begins to wonder if the products they are purchasing to clean their homes are really all that safe to use. Add that to the medical news that certain chemicals can trigger reactions in certain people and you have even more valid reasons to make your own housecleaning products.

Though I love the convenience of being able to just run into a store and purchase an all purpose cleaner or window cleaner, our daughter has some serious health issues that preclude me from doing that. I was seeking out alternate cleaning supplies when I ran across an article on “green cleaning”.

The article I found went on to state that many of the chemicals in cleaners can be pathogenic and harmful causing cancer and other health related issues, especially to asthmatics and others with impaired immune systems. Since my daughter is in remission from cancer and we are very very cautious about using any chemicals I read on.

I found that vinegar, baking soda, borax, lemons, club soda, isopropyl alcohol, and just plain soap (avoid using soaps which contain petroleum distillates) work just as well if not better than commercial products.

Here are some great do it yourself products. They are a fraction of the cost of the store bought formula’s and environmentally safe.

Oven cleaner: Moisten a warm oven with water. Mix of �¾ cups of baking soda and �½ cup of salt with enough water to make a thick paste and spread in oven over dirty crusty areas. Let sit overnight and in the morning scrape out with a spatula. Wipe your oven clean. Repeat in tough areas as needed and your oven should be sparkling new.

Multi purpose cleaner: Mix �½ cup vinegar and �¼ cup baking soda into �½ gallon of water. Shake gently before each use. Use to clean tubs, shower stalls, bathroom fixtures, windows and mirrors. For extra soap scum use either salt, baking soda or borax to gently remove.

Fabric Softener: White vinegar is a great fabric softener. Simply add �½ cup to rinse load in washer and dry as usual.

Fabric whitener: White vinegar or lemon juice will whiten fabrics. Simply add �½ go 1 cup to wash cycle and wash as usual to freshen and whiten laundry.

Dishwasher soap: Add equal parts of borax and washing soda to your machines soap dispensers. Add vinegar to the rinse additive unit and you’re all set. If you have extra hard water add extra borax.

Powdered Laundry soap: Grate 1 cup of either Ivory soap, Fels Naptha or any pure soap; add in �½ washing soda and �½ cup borax (optional) Mix all together thoroughly. Add 1 Tablespoon for light loads and double for heavier loads.

Gel Laundry soap: Add above mixture to 6 cups water and heat til melted. Add another 6 cups of water and let sit overnight. Gently shake to stir and use �¼ to �½ cup per washer load. This will not be a solid gel but rather a liquid type gel similar to egg drop soup.

Window cleaner: Mix 2 Teaspoons of vinegar with 1 quart of water. Shake and spray on mirrors or windows and gently wipe clean with newspaper or a lint free toweling.

Ispopropyl alcohol works great as a disinfectant. You can also add tea tree oil to any of the above mixes to give disinfectant properties to them.

Use baking soda and/or borax as cleanser.

Lemon juice or vinegar or baking soda can be set out around the house in decorative decanters or such for air fresheners.

All of these are simple to use, safe for the environment and my family. They are also great on my budget too.