Looking for a cost-effective, safe way to keep your home clean, naturally? Try these four common household items:
Olive oil: Use to lubricate and polish wood furniture (three parts olive oil to one part vinegar; or two parts olive oil to one part lemon juice).
Potatoes: Halved potatoes can remove rust from baking pans or tinware - follow with a salt scrub or dip the potato in salt before scrubbing.
White vinegar: Cleans linoleum floors and glass (from windows to shower doors) when mixed with water and a little liquid soap (castile or vegetable). It cuts grease and removes stains, and removes soap scum and cleans toilets (add a bit of baking soda if you like). Pour down drains once a week for antibacterial cleaning. Add to water in a spray bottle to kill mold and mildew.
Tea tree oil: Can be added to vinegar/water solutions for its antibacterial properties. Use it to kill mold and mildew, and on kitchen and bathroom surfaces instead of chemical products. Add 50 drops to a bucket of water to clean countertops and tile floors.
Dr. Weil
I love using all these. Along with them, I love using baking soda for deep scrubbing and deodorizing. Also, old lemon rinds used for juicing or cooking can be used to brighten your sink and countertops as well as make them smell fresh. White vinegar’s great for cleaning, just check out this list-
Vinegar Tips. If you can’t stand the smell of vinegar, put a few drops of
essential oils into the mix (lavender works great and has disinfecting properties of its own). Check out
these cleaning recipes that include essential oils.
It’s important to keep the cleaners in your home green. Check out the ingredients on the back of some conventional cleaners sometime. They’re filled with gnarly toxic chemicals that you end up inhaling or absorbing while cleaning. Besides that, it all ends up going down the pipes and or into the ground and into the food and water we drink and eat! There’s no reason to have such harsh chemicals to get our homes clean. All we need is a little elbow grease and some of the things listed above. They work the same without the hazard to your health.
To Good Health,
Joyce
