Here are just a few great cleaning tips that don’t involve harsh chemicals. Stock up on that baking soda and vinegar!
All purpose cleaner substitute: mix salt + vinegar and use in spray bottle. 4 tsp baking soda disolved in 1 qt water also works well.
Kill bacteria in trash cans and elsewhere by sprinkling Borax – 1/3 to 1/2 c
Need a good oil cleaner for wood furniture and other wood surfaces? Try mixing vengar with olive oil.
For wood floors, polish w/mixture of equal parts baby oil + vinegar.
Clearing drains of clogs if the plunger doesn’t do it all: pour 1-2 c baking soda followed by 1/2 c white vinegar and cover tightly for 1 minute. Rinse thoroughly with hot water. Repeat 30 minutes later if it’s a super tough clog.
For laundry, return to the old days – try using Borax in lieu of chemical-laden detergents. Even though these days, borax is advertised as a laundry booster, it’s really a great naturally occurring detergent. (you can treat horses suffering from thrush in their hooves, too)
The multiple uses of Borax…
* Borax is also great for cleaning out refrigerators – especially stinky ones.
* You can also use it prevent water in humidifiers from smelling bad. Just dissolve 1 tsp of borax for each gallon of water.
* Got a kid that wets the bed? Get rid of urine odors by dampening the area, sprinkling borax and rubbing it in. Once dry, vacuum the dry borax away and that’s it.
* Use it to clean & deodorize bathroom surfaces.
Air freshener: Add cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves or vanilla in a pot of simmering water.
Clean, streak-free glass/windows: 2+ T of vinegar with 1 qt water. Add cornstarch to combat streaking.
Clean your sinks: Scour with baiking soda (2T per 1 pt warm water). Add lemon juice or vinegar if you don’t have lemon juice to cut through grease.
Disinfectant: Using two spray bottles, spritz area w/white vinegar. Then mist area w/3% hydrogen peroxide. Rinse w/water and you’re done.
Linoleum floors: 1c white vinegar + 1 gal water+ cap full of baby oil. Don’t add the baby oil for brick or stone floor cleaning.
* most of these adapted from The Healthy Home by Jackie Craven.
