You can make natural cleaning products from simple ingredients you probably already have in your home. (Photo credit: HMH)
We live in a chemical-filled world. Check the label of almost any household product and you will find a long list of hard-to-pronounce chemical names. While these ingredients might make these products effective cleaners, the toxic chemicals they contain could have deleterious affects on human health. Even fetuses are exposed to chemicals in the womb. One study that tested the infant umbilical cord blood found that babies were exposed to over 200 environmental chemicals before they have even been born.
In most cases, household cleaners aren’t required to list specific ingredients on their labels. Consumers who are interested in what they are spraying and wiping around their homes have to track the ingredients down with phone calls to the company that made them or searches of product websites.
Today, consumers are expressing an increased interest for eco-friendly products and are voting with their spending dollars by buying products that are labeled as safer for the environment, or “green.” But did you know that you can make your own natural cleaning products using a few simple ingredients you likely already have in your home? A walk down the cleaning product aisle at any store might make you think that you need a different product for each surface and each room of the house, but this is not true. Many of the same ingredients can be used to clean multiple surfaces. Making your own cleaning products will help you to have cleaner, safer home environment and it will save your family money, too.
Cleaning Windows: A simple recipe of white distilled vinegar and water is all that is needed to clean windows. Just add 1 tablespoon of vinegar to a quart of water. If the windows require a more powerful cleaner, you can add more vinegar, up to a solution of half vinegar, half water. Even undiluted vinegar can be used in areas where there are tough spots from hard water. The smell of vinegar will disappear shortly after you spray it, but if a fresh scent is preferred, lemon juice can be added.
Polishing Furniture: A quick natural way to make furniture polish is to put the juice of a lemon into a bowl or container, add one teaspoon of water, and one teaspoon of olive or vegetable oil. Use a soft cloth to lay a thin layer of the mixture onto wood furniture, and then let it sit for a few minutes. Then use a clean dry cloth to both buff the mixture in and remove the excess from the furniture. This mixture will not keep, so make sure to mix up only as much as you will use immediately. Unlike most store-bought furniture polish, it is safe to discard any remaining mixture down the sink.
Deodorizing Rugs: A quick, easy, and cheap way to remove odors from carpets and rugs is to sprinkle baking soda generously on them. Leave the baking soda on the carpet for at least fifteen minutes, and then vacuum it up. The baking soda will absorb the odor. If you are trying to neutralize a strong odor, sprinkle the baking soda on, use a broom to work it in to the carpet, and then sprinkle more baking soda on top. Leave up to two days if possible. When it is time to clean it up, first use a stiff broom to collect the top layer in a dust pan. Then vacuum up the rest. Vacuuming up a lot of baking soda could damage your vacuum.
Cleaning the Toilet Bowl: Like cleaning carpets, baking soda is also good for cleaning toilet bowls. Baking soda is mildly abrasive, so it is good for anything that requires scrubbing – from teeth, to pots and pans, to toilet bowls. For toilets, sprinkle the baking soda in the bowl, and use a toilet brush to scrub. For a cleaning solution that has foaming action, a little vinegar can also be added.
More to Explore
Alternatives to Hazardous Household Products
Homemade Non-Toxic Household Cleaners
The Best Non-Toxic Ways to Clean Your Home