Keeping Your Home Clean Without Money Going Down the Drain
Every week you clean your house. And every week, more money goes down the drain. Household cleaners are a necessary evil. The products are always so expensive. Not only that, the majority of them include chemicals that I just don't like to have around my family. With some smart planning and innovation, you can keep your house sparkling clean on a budget.
Use Vinegar. It is amazing what this inexpensive product can do. You can make your own cleaning products and know that it isn't only safe for the environment, it is safe for your family.
Scouring Cleanser: Mix 1/4 cup baking sode and 1 cup of liquid detergent. Then, mix in enough vinegar just to give it a creamy texture. Use it to scrub just about anything.
Clean the Dishwasher: Once a month, pour a cup of distilled vinegar into your diswasher and run a cycle. This will remove soap buildup and odors.
Shower Cleaner: Spray the shower down with full strength vinegar to remove hard water deposits and to remove grime, mildew and soap scum. Just rinse with plain water after allowing it to soak.
Germ Killer: Spray door knobs and other items with full strength vinegar and wipe them down.
Glass Cleaner: 1 Tbs Vinegar, 1 cup rubbing alcohol, 1 cup water. Mix in this proportion to make a streak free glass cleaner that is MUCH safer than the blue stuff you buy in the store.
Avoid the paper towels. We don't use paper towels to clean here. Instead, use reusable items such as microfiber cloths and washable mop covers. We even recyle our newspapers and use them to polish windows and glass. (Hint - wipe horizontally one side and vertically on the other to find any streaks that might appear). What works for us is to use a damp cloth to scrub and a dry one to polish.
Make your own dryer softener sheets. Purchase inexpensive wash cloths (check your dollar store). Soak them in inexpensive fabric softener for about five minutes. Let them dry and then toss into the dryer. You can pour the residual fabric softener back into the bottle and reuse it to make more sheets.
Use Lemon. Lemon is a natural bleaching agent. If you have a white items with stains, squeeze lemon onto it, let it sit in the sun and let mother nature work on removing the stain. You can also use lemon with your vinegar cleaners to cut down on the odor vinegar can leave behind.
Stick with the store brands. If the idea of making your own item is just NOT your cup of tea, you can still purchase your products. You might try the store brands since these are usually your name brands - just in a different wrapper. Make sure to check out your Dollar Stores as they also offer store brands and sometimes at even lower prices.
There are lots of great ways to save on your household cleaning products. What is your favorite way to save on your cleaning supplies?