DIY natural cleaning products

By Rachel Jepson

on Mar 30, 2018

Cleaning your house shouldn't expose your family to a host of chemicals. After all, your goal is clean – not toxic. But since companies are not required to list the ingredients of house cleaning products (not in the US anyway), it's hard to know exactly what you are inviting into your home. So why not make your own? It's easier than you might think. And ridiculously cheap.

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Here's how we keep things clean around here. Most of the ingredients are in your kitchen or laundry room already. Now you just need to learn some new tricks to use them!

Cheap, easy, natural DIY cleaners. {Clean. The LuSa Organics Blog}

DIY LAUNDRY SOAP

Ingredients

Natural bar soap
Borax
Baking Soda
Washing Soda

I shared this recipe with you two years ago and you went gaga for it! Because, who knew it was so darn easy to make laundry soap?! Every few weeks the kids and I grate a couple of bars of our soap, mix in baking soda, washing soda, and borax, and we're set for the month! It's ridiculously easy. And yeah, cheap. Even if you do use the most amazing soap on Earth, like I do. Oh, yeah. And you can even make your own washing soda if you can't find any at your local stores. My laundry soap recipe is here.

DIY LAUNDRY PRETREATER

Ingredients

Light-colored bar of soap (no dark or bright colored bars or soaps with exfoliants)

For machine washable clothing only. Moisten stained area on fabric. Rub with bar soap to coat stained area. Wash as usual with the warmest water for your fabric. Check stain before drying, and repeat if needed.

DIY CITRUS ALL PURPOSE CLEANER

Ingredients:

White vinegar
Fresh citrus peels from 1-3 oranges, tangerines, lemons, etc.

This one is even easier than the laundry soap! Fill a mason jar with citrus peels and add enough vinegar to cover. (Weigh down the peels with a smaller jar if they are floating out of the liquid.) In one to two weeks, pour off the vinegar into a clean jar and compost the peels. Transfer to a spray bottle if you have one, and use to clean floors, tubs, tile, showers, counters, and more. I use this all. the. time.

THE BEST WINDOW CLEANER IS NO WINDOW CLEANER

Ingredients:

Water
Microfiber cloth

I've tried ever DIY window cleaner recipe I could find. Dozens, I tell you. Dozens. And I didn't love a one. Nor do I love the store-bought natural incarnations of the horrid blue stuff my mom uses. (Man that blue stuff works. But it is loaded with ammonia, fragrance oils, and dyes. Nothing I want to breathe nor rub over every glassy surface in my house.) So after giving up on washing windows forever more, I hit the jackpot at our local hardware store. It is the humble microfiber cloth. Oh. My. Goodness. For the first time in my live I'm loving washing windows. Though the kids are a bit crazy over this cloth too, and usually beat me to it. And now I wash windows with… water. And my cloth. And I squeal with delight. For real. Ditch the blue spray and buy a microfiber cloth. It's all you need. (One disclaimer for you tactile people: it feels really freaky in your hand. Sort of like it's snagging on every microscopic skin cell you've ever had. I got over it. If you can't, just wear gloves.)

HOMEMADE DISINFECTANT

Ingredients

White vinegar

Really! That's all you need. Can you believe it? Yup. The acidity of vinegar it is one of the best disinfectants around. Here's how: Just wipe down contaminated area with undiluted vinegar and allow to dry. Make you wonder why you had that other stuff around, doesn't it? And by avoiding antibacterial agents, you won't be contributing to the development of antibacterial-resistant super bugs. And that's good for everyone. Feel free to substitute All Purpose Citrus Cleanser for white vinegar. No more nasty bleach!

DIY FLOOR CLEANER

Ingredients:

Vinegar or Citrus All Purpose Cleaner (above)
Water
Essential Oils (optional)
Squirt of unscented dish soap (optional)

When I clean my floors I have a pretty basic routine. I fill a bucket with warm water, add a carefully measured glug of vinegar (glug!) and a few drops of my favorite essential oil blend – Cranky Pants. It's all I need! If the floor is horrifying (okay, mine often is) add a wee squirt of natural dish soap, too. Smells great and it works even better. What more do you need? Use your favorite essential oil blend or try a few drops of sweet orange eo.

DIY SINK & TUB SCRUB

Ingredients:

Baking Soda
Vinegar
Liquid unscented dish soap (optional)

Sprinkle your sink or tub with baking soda. A couple of TB is enough for the sink, maybe 1/4 cup for the tub. Moisten with a splash of vinegar or spray it from your handy spritz bottle, all around the surface you are cleaning. The baking soda and vinegar will react and fizz up. Fun! Now scrub the fizzing/fizzled paste around the tub and rinse. Clean! If your surface is stupid nasty dirty you can add a squirt of dish soap to your rag before you begin. If your sink handles have horrible gunk around them, soak a clean rag in vinegar, encircle the nasty fixture, and let it sit. By the time you clean the rest of the bathroom it should be easily wiped away. Look how much less gross your house is. And it cost you like eight cents! Cha-ching!

DIY TOILET BOWL CLEANER

Ingredients:

Baking Soda
Vinegar
Liquid unscented dish soap (optional)

Toss 1/4 Cup of baking soda into your toilet. Scrub around with your brush, then add a healthy glug of vinegar. (1/2 Cup or more). Scrub with your brush. It will fizz. Let it sit until your other cleaning is done, then flush. In truth, these recipes do not mean my house is always spotless. Quite the opposite. But when we clean, we mean business. And no toxins are left behind when we're done. So there you have it! Cleaning, cheap and green. What's not to love? (Okay, maybe toilet cleaning…)