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Sustainable Cleaning Recipes

"Clean" doesn’t necessarily mean clean for the environment or our health. While doing dishes, laundry, or disinfecting your house, it is important to be aware of what chemicals are in your store-bought cleaning products, where those chemicals end up, and how they might affect your health.

Environmental & Health - Friendly Cleaners:
Many of today's household cleaners contain chemicals and toxins that can be easily replaced with common and inexpensive household ingredients, such as:

  • White Vinegar: Acts as a mild disinfectant and deodorizer, fights grease, cleans windows, unclogs drains, works as a fabric softener in the wash.
  • Baking Soda: Cleans, deodorizes, scours, and removes stains.
  • Borax: Removes dirt, eliminates odors, and acts as an anti-fungal and disinfectant.
  • Hydrogen Peroxide: A non-toxic bleach, stain remover, and disinfectant.
  • Club Soda: A stain remover and polisher.
  • Lemon Juice: A non-toxic bleach, grease-cutter, and stain remover.
  • Corn Meal: Works well to absorb carpet spills.
  • Olive oil: Polishes furniture, removes non-latex paints and adhesives from hands.
  • Pure Essential Oils: Aside from their strong scents, essential oils are well-known for their antimicrobial properties. Add them to your DIY cleaning products for extra cleaning power. Lemon and tea tree are commonly used for cleaning.


Natural Cleaning Recipes for:

Counter-top Cleaner
Mix:
-1 part distilled white vinegar
-1 part water
-add 10-20 drops of an essential oil such as tea tree or lemon

For surfaces that need scouring, add salt or baking soda

Window Cleaner
Mix:
-1 part distilled white vinegar
-1 part water


Basin, Tub, and Tile
Mix: 
-½ c. baking soda
-2-3 tbsp. liquid soap (castile, peppermint)


Disinfectant
Mix together:
-¼ c. borax
-½ gal. hot water

Oven Cleaner
Mix:
-¼ c. baking soda
-2 tbsp. salt
-Hot water, as needed to make a paste.
Let paste sit for 5 minutes. Caution: Keep off wires/heating elements.

   OR

-2 tbsp. liquid soap (castile, peppermint)
-2 tsp. borax
-1 qt. warm water
Spray on oven and wait 20 minutes, then clean. For tough stains, scrub with very fine steel wool and baking soda.

Drain Cleaner
Mix:
-½ c. borax in drain followed by
-2 c. boiling water

   OR

-¼ c baking soda down the drain, followed by
-½ c. vinegar
Cover drain and let sit for 15 minutes. Follow with 2 qts. boiling water.

   OR

Use a plumber's "snake" and boiling water.

Toilet Bowls
Mix:
-¼ c. baking soda into bowl and drizzle with vinegar.
Let sit for ½ hour. Scrub and flush. Add borax for stains.

Floors
Mix:
-½ c. white vinegar
-1 gal warm water

Mildew Remover
Dissolve together:
-½ c, vinegar
-½ c. borax in warm water.
Apply with sponge or spray bottle.

Furniture Polish (wood surfaces)
Mix:
-2 parts olive oil
-1 part part lemon juice or vinegar.
After rubbing the mixture in, let stand for several hours and then wipe clean with a soft, dry cloth.

Spot Removers
Here are alternatives to using enzyme pre-soaks and bleach for tough stains. Test each of the following remedies on a corner of your fabric first. Wash after application.
  • Heavy Soils: Rub with solution of 2 tbsp. washing soda in 1 cup warm water.
  • Fruit and Wine: Immediately pour salt or hot water on the stain and soak in milk before washing.
  • Ink: Soak in milk or remove with hydrogen peroxide.
  • Coffee: Mix egg yolk with luke-warm water and rub on stain.
  • Lipstick: Rub with cold cream or shortening and wash with washing soda.
  • Mildew: Pour strong soap and salt on the spots and place in sunlight. Keep the spots moist, and repeat as often as necessary.
  • Soiled Diapers: Pre-soak in 3 tbsp. baking soda dissolved in warm water in either a diaper bucket or washing machine.
  • Grease: Pour boiling water on stains and follow with dry baking soda. Also try ammonia and water.
  • Blood: Soak in cold water or remove with hydrogen peroxide. For a more stubborn stain, mix cornstarch, talcum powder or cornmeal with water and apply to stain. Allow to dry and brush away.
  • Chewing Gum: Rub with ice. Gum will flake off.
  • Rust: Saturate with sour milk (or lemon juice) and rub with salt. Place in direct sunlight until dry, then wash.

Don’t forget about your personal care items like toothpaste, face scrubs, and other cosmetics. All of these all go down the drain and into local waterways. Use eco-friendly products when possible and avoid any products with microbeads, which are tiny plastic particles that contribute to the microplastic problem in the ocean.