Recipes for homemade cleaners: What’s your favorite?
I finally made some homemade laundry soap, and I've even tried the baking soda/vinegar substitute for shampoo. Now I want more!
What is your favorite homemade cleaner? Is it cheaper, safer, or more effective? All of the above?
DISHES: I'd like to find a less expensive replacement for dishsoap - the kind for hand-washing dishes. Do you have a tried-and-true recipe? And has anyone tried combining equal amounts of borax and baking soda in the dishwasher? It sounds too easy to be true, but we don't have a dishwasher to try it out.
What cleaner would like to find a homemade substitute for?
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19 Responses to “Recipes for homemade cleaners: What’s your favorite?”
January 31st, 2009 at 7:40 am
I’ve used borax and washing soda in my dishwasher and it works great! I also use it plus grated soap as a laundry detergent, that also works really well.
January 31st, 2009 at 8:00 am
Folks, amateur chemistry is really not something we should take lightly. I know its fun to save money but Borax (sodium tetraborate pentahydrate)is harmful to the environment when you release it in to the water supply. It can kill plants and plant life and unbalance a river’s ecosystem (kill fish). It is toxic to humans and many individuals are sensitive to it. I know you don’t want to save money this way…
January 31st, 2009 at 9:47 am
My favoritest all around cleaner is this: for oven, make a paste using baking soda & Kosher salt; (thicker than regular salt) & a little water; can use lemon juice instead if like; put onto oven walls & doors; let sit a short time if want; may need to spritz with water; then just use stainless steel or copper scrubber; most will come right up little elbow grease at all! (do put tin foil in the bottom of oven under the coils as a liner; makes clean up a breeze; can also put over the over top under the coils pans; saves a lot of time cleaning them!
For the tub, make paste again using Kosher salt & baking soda HOWEVER use hydrogen peroxide 3% as the liquid; it comes up easily; can also use the scrubbing bubbles that I use to clean the toilet with: 1/4 c baking soda, 1/8 c vinegar (i don’t measure just add small amounts: then add a little hydrogen peroxide & let sit; then swish with brush; voila!
January 31st, 2009 at 10:07 am
hydrogen peroxide 3% kills not only bacterias folks but VIRUSES as well! while it is not drinkable it is safe for children, humans & pets, & the earth! However it DOES break down in LIGHT: so you must keep it in dark bottles; I use vinegar also a lot & you can find all kinds of great information re it’s properties by doing a google search or other engine search; this I keep in a spray bottle all the time; Do NOT combine the 2 in 1 container: it creates a different compound & can explode & the hydrogen peroxide again breaks down in LIGHT: do keep a spray bottle empty to USE it with: just use ONLY the amount you will need for the job to do: REASON is simple: like for tub, kitchen counters, cutting boards: spray 1st with hydrogen peroxide 3% THEN the vineger (full strength) then RUN (the smell will disappear rapidly but is STRONG); using THIS combination folks is STRONGER & MORE EFFECTIVE than clorine & any toxin made. Kills e coli, salmonlla, & a bunch more of nasties PLUS VIRUSES FOLKS!
Do NOT use the “anti bacteria” soaps of ANY KIND out on the market because it HARMS YOU & the environment! toxins enter your skin & make you immune to antibiotics creating “super bugs”; INSTEAD: make your own if you would like! I grated a small amount of castile soap (can use glycerin whatever) put into 48 ounces of water & heated til thouroughly dissolved; cooled; put into a recycled dishwashing soap; you will need to add a little more liquid to it to use; I use the hydrogen peroxide 3% & put into opaque (remember has to be DARK) softsoap dispenser; for BETTER soap that disinfects without harming me & ALSO kills VIRUS germs! you can also just leave a bottle by sink in bathroom & kitchen to rinse hands off with; again, will kill bacteria & viruses on your hands!
January 31st, 2009 at 10:09 am
For glass and solid surface cleaner (glass, mirrors, counter tops, toilets, etc) I combine in a spray bottle: 1 part white distilled vinegar, 1 part rubbing alcohol, one drop of soap (can do without that, but helps avoid streaks if you’ve been using a commercial glass cleaner) and four parts water. I’ve made this in all types of combinations, the absolutely essential ingredients are the vinegar and water. I’ve been using this for about 8 years now! The gallon of vinegar I bought for less than two dollars will last me about two years!!
January 31st, 2009 at 11:39 am
We’ve tried the baking soda plus borax and citric acid combo in our dishwasher, and it didn’t work well at all. It left an almost powdery/chalky residue on our dishes and by the time we had it all mixed up it was almost as expensive as the big buckets of generic dishwashing powder from the bulk store. We have really hard water though. We add a bit of white vinegar to our dishwasher and that helps clear things up.
January 31st, 2009 at 4:13 pm
My favourite bench spray is
1 litre water
200mlsvinegar
40 mls detergent (dishwashing liquid)
30mls eucalyptus oil
2 dsp washing soda
Mix together and just spray and wipe also good to add a couple of tbs to hot water for floor washing. cleans grout too and smells divine
January 31st, 2009 at 11:29 pm
We make a tub and tile cleaner. Into a spray bottle 1/2 cup old fashioned original Dawn Dishwashing fluid, and fill the bottle with white vinegar. Shake up and spray down your tub, toilet, and sinks. This mixture makes cleaning a breeze, and leaves everything clean and shiny. (Note: the new Dawn dishsoaps don’t work as well, use the old fashioned cheaper kind, normally found on the bottom shelf at Walmart). Also, after each shower, we spray our shower down with rubbing alcohol, it helps prevent mildew and mold, plus it helps eliminate spots. Another hint for laundry is to take a cheap container of laundry, we use Aldi’s brand, pour half of it into another container, add 1/2 cup of Original Dawn to each, then fill each with water. This way, you’ve made two containers worth of laundry soup for the price of one, plus .25 cents of Dawn. Use only half the amount per load.
February 1st, 2009 at 4:57 am
I was intrigued by what Scot had to say about Borax. On About.com found this warning about using borax around food & felt like I should share:
Risks Associated with Borax
Borax is natural, but that does not mean it is automatically safer for you or for ‘the environment’ than man-made chemicals. Although plants need boron, too much of it will kill them, so borax can be used as an herbicide. Borax may also be used to kill roaches, ants, and fleas. In fact, it is also toxic to people. Signs of chronic toxic exposure include red and peeling skin, seizures, and kidney failure. The estimated lethal dose (ingested) for adults is 15-20 grams; less than 5 grams can kill a child or pet. For this reason, borax should not be used around food. More commonly, borax is associated with skin, eye, or respiratory irritation. It is also important to point out that exposure to borax may impair fertility or cause damage to an unborn child.
Now, none of these risks mean that you shouldn’t use borax. If you do a bit of research, you will find risks associated with all cleaning products, natural or man-made. However, you do need to be aware of product risks so that you can use those products properly. Don’t use borax around food, keep it out of reach of children and pets, and make sure you rinse borax out of clothes and off of surfaces before use.
Link: http://chemistry.about.com/od/howthingsworkfaqs/a/howboraxworks.htm
This page has a green & no-borax recipe for automatic dishwasher detergent. http://www.greenlivingtips.com/articles/221/1/Castile-soap.html
February 2nd, 2009 at 3:32 pm
I found that baking soda and borax sometimes doesn’t get my glass plates clean/leaves a film. We use glass salad plates for kid sized plates.
I make my own DW detergent this way:
1 c borax
1 c baking soda
1/2 c. salt
Use 2 Tablespoons.
February 3rd, 2009 at 8:09 pm
I use vinegar instead of Jet Dry in my dishwasher. I pour in enough vinegar to fill up the Jet Dry container in my dishwasher and let it go. I think vinegar works as a much better and cheaper sheeting agent. Who knew?
February 20th, 2009 at 8:43 am
i make and use the liquid laundry detergent recipe (and store in in those old detergent bottles that have the pump dispenser so that every dose of detergent is an exact 1 oz. the recipe makes 2gal. and it lasts for a long time. i usually make up one batch per 5-6mos. don’t care for the homemade stuff in the dishwasher although it does work in a pinch…do use the vinegar in the rinse cycle. vinegar and baking soda for the pipes, and any other cleaning that needs to be done. these are big time money savers and work just as well..maybe better than the store bought fancy good smelling stuff.
March 3rd, 2009 at 7:58 am
I just wanted to respond to the comments about Borax.
There are two different types of Borax Scott, and 20 Mule Team Borax is altogether a different product than the one you are referring too.
Here is a link explaining what it is & what it’s made up of:
http://www.20muleteamlaundry.com/index.cfm?page_id=56
Maybe this will help to clear a few things up.
May 11th, 2009 at 5:06 pm
looked into the 20 mule team site… in their FAQs section, they describe their product as 99.5% pure borax and then go on to define it as sodium tetraborate decahydrate… looked up boron on a chemistry site… hate ot admit it, because I use borax a lot, but Scott is right about the defintion of borax… not sure if he didn’t exagerate the effects to the environment a bit though. Look up boron and decide for yourself
July 15th, 2009 at 11:48 am
i have tried the borax,baking soda and i add a little white vinegar in a cup in the bottom rack.i also put a small drop of castille soap.i love that stuff.i have been buying br.bronners but i have recently mad my own and saving more.the castille soap is worth it though if you have to buy i buy the big one because you can use it for everything
July 28th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Has anyone tried washing soda (sodium carbonate)in their dishwashers with vinegar in the rinse? We have a new dishwasher but it’s not hooked up yet and I have been wanting to try it.
August 6th, 2009 at 7:32 am
I use The Vinegar to replace bleach in almost everything, it does not burn your lungs as bleach does, pour 2 Tablespoons of baking soda in the drain, and add 1 cup of vinegar, it is a good way to unstop drains too.
I use Dawn Dish Washing detergent as a spot remover, it works great on grease spots especially, or grass stains, lipstick marks, it amazes me how many natural things we have to work with, you do not need to spend a fortune to keep a clean and refreshed home. Hope this helps someone.
October 5th, 2009 at 11:13 pm
I have only recently made a couple of these homemade cleaners so I don’t really have a “great” recipe put together yet.
I will eventually, but I have to know how my ingredients work together I think.
January 5th, 2010 at 5:45 pm
My great recipe is 1/4 of the bottle rubbing alcohol, add 1 tsp. of dishwashing detergent, then add water all the way up the bottle. I use either wintergreen scent or orange for the rubbing alcohol. I too like Hydrogen Peroxide, but the alcohol comes cheaper as I can add water to it.
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