I’ve been asked often about what
cleaners we use at home seeing as all of our personal care products are
chemical free. We clean with natural products that many of us have on hand
every day. The smell left behind is wonderful fresh and clean – and dare I say
it natural – NOT flowery or chemical based. Natural! We use these cleaners everywhere in
our house – EVERYWHERE!
It’s an adjustment and a matter
of switching our brains over from what we have been conditioned by the big
companies with what works for cleaning when in fact many commercial cleaning
products leave nasties behind. There are no warning labels that need to be
heeded saying do not use in an enclosed space – ummm most of us don’t have
palatial bathrooms – it’s going to be small, enclosed and not easy to ventilate
especially in the winter months.
The reality is that we simply do not need to use the chemicals or expensive products to clean our homes. We make these great natural
alternatives ourselves and we are happy to share how.
Vinegar and Orange Peel
I take a large glass mason jar,
fill with the peel from oranges (grapefruit, lemon and limes are a great
addition too!) then fill the jar with vinegar. I let it sit and “brew” for 2 weeks shaking
once or twice a day. Strain any bits and transfer the liquid to two spray
bottles. I do one bottle full strength for tough cleaning and the 2nd
bottle I do half solution and half water for normal cleaning needs. 
The peel emits beautiful smells
and citrus fruits are again antibacterial and antiseptic. Oranges are a natural degreaser – (it’s also why
Orange Essential Oil is in our Mechanic’s Soap!)
I tend to have a few jars
“brewing”at once all in various stages. Because we have a large family and we
are fortunate that our crew inhales oranges – we are not usually lacking in
orange peels. Although we use this everywhere in our house, my favourite place
for this cleaner to work its magic is in the kitchen.
Vinegar – it’s a brilliant
creation. Check out this website to learn more about vinegar and its 1001 Uses for White Distilled Vinegar - I love this site! Truly!
Another alternative is Lemons!
The acid in lemons is capable of
killing bacteria with its antibacterial and antiseptic properties.
Take some lemons – 6 -7 provides
a good amount of juice – and juice them.
Strain the juice and pour into a spray bottle. Like the Orange &
Vinegar Cleaner this does wonders around the whole house however for cleaning
the bathroom – the lemon juice is my favourite. I really love the lemon juice
straight up in the bathroom – the citric acid works wonders breaking down the
soap scum and water deposits on tiles, showers, tubs, sinks and everything
else.
If you want to dilute the lemon
juice (4 tablespoons) into 1 L of water – it is a wonderful window cleaner
For cleaning tougher items like
grout: mix the lemon juice with some baking soda to make a paste, use a scrub
brush and voila the dirt and grime will scrub off.
Please note – While the vinegar
mixes well with lemon juice – it does NOT react well with vinegar. Do not add
the baking soda to the vinegar solution – remember grade school and the volcano
experiments? Enough said.
You house will never smell
fresher or be as clean! Added bonus – these are both recipes that are pennies to make and saves the
environment from the chemicals and packaging!
We'll talk about some natural cleaners for the floor next time - even hardwood floors!
