I’d been doing a lot of cleaning the last month or so, going through the entire house from top to bottom and making sure everything is spic and span. No, I wasn’t doing my spring cleaning 10 months late; I prefer to think I was doing it 2 months early.
When I say everything, I really do mean everything. Ovens. Hood. Bathrooms. Linen closets. Broom closets. Garage. Basement. Even the attic. (Once I got started, it was hard to stop.) And as I trudged to the supermarket to get myself another bag of sponges, it just dawned on me that cleaning products occupy an entire aisle in the store. An entire aisle. There were sprays for every appliance, fresheners for every kind of room, different kinds of brooms and mops for every kind of floor … it was dizzying.
It also dawned on me that none of the cleaning products we use today existed during Biblical times. Well, maybe except water and vinegar, but those were in different aisles anyway. Don’t get me wrong, I love my LemiShine and Clorox and Bar Keeper’s Friend. But I’m still partial to doing things the old-fashioned, natural way. It’s non-toxic, usually less expensive, and it helps free up a lot of extra shelf space in the closet for other things, like piles of rags, because I can’t bring myself to toss out pieces of cloth that still have some use left in them.
So let’s talk about cleaning! Tell us:
Do you have any cleaning tips and tricks using only natural products?
I know vinegar and baking soda are workhorses when it comes to cleaning, and I’m constantly amazed at how many uses they have. Together, they even can tackle the grubby, stubborn mess inside the grimiest of ovens. Just coat the surfaces of the oven in a paste of baking soda and water, and let it sit overnight. Then wipe it off, and spray vinegar in the crevices so that it reacts with the baking soda you can’t get to with the rag or sponge. Wipe everything down, and you’re done!
I’m sure there are other tips and tricks that I haven’t discovered yet. I’d love to hear what you use and how you use it. Come share below!
Happy Wednesday, friends!
17 Comments
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Dallis on 2.22.2015
I treated several hundred feet of oil stained granite and marble at an airport when a hydraulic hose burst and covered it all. To get a grease stain out of marble, dab mechanics citrus hand cleaner such as fast orange to cover the stain. Let it dry for a few hours to a day, and brush it off. If it doesn’t remove it completely, repeat the process. Test an inconspicuous area first, in case the hand cleaner will stain the particular marble you have.
Betty P on 2.20.2015
Stephanie, what ratio of hydrogen peroxide to Dawn do you use?
Micki on 2.19.2015
I love using baking soda to scour stuck bits off my pans — sprinkle, soak, scrub and it comes right off. Also, I recently bought a pack of microfiber cloths and I am now a two-handed cleaner, meaning that I am drying off surfaces immediately after wiping down. This method easily polishes surfaces and gets rid of water drop marks right away.
Barbara on 2.19.2015
Anyone know how to get a grease spot out of a marble floor?
Shawna C on 2.19.2015
Huh, I’m not even sure why it posted after only one thing…
An explanation of the first thing and the second of the couple of things:
Bleach and ammonia make a deadly gas if mixed (chlorine gas). Be careful!
Do not use acid (such as vinegar) to clean natural stone, especially marble. Vinegar is wonderful, but it will eventually etch your stone and you’re pretty shiny finish will become matte. I’d use a natural product for wood for the same reason – acid can be a problem and dull the finish.
I highly recommend Jolie Kerr’s cleaning book, My Boyfriend Barfed in my Handbag, and Other Things You Can’t Ask Martha. I never thought a book on cleaning would be particularly entertaining, but I read it cover-to-cover when I got it from the library, and then I bought my own copy.
Shawna C on 2.19.2015
A couple of things: DO NOT MIX BLEACH AND AMMONIA
Hiromi on 2.19.2015
Olive oil and a little elbow grease gets sticky labels and tape residue off…just wash off the oily residue afterwards.
Denise on 2.18.2015
Tammy – Wow, thank you for sharing that link! That’s exactly what I’ve been looking for, and it’s nice to know I can get it at Home Depot. It looks like it will be a labor of love, but will be so worth it when my floors look like new again! Thank you again!
C. L. ( Cheryl ) "Cheffie Cooks" Wiser on 2.18.2015
Greetings Cheryl A, first congrats to your husband and his remarkable surgery! He is blessed. I have herb, vegetable gardens as well as we grow citrus fruit on our land. I always use tepid water to rinse herbs, veggies, a soft brush for oranges, lemons, limes then place them on clean paper towels and rub them dry gently. I am not an expert especially when it comes to produce from grocery stores. I still would wash anything purchased and peel any and all I could. I’d rinse pre-packaged salad greens, coleslaw, baby carrots, broccoli, asparagus, pretty much all of it. I have soaked chicken in distilled vinegar/salt before baking. Vinegar seems to be the go to as a super all purpose cleaner of foods and stuff in general. Ranking up there with baking soda! Best of Luck!
KrissyC EsMommy on 2.18.2015
Vinegar is by far my favorite product. I don’t buy air fresheners, or window or floor cleaners…just vinegar. I have hardwood floors throughout my house so a lil vinegar in some hot water mixed with a mop cleans the floors. Vinegar and a towel are all thats needed to clean the grime off of windows. I have two rooms with carpets so I use vinegar to carpet clean them. I use it as a disenfectant, cleaner in toilets, and a fabric softener. Plus it works great cleaning your hair too! My family teases me that I’m the vinegar queen, but I don’t mind. It keeps shoes smelling fresh, towels feeling soft, and its not anything I have to worry about around the kitten, dog and kid.
Tammy on 2.18.2015
Denise,
Here’s a great link, it might be just what you need. Good Luck!
http://www.younghouselove.com/2014/01/how-you-like-me-now-grout/
Cheryl A. on 2.18.2015
Hi there – actually could I ask a question? My hubby just had a heart transplant in May and is now coming off his low-bacteria diet, albeit in stages. He was told he could eat salads if made at home and as long as the produce is thoroughly cleaned. How do you clean fresh fruits / vegetables to ensure microbial bacteria is removed as much as humanly possible? Thanks so much! Any advice is appreciated. Cheryl
kim on 2.18.2015
I’m a big fan of baking soda. I started using it to clean my cats’ fancy waterfall water bowl, which would get gunked up with hard water scale. I was nervous using other cleansers where they would be drinking. (Funny how it never worried me to use those chemicals where WE would be drinking.)
The baking soda worked very well, and what soda-y water ended up pooled in my stainless kitchen sink after I cleaned the cat fountain made short work of the tea stains in my sink too. Now I use it to scrub the bathroom, clean the insides of tea cups…all over the house.
Yvette on 2.18.2015
Bathroom grout… I have colored grout in my shower and after a while everything starts to change color, get moldy, and just yucky. My mom taught me just to put bleach over the grout and it cleans it up really nicely.
Kathleen on 2.18.2015
I totally agree with the Hydrogen Peroxide 1Cup to 1Tablespoon for cleaning. I have used this for stains on my clothing too. Some of the stains had been in my clothes for years and after spraying the stain with this solution, letting it set for a few minutes then laundering it, the stains disappear.
The total BEST all around clean anything and everything solution I have found is called Branch Basics. It’s all natural, no chemicals at all, non toxic, amazing stuff!! You can use this stuff on your hair, your baby’s skin, and as a degreaser in the garage. It’s amazing! Just google Branch Basics and see for yourself. (I’m not affiliated with them, I just really like their soap.)
Denise on 2.18.2015
Any tips on how to get the grout in my bathroom tile floor looking new again? No matter how much I scrub and clean, it just keeps looking dingy.
Stephanie Wheeler on 2.18.2015
Hydrogen Peroxide with dawn dish soap makes a great bathroom cleaner. Salt, borax and lemon juice made into a paste is a good scrubbing cleanser. Also equal parts borax and washing soda in place of dish washing soap – you only need half a tablespoon per load. These are just to name a few of my tricks:)