Making your own cleaning products is a great way to reduce plastic pollution and avoid harmful chemicals in your home - the majority of commercial products these days tend to be wrapped in elaborate plastic packaging or have a plethora of chemicals you’ve never heard of before. Fortunately, it’s never been more possible to break away from the endless commercial reliance and become a little more self-sufficient. By keeping it simple and switching to DIY cleaners, you can provide your home with all you need for a sparkling clean and sanitary home without any of the downsides.
From our experience providing premium house cleaning services to residents in Johnstown, we’ve learned just how important it is to use the safest and most effective cleaning products. If you’ve had enough of harsh chemicals and plastic that do harm to the environment and our bodies, read on from the experts at Yost Cleaning to learn about all the natural cleaning products you can make at home!
Before diving into all the different natural cleaning products you’ll be able to make, there are a few ingredients that we recommend having on hand. These ingredients are all-natural, and they will form the basis for a variety of uses.
Baking soda is a century-old classic that works great for cleaning, deodorizing, and scrubbing away dirt and grime. In many cases, you’ll actually be able to use this alone to remove dirt and stains from different surfaces throughout your home.
White vinegar is an easily accessible and highly effective ingredient for many different purposes. It helps get rid of tough stains (even grease-based stains), odors, dirt, and especially mold and mildew that collect in wet areas like showers and bathrooms. While it does have a slightly strong smell, it will dissipate after a short period of time and can easily be countered by wonderful-smelling essential oils.
Originating from the Mediterranean region, castile soap is the jack of all trades cleaning product. This incredibly versatile soap is vegetable-based and is free of animal fats and synthetic ingredients. Its composition allows it to be safely used for body and home cleaning - it’s non-toxic, vegan, and biodegradable. The soap molecules found in Castile soap have one end that bonds to water and one that repels it. When combined with water, the result is that one end attaches to dirt, grime, and grease and removes it from the surface it is applied. Castile soap works great for detergent, dish and hand soap, floor cleaner, and, furthermore, because of its vegetable-based ingredients, it is non-corrosive and extremely gentle.
Salt is a fantastic ingredient that helps magnify the scouring power of other ingredients like baking soda and vinegar. Because of its texture, impurities like dirt, dust, and grime are more easily removed from surfaces and should thus be a core part of several different DIY cleaning products.
The strengths of lemon juice are that it is both very acidic, giving it power against bacteria and stains, and that it smells of citrus and fruit - two birds with one stone!
Essential oils not only smell fantastic, coming in fragrances of lemon, tea tree, lavender, and more, but they are naturally antibacterial as well - truly some of the best-smelling sanitizing agents out there.
Olive oil is a simple yet perfect cleaning solution for polishing furniture. It works great at bringing out the natural shine in wood and simultaneously loosening up stains, grease, and grime from many different types of surfaces.
Time to get into the fun part! If you have most or all of the above cleaning ingredients on hand, you can expect to make an incredible variety of cleaning products, such as:
All-purpose cleaner is exactly that: a cleaner that you can use for practically all purposes! Use it to wipe down surfaces and thereby sanitize your home, reducing the germs floating around in high-traffic areas. Mix ¼ cup of white vinegar, 1 tbsp baking soda, 1 liter of hot water, 10 drops of essential oil, and ½ a lemon (juice only).
This will work great for kitchen surfaces, bedroom furniture, bathroom sinks, and other general applications where a surface needs to be sanitized. However, be aware that this shouldn’t be used on granite, stone, or marble countertops.
This next product can be used on all things glass: windows, glass cups, mirrors, and more.
Mix together 1 part white vinegar, 4 parts water, and a few drops of essential oil for scent. Try to avoid using this on exterior windows during a hot day because it can leave streaks.
A DIY mold cleaner can be used by filling a spray bottle, spraying the mold-affected area, and then letting it sit for around 30 minutes before washing it off.
Fill the spray bottle with white vinegar, salt, and tea tree essential oil. In order to wash it off, rinse the area in warm water and scrub it with a washcloth.
If you’re looking to do some handwashing, just utilize a mixture of 4 parts castile soap with 1 part water in an old soap container of your choice. However, if you’re looking for a natural DIY substitute for dishwasher soap, create a mix of ½ cup liquid castile soap, ½ cup water, 1 tsp lemon juice, 3 drops of tea tree extract, and ¼ cup white vinegar.
Floor cleaner is an easy one, requiring a bucket of hot water with ¼ cup of white vinegar and a squeeze or two or castile soap.
This is where olive oil comes in handy. Create a mixture of ½ cup warm water, ¼ cup olive oil, and a few drops of essential oil. Be sure to mix well and spray the mixture onto a soft cotton cloth. Wipe the furniture with the cloth, and then wipe again with a dry soft cotton cloth.
For a blocked drain, pour a few scoops of baking soda down the drain followed by some white vinegar. These ingredients will react together and break down the dirt, grease, and grime clogging your drain. After about 15 minutes have passed, pour boiling water down the drain to clean everything out.
Tough stains are never fun, but with the help of this DIY remover, all your accidents should be solved! Create a mixture of ¼ cup white vinegar, ¼ cup baking soda, a squeeze of castile soap, and 2 cups of water. Make sure it is well mixed and put it in a spray bottle for application as needed.
Your home is your sanctuary. We understand that there is never a reason to compromise on safety by using cleaning products that are harmful to your family or friends. With Yost Cleaning, you can expect the highest professional quality house cleaning services that will keep your home safe, clean, and looking great. If you’re in Johnstown and need some extra help, contact us to schedule your house cleaning today!