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Cheap Cleaning Ingredients

Cheap Cleaning Ingredients

Lemon Juice

Lemon juice is great for eliminating bad smells, as well as all types of cleaning concerned with grease and mineral deposits. It works extremely well on hard water stains and on built-up soap scum. The lemon is an ideal cleaning agent because the acid from the lemon cuts right through the grease and mineral deposits found on counters, in grout, on shower doors, and on floors.

You can mix lemon juice with vinegar and/or baking soda to make a paste that will act as a scrubbing agent, or mix it with olive oil for a wood furniture polish. Lemon juice left to sit on a rust spot can completely erase the stain. This may need to be repeated several times before the spot is completely gone.

White vinegar

White vinegar is another cost effective all-purpose cleaner, and a common item stocked in many pantries. Diluted in equal part water, vinegar is great for everyday cleaning and eliminating tough stains and mineral deposits. Vinegar is also a deodorizer, like baking soda, as well as a disinfectant. Because it contains no colorants, it will not stain. Vinegar does not work well on marble or on grout, and may damage it because of its acidity. The vinegar smell will quickly dissipate once dry. Vinegar is also an effective stain remover on sinks, floors, stovetops, chrome, and countertops and can be used to remove rings from your toilet bowl. If you have family members with sensitive skin, adding half a cup of vinegar to your rinse cycle will quickly break down laundry detergent and act as a natural fabric softener.

Both lemon juice and vinegar are acids capable of dissolving sticky buildups. They eat away tarnish, and they remove dirt from wood surfaces. Lemon juice is a weak solution of citric acid and is a mild bleach, deodorant and cleaning agent. Vinegar is a weak solution of acetic acid.

Vinegar is used as a bleach, disinfectant, deodorant, and anti-mould cleaner. Mix one part water with one part vinegar in a spray bottle, and shake well. This will work on most household surfaces including counters, tubs, floors, sink, stoves and appliances.

Baking Soda, better known as Bicarbonate of Soda

It is available from the supermarket in the cake ingredients section.
Baking soda or bicarb has a myriad of uses, but is especially good as a non-abrasive cleanser. It is made from naturally occurring soda ash or sodium bicarbonate. It is slightly alkaline and neutralizes acids. Manufacturers of baking soda mine the soda ash, and then refine and regulate its pH, balancing its acidity and alkalinity to maximize its ability to neutralize, clean and deodorize.

You can also use bicarb soda by sprinkling a little onto a damp cloth to use as a non-abrasive cleaner. A cupful can be added to the wash to remove perspiration and chemical odors from clothes.  It is also a wonderful air freshener and carpet cleaner.

Soft Scrub:
½ cup baking soda
A little water
A little lemon juice – enough to make a paste

Great for cleaning tiles, tubs, and surfaces that need a good scouring

Borax

Buy it cheaply at any supermarket.
Borax (sodium borate) is a good, all-purpose cleaner and can be mixed with water, baking soda or white vinegar. Borax works as laundry soap and can clean wallpaper, painted walls, and painted surfaces.

Borax is a natural mineral compound.  Discovered over 4000 years ago, it not only has numerous industrial uses, but also can be used in the home as a natural laundry booster, multipurpose cleaner, fungicide, preservative, insecticide, herbicide and disinfectant. Borax crystals are odorless, whitish and alkaline. Borax is not flammable and is not reactive. It can be mixed with most other cleaning agents, including chlorine bleach. Borax has many chemical properties that contribute to its cleaning power.
Although Borax is natural, that doesn’t mean it is automatically safer for you or for the environment than man-made chemicals. 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 all surfaces before use.

Cream of Tartar

Available from the supermarket in the cake ingredients section.
You will only need a small amount of this, because it is not used as often as other ingredients. You can use cream of tartar to clean casserole dishes, saucepans and pans. Mix two teaspoons of vinegar with two teaspoons of cream of tartar in a small dish. You can double these amounts if you have a large surface to cover. Apply the solution to your item and let it sit for five to 10 minutes. Scrub with a scouring pad and wash in hot soapy water. If you have really burnt the pan you may need to repeat this process.

Tea tree oil

Produced from the leaves of the Australian tea tree, tea tree oil is an efficient antiseptic and disinfectant. Most supermarkets will stock it. Just add a few drops of tea tree oil to any home made cleaning agent for extra hygiene.

Eucalyptus oil

Available from health food stores and supermarkets.
Eucalyptus oil is produced from the leaves of eucalyptus trees. It is a strong antiseptic and can be used in the treatment of colds and influenza. You will also find it particularly useful for removing oily or greasy stains from dirty clothing.

Bothered by those pesky stickers that seem to decorate every new smooth surface regardless of the item and just won’t come off cleanly? Get a damp cotton cloth and apply a little eucalyptus oil to the surface where the sticker has to be removed. Let the oil penetrate for a minute. Gently pull the adhesive sticker away. A little more oil applied to the surface will remove any residual glue.

To removing mould from tiles in showers or painted surfaces, simply use a damp cotton cloth with a drop or two of eucalyptus oil. The mould just melts away.

Salt

Salt is an effective basic scrub that will give you extra cleaning power. It’s great for smaller jobs like removing tea stains from the inside of cups or cleaning out the coffee pot. Just fill pot with ice-cubes, pour in some salt, and swirl.

There are other very effective cleaning agents cheaply available, but because they are far more toxic, you must take especial care when using them.

Washing soda

Available in the supermarket.
Washing soda is much more alkaline than baking soda, even though they are from the same family. But beware, washing soda is caustic, so wear gloves when handling it. Washing soda is very good at cutting through grease, but it will also remove wax, so keep it away from waxed surfaces such as polished floors.  It should also be kept away from fiberglass, plastics and aluminum.

Rubbing alcohol

Available from the pharmacy
Isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol makes a brilliant window and glass cleaner. This is, of course, not as safe as the previous cleaners. It is also a powerful disinfectant for chrome and some kinds of ceramic tiles (test it in an inconspicuous area first). Alcohol also works well for cleaning dirty or dusty candles!

Hydrogen peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide has no fumes or odors, is antibacterial, and non-toxic. It’s also very cheap and has a long shelf life. Hydrogen peroxide is an ideal substitute for expensive and environment-damaging anti-bacterial soaps, wipes and sprays.

Ammonia

Available from the supermarket cleaning section.
Ammonia is a cost effective cleaning agent. However it is toxic, so use with care. Ammonia is a strong alkali  and works in situations in which vinegar doesn’t go the job. Ammonia should never be mixed with bleach as it will create an extremely toxic gas.

Ammonia is the base of most commercial oven cleaners. Apply it to your dirty oven in the same way and allow to stand overnight. Difficult areas may need a follow up with steel wool or baking soda. Be sure to rinse with warm soapy water, you do not want the lingering smells of ammonia in your oven.

Glycerin

Available from the pharmacy and occasionally supermarkets.
Glycerin is a sugar alcohol and is used to give smoothness to products. It is an odourless, clear liquid which is terrific for loosening stains. 

Note: Make sure to label all your homemade cleaning products, and keep them away from pets and children.

Here are some other helpful solutions to everyday cleaning problems that can be solved simply and cheaply with everyday products easily obtained.