Totem Building Supplies

Green Your Clean
5 Eco-Friendly Homemade Cleaning Products

There are many inexpensive, easy-to-use natural alternatives which can safely replace your commercial household cleaning products. Here is a list of common, environmentally safe products which can be used alone or in combination for a wealth of household cleaning duties. We've also included some recipes for some greener cleaners to get you started.

• Baking Soda - cleans, deodorizes, softens water, scours.
• Soap - unscented soap in liquid form, flakes, powders or bars is biodegradable and will clean just about anything. Avoid using soaps which contain petroleum distillates.
• Lemon - one of the strongest food-acids, effective against most household bacteria.
• Borax - (sodium borate) cleans, deodorizes, disinfects, softens water, cleans wallpaper, painted walls and floors.
• White Vinegar - cuts grease, removes mildew, odors, some stains and wax build-up.
• Washing Soda - or SAL Soda is sodium carbonate decahydrate, a mineral. Washing soda cuts grease, removes stains, softens water, cleans wall, tiles, sinks and tubs. Use with care, as washing soda can irritate mucous membranes. Do not use on aluminum.
• Isopropyl Alcohol - is an excellent disinfectant.
• Cornstarch - can be used to clean windows, polish furniture, shampoo carpets and rugs.

Modern Kitchen design by Toronto Kitchen And Bath SVEA KITCHENS

Laundry Soap

Ingredients
Borax

Baking Soda

Pure Soap or Castile Soap

Essential Oil

Directions
Grate your bar of soap to make a ½ cup. Combine soap with 4 cups of baking soda and 10 cups of borax in a large bowl, whisk together until thoroughly combined. Add three tablespoons of essential oil and whisk again. Fill your jar with your new laundry detergent.

Use 2 tbsp for each load of laundry. Washes approximately 80 loads of laundry.

All-Purpose Cleaner

Ingredients
Citrus Peels, Herbs or Essential Oils
5% White Vinegar
Water 

Directions

If you are using citrus peels or herbs to make your cleaner scented, lightly pack a glass jar with your selected ingredient and fill remaining space with vinegar. Be sure not to fill it all the way to the brim, you want a little head space, at least a half inch. Let your vinegar mixture sit in a sunny spot for a week. After a week, strain your mixture and pour into a spray bottle and add equal part water.

Alternatively, you can pour your vinegar into your spray bottle, add a couple drops of essential oils and there you have it! Oils such as Tea Tree, Lavender, Pine and Lemon are the most common and have additional antibacterial properties.

Window Cleaner

Ingredients
Rubbing Alcohol
Vinegar
Corn Starch
Water

Directions
Combine 1/4 rubbing alcohol, 1/4 vinegar and 1 tbsp of corn starch with 2 cups of water in a spray bottle. Shake well before each use.

Shower Cleaner

Ingredients
Dish Soap

Vinegar

Directions

Mix equal parts dish soap and vinegar. Spray down the shower and let sit for 2 hours, wipe down shower with a cloth and hot water.

Pet Odor Eliminator

Ingredients
Mouthwash
Water
Newspaper

Directions

In an empty spray bottle combine 2 parts water to 1 part mouth wash. Spray the mixture onto whatever upholstery is soiled. Lay newspaper over the sprayed area and let dry. The newspaper should absorb the smell completely. If not, repeat the process.