My journey to natural health and living without chemicals started by changing out my cleaning products. I wanted to be sure I wasn't inhaling any toxic fumes and that my dog would be safe eating whatever food dropped on the floor!
Here are some of the recipes for homemade cleaning products that are non-toxic, inexpensive, and cut down on all those plastic cleaning bottles and containers! Triple win :)
All-Purpose Cleaner
This one is really simple. It's equal parts water and vinegar, but make sure you are using a vinegar like the Spectrum brand (the mainstream brands are made with synthetics).
I use 1 cup of water with 1 cup of vinegar in a spray bottle. If you need a little extra cleaning boost, you can warm it in the microwave, but be sure to heat it in a glass container - not plastic.
If you don't like the smell of vinegar (which I don't, but have gotten used to it), you can add lemon juice or an essential oil, however, this creates a shorter shelf life (without any added scents, the water and vinegar mixture can be used indefinitely).
Bathroom Cleaner
This recipe is magical! To clean my tub and wall tile, I pour hydrogen peroxide on it and then sprinkle it with baking soda. It will fizz a bit and then after a minute or two, I wash it off with a sponge or towel.
If I really need to get the grout clean, I use a toothbrush, but the baking soda is ideal because it creates a bit of grit (perfect for soap scum).
And, like baking soda, hydrogen peroxide is perfectly safe since once you expose it to light, it turns into water. (This is the only thing I remember from high school chemistry --- water is H2O and hydrogen peroxide is H2O2 --- it just has another oxygen molecule crammed into it, which is why it is always sold in a dark bottle. It can easily turn into water and loose the extra molecule when exposed to light. Safe to breath, eat and use. :)
Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Pour about 1/3 cup of vinegar into the bowl and then a tablespoon or two of baking soda. This too, will fizz up a bit, but then you can take your toilet bowl brush and finish cleaning. That's it!
Glass & Window Cleaner
This is the same recipe as the all-purpose cleaner (1:1 combination of vinegar and water), but you might have to remove the waxy build-up from using conventional glass cleaners. To do that, you can add 1/2 teaspoon of plant-based liquid soap (I like Dr. Bronner's unscented castile soap - it's organic, fair trade and cruelty free... and it has 18 other uses such as laundry detergent, dog shampoo, dish cleaner, veggie wash and more!), to 1 cup each of vinegar and water.
Lastly, be sure to look at your dishwasher soap. I am not an expert, but when I took my first green cleaning class, the teacher recommended a green one from Trader Joe's. On the box it states: phosphate-free, no fragrance added (that's a big one!), chlorine-free, no dyes, biodegradable surfactants.
It works great, but I'm not sure if it's the absolute "greenest" product I could be using like all my other cleaning products/recipes. But that's the thing about switching out your make up, cleaning products and household items -- it takes time. However, any changes you can make, are a positive step towards a less chemical-filled world and are much better for your health!
As we say goodbye to 2015 (it's NYE as I write this :), please keep in mind that cleaning and purging are great, but try not to do it on January 1st. In feng shui, this means you will be pushing out all the energy that comes through in the new year -- save it till at least January 2nd.
Wishing you much health, joy, prosperity and, of course, style for the new year!
