Do YOU have any homemade *safe* cleanser recipes? Please share them here!

found these at the Motivated Moms yahoo group.

>>>
*NOTE* "Liquid Castile Soap" is most commonly found under the brand name "Dr. Bronner's" -- natural and health food stores usually carry it.

Danger-Free Detergents

Most household cleaning products contain toxic ingredients. Here are five
safe and effective natural cleaners that you can make at home:
All purpose cleaners: Many popular household cleaning solutions like
Fantastik and Formula 409, contain a synthetic solvent and grease cutter
called butyl cellosolve. This hazardous petroleum-based chemical can
irritate your skin and eyes, and repeated exposure to it can cause
permanent damage to liver and kidneys, and impair the body's ability to
replenish its blood supply.
No more noxious fumes or need for protective gloves...

Multipurpose Spray Cleanser

1 cup liquid Castile soap
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon tea tree oil (Melaleuca linarifolia)
2 T. witch hazel extract
4 drops essential oil of choice, optional (for scent)

Mix ing. together in spray bottle, shake gently. Works well on stove,
counter tops, outside of refrigerators and microwaves. shelf
life...6months. If you need a stronger cleaner, replace the witch hazel
with an equal amount of isopropyl alcohol. While alcohol isn't toxic, it
can irritate eyes if it gets in them. If this happens, immediately rinse
eyes with warm water.

Scouring Bathroom Cleanser

1/2 cup liquid Castile soap
1 teaspoon borax
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 3/4 cup very warm water
4 drops essential oil for scent (optional)

Pour the water into a stainless steel mixing bowl and add the liquid soap.
Stir well, then add dry ingredients. Store in a squeeze bottle (old
ketchup containers work well for this), and stir or shake before using.
Keep in cool, dry place. Shelf life 3-4 months. If you have a stubborn
stain on fiberglass or plastic surface, add a few drops of hydrogen
peroxide to the mixture for extra strength.

Gentle Window Cleaner

1/2 cup witch hazel
1/2 cup vinegar
2 teaspoons liquid Castile soap
6 cups warm water
4 drops essential oil for scent

Mix together in a large plastic jug. To use, pour some into a plastic
spray bottle. Shelf life 4-6 months. Shake before using.

All Purpose Laundry Soap

1/2 cup baking soda
1/2 cup powdered Castile soap
1/4 cup washing soda (sodium carbonate)
1/4 cup borax
And those 4 drops of essential oils again, optional

Mix all the dry ingredients together. If you are going to add essential
oil, divide the dry soap mixture into four equal parts. Add one drop to
each part soap, and put through a hand sifter to mix. Store in a tightly
closed container, let sit for a few days so the oils can permeate the
mixture. Add about 1/2 cup of this to a load of laundry. Shelf life...12
months. To remove extra heavy odors from clothes and make them soft as
well, add 1/2 cup baking soda to rinse water.

Automatic Dishwahing Soap

1/2 cup liquid Castile soap
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
3 drops tea tree extract (or oil)
1/4 cup white vinegar

Store in squeeze bottle. Use 2 tablespoons per wash in a standard size
dishwasher.

Do not substitute conventional liquid soap for the Castile unless it is a
'low sudsing' soap. Regular soaps will produce too many suds and overflow
the dishwasher.
<<<

>>>Liquid / Gel Soap

2 cups soap flakes or grated bar soap
1/2 gallon water
2 tbsp glycerin
Mix ingredients together in a large pot or dutch oven. Set over low heat, stirring occasionally until the soap has dissolved. Transfer to a jar and cover tightly. For a less thick gel soap, use 1 gallon of water.
Vanilla and Almond Soap

This soap is great for removing dirt and oil from the skin without drying. Vanilla gives it a delicious fragrance and the ground almonds provide a beautifully textured soap. (Makes one bar.)


1/3 cup whole almonds
1 4-ounce bar Castile soap
1/4 cup distilled water
1 tablespoon almond oil
1/8 teaspoon vanilla fragrance oil
Grind the almonds to a fine powder in a food processor or coffee grinder and set aside. Shred the soap and set aside. In a heavy saucepan bring the water to a boil; then reduce heat to a simmer; Remove the pan from the heat and add the almond powder, almond oil, and vanilla fragrance oil, stirring until well blended. Spoon the soap into a mold and let set for five hours or until hardened...


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Coconut & Olive Soap
This recipe has been revised by Christin Ocasio, Owner, Wyndham Soapworks. See her notes in sidebar.


1 cup olive oil
1 cup coconut oil
1 cup melted tallow (animal fat)
2 tbsp lye (heaping) (*NOTE)
1/2 cup cold soft water
has been changed to:
8 oz weight olive oil
8 oz weight coconut oil
8 oz weight rendered tallow
3.49 oz weight sodium hydroxide (pure lye) Red Devil brand 100% lye (*NOTE)
9 fluid oz water
While wearing safety goggles and neoprene gloves, combine solid lye and liquid, stir well. Set aside and allow to cool (100° F to 125° F). This is best done outside while you are standing upwind.
Combine oils and heat gently. Once the fats and oils are melted allow the temperature to drop to 100° F to 125° F.

Combine lye solution and melted oils. Be careful not to splash while combining the mixtures. Stir until the mixture traces. If tracing takes more than 15 minutes, which it often does, stir for the first 15 minutes, then stir for 5 minutes at 15 minute intervals. Tracing looks like a slightly thickened custard, not instant pudding but a cooked custard. It will support a drop, or your stir marks for several seconds. Once tracing occurs...

Pour raw soap into your prepared molds. After a few days the soap can be turned out of the mold. If the soap is very soft, allow it to cure for a few days to firm the outside.

Cut soap into bars and set the bars out to cure and dry. This will allow the bar to firm and finish saponification. Place the bars on something that will allow them to breathe.

Note: If you don't want to mess with tallow and lye, you can substitute shavings from any white unscented soap.



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Peaches And Cream Bath Bar
Makes One Bar 1 4-ounce bar

Castile soap (or pure white unscented... like ivory)
1/4 cup distilled water
1/4 cup powdered milk
1 tablespoon sweet almond oil
1/8 teaspoon peach fragrance oil
1 drop orange food coloring {optional}
Shred the Castile soap and set aside. Heat the water in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Stir in the shredded soap until it forms a sticky mass. Remove the pan from the heat and add the powdered milk, Sweet almond oil, Peach fragrance oil, food coloring; stir until well-blended. Spoon the soap into its mold and let set for four hours or until hardened.
From Soaps, Shampoos & Other Suds: Make Beautiful Gifts to Give (Or Keep)
(Gifts from the Home) by Kelly Reno



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Cinnamon Soap

unscented glycerin soap
10 drops cinnamon oil
1 drop red food coloring {optional}
In a heavy saucepan, melt the glycerin soap over low heat until liquefied. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cinnamon oil and coloring until well mixed. Pour the soap into a mold and let set for three hours or until hardened. Makes One Bar 1 4-ounce bar.
From Soaps, Shampoos & Other Suds: Make Beautiful Gifts to Give (Or Keep)
(Gifts from the Home) by Kelly Reno



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Mechanic's Hand Cleanser
Grind up a bar or two of your soap...

1 c. borax
1-2 t. pure turpentine
1 t. sweet orange essential oil
1 c. ground soap
With very clean hands, work the turpentine and essential oil into the borax until there are no lumps left, then work into the soap. Keep it in a wide-mouthed jar or tin that's easy for him to open when his hands are greasy, and which you won't mind getting black on the outside. Don't forget to put a nail brush and pumice stone out with the hand cleanser.
Recycle old soap!
Here are several ideas for re-using those little bits of leftover soap:
* Use as tailor's chalk - mark darts and hems on washable fabric
* Make bubble bath - shave and crumble and add to bath
* Make new soap cakes - get them wet and stick them together to make a new bar!
* Make shower soap - Put slivers and pieces into the toe of some old pantyhose. Tie a knot in the nylon just above the toe, and another at about the knee. Hang in the shower. <<<

(above found here: http://www.make-stuff.com/formulas/soap.html )



>>>Household Cleaning Spray:
Use a 16 oz. trigger squirt bottle
Fill the bottle 2/3 full of water and then add 3 Tbsp. of Dr. B's
Add white vinegar till the bottle is almost full (leave some room)
Add 10-20 drops of tea tree oil and shake it up to mix ingredients
5 drops of rosemary, sweet orange, or lavender for fragrance, and disinfecting properties

Suess says "I use this to clean everything from my kitchen to the bathroom, counters, tables, baby toys, I mean everything, except glass. This is a disinfectant, to be used instead of bleach, or Lysol type cleaners."<<<


CLEANING Tips from the Queen of Clean:
http://www.queenofclean.com/tips/index.html

I need a good wood cleaning recipe. I tried olive oil and vinegar together but it wasn't that great.

Thanks for posting this!

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Thanks for the recipes!

HEre is my wood cleaning recipe and we love it!!!

1/4 cup white distilled vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon natural lemon oil (or any scent you prefer)

Shake well before using, pour a small amount on a clean rag and apply. Rub WITH the grain until the surface is coated well. Allow to rest for at least 15minutes, rub off the reidual oil with a fresh cloth.

Tulane...your babe is adorable!!!!:hbeat:

I use diluted bacout when I can afford it.

But baking soda and vinegar are amazing and I haven't gotten the knack of Dr. B's. It seems to leave a film I do not want.

Clean House, Clean Planet is an excellent book. The book goes over plants in the home for air quality as well as general cleaning.

Personally, I have 2 spray bottles with vinegar and water for toilet clean up and general wipe downs of kitchen counters; 1 spray bottle of castile soap and water for general cleaning, 1 spray bottle of a small amount of dish detergent and water for cleaning greasy messes in the kitchen, a set of formerly salt&pepper shakers with baking soda in them for scrubbing (1 in the bathroom and 1 in the kitchen). Plenty of rags under my sinks for wiping down stuff as well.

I've not been into mixing a whole lot of things together, some things mix strangely... I really do find vinegar and water to be my most favorite and most used cleaner. I've several friends hooked as well to the simple, toxic free cleaning, not to mention $$ saver (even buying the amount of vinegar I do).

Vinegar makes a great 'fabric softener' in the rinse cycle. It actually breaks down urine, where as baking soda just deals with the odor. I don't use it on wood (just Olive Oil and Lemon Oil). My mother used vinegar on her moldy wood and it did keep the mold from coming back -- she has a house with mold she only visits 1X per year, it makes me physically sick to stay there.

For laundry I use Natural Family Boutique "clean diapers" and "clean laundry". Their stuff is the most natural and purest stuff I've found, especially in the shampoo and conditioner line.

Great thread topic... I've looking for something to keep my toilets clean. We went on vacation for 2wks and the main bathroom toilet had a dark ring at the water line, I'm still scrubbing to remove. The master toilet had black streaks where water usuallys flow down into the tank in several areas. I don't recall this happening like this before when we've gone on vacation -- so I'm a bit concerned something is going on at the bacterial level that I need to fix with something stronger than vinegar and EO.

The ring is probably just minerals in your water. Check the basin of your toilet (the tank) and you probably have a "line" in there too. I have gotten rid of it with a pumice stone. You do have to put your hand in the bowl for that. But it works and didn't scratch the porcelain.

I love your sig pic. That's happened in my kitchen before!