ISO homemade cleanser recipes and instructions! Post yours inside!
(crossover from another post!)
Some of mine:
#1 Sprinkle baking soda on your carpet before you vacuum....let it sit for a few hours or overnight for best results. Vacuum just as you normally would. Helps remove odors and refreshes the carpet.
#2 Vinegar and water to wash tile floors. 1 cup vinegar and 1 gal HOT water.
#3 Baking soda and Tea Tree Oil. Use a container with lid...mix 1 cup baking soda and 5 drops tea tree oil...blend well. I use this to clean my toilets. You can also add other EO's for different scents.
I highly recommend Clean House, Clean Planet. She has awesome recipes to substitute for every commercial cleaner you can imagine. And they work and smell yummy too!
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Karen, in love with dh Todd, mama to Julia (1/01) and Isaac (9/02)
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.
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. <<<
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. Bronner'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
ANyone have links to places that also have recipes like these they'd like to share?
Yes, Clean House, Clean Planet is an excellent book!
I use Alice's Wonder Spray for almost everything. It comes from Clean House Clean Planet
In a 16 oz spray bottle,
Mix 2 tbsp. of vinegar with 1 tsp. borax. Fill the rest of the bottle with very hot distilled water. Shake until the borax is dissolved.
Add 1/4 cup of liquid soap (I use Dr Bronner's peppermint) To scent, add 20 drops of tea tree oil
Special Notes: Because minerals in the water inhibit cleaning, it's best to use purified or distilled water. It's also important to dissolve the borax in hot water so that it doesn't clog the spray nozzle. And don't mix the soap and vinegar directly together, because the soap will clump up -- nmix the vinegar, borax and water first and then add the soap last.
How to Use: Spray and wipe. Use as you would any other all-purpose household cleaner. Use on refrigerator, walls, tile, shower, shelves, toilets. Because it is not as chemically powerful as commercial cleaners, give it a little more time to work on difficult stains.
I always have a spray bottle of this stuff. I clean my counters, sinks, table and mop my floor with it too.
My favorite disinfectant because it is simple and fast:
In a spray bottle:
Fill with hot water, add however many drops of tea tree oil or lavendar you feel in the mood for, a squirt of liquid soap and I add vinegar if it is really dirty.
I really like this alternative to "ajax". Mix equal parts of dishsoap and baking soda. Of course you can always add tea tree oil (yah I am addicted but who isn't). Use as you would "ajax". Works awesome on stainless steel.
There's recipes for house cleaning. AWESOME site...make sure you look around too. I am constantly going back.
Oh and someone posted about using baking soda as carpet freshener. I love doing this....putting some in a ziplock bag and adding yummy oil.
Simple air freshner I do every time I vaccum:
Put a few drops of oil on a piece of toilet paper or cotton ball, vacuum up and you have a wonderful air freshner that permeats throughout the house. My fav: peppermint oil.
I have a ton of recipes saved on some disks but kiddies are sleeping so I will dig for them later.
ISO homemade cleanser recipes and instructions! Post yours inside!
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