TweetBiodegradable cleaners are natural house cleaning products that are environment friendly or they are cleaning agents that are manufactured in a completely environment friendly process. The biodegradable cleaners do not have any harmful effects like those of the toxic chemicals and volatile compounds. They do not emit any sort of strong volatile fumes that may cause skin or respiratory problems.
Another big plus point of biodegradable cleaners is that they do not leave behind any toxic residues or wastes.
Biodegradable cleaners form the main component of the green cleaning process that is eco friendly. It is the latest trend and craze all over the world. Recent technological advancements have developed new biodegradable cleaning products that are devoid of harsh chemicals and as effective as traditional cleaning products.
Need for Biodegradable Cleaners: People all over the world have become extremely environmentally conscious and want to put in their every effort to protect and conserve nature. Biodegradable cleaners keep up with this growing trend of environmental awareness. The EPA or the Environmental Protection Agency of US has set standards to limit environmental and human exposure to harmful and toxic chemicals. This step has been taken to check the rise of many diseases in human beings caused by chemical pollution. Such chemical pollution related diseases include skin allergies, breathing problems, immunity reduction and cancer etc.
Advantages of Biodegradable Cleaners: Biodegradable cleaners are safer to use, non-toxic and healthy alternatives to your regular domestic cleaning chemicals. They are safe for humans as well as the environment. The biodegradable cleaners afford greater health benefits by reducing pollution. They are water soluble and easily biodegradable.
Types of Biodegradable Cleaners: Biodegradable cleaners can be classified as per their composition, materials, manufacturing process and purpose. The cleaning products that use more of natural substances or products in their manufacture can be called as natural cleaners. The various natural cleaning agents are lemon juice, borax, vinegar, salt, baking soda, washing soda, mineral oil, pine oil, vegetable based soaps and plants with high levels of saponin.
The biodegradable cleaners can be in liquid or powder forms. Generally, the biodegradable products would come in higher concentrated forms so that the packaging is reduced to a great extent. The product formulations are certified by different organizations like Green Seal, EcoLogo Program and US EPA’s program- Designed for the Environment.
The other biodegradable products are paper towels, bath tissues, hand soaps, door mats, microfiber cloths and mops along with proper cleaning equipment. The paper towel and napkins should be manufactured from recycled paper. The manufacturing process should also be completely natural devoid of chlorine and added inks, dyes, pigments or fragrances. The manufacturing processes also have to follow the established guidelines of organizations like Green Seal. The hand soaps should be manufactured from environment friendly products and packed in similar packaging.
The door mats at the entrance should be made of natural materials and they should be designed in such a manner that they keep the mud, dust and moisture out of the building. The microfiber material is advisable for cleaning cloths and mops as they use less of cleaning agents and it gives greater performance.
TweetNot all scrubbing brushes are created equal. Use the wrong one for a particular cleaning job and you risk either ruining what you’re scrubbing or else not shifting the dirt properly. One of the stereotyped images of domestic cleaning involves a charlady on her knees scrubbing the floor, and there’s some truth in that. After all, an experienced professional house cleaner like a charlady can’t be wrong!
Hard brushes (large): These have bristles made of thick plastic and are usually quite sizeable (about the size of a smallish brick). If you try dragging it across your bare skin, you will give yourself a set of little scratches. This one is best used for cleaning hard floor surfaces such as tiles, vinyl, marble, flagstones and lino.
Hard brushes (small): These are your typical dishwashing brush. Use them for…. washing dishes.
Medium brushes (large): These can be made of plastic or natural bristle, and feel like a typical nail brush. These are a good all-round cleaning tool, and can be used for spot-cleaning stains on carpets, handwashing or removing stains from clothes that are made from non-delicate fabrics (i.e. you can use a brush like this on denim or cotton jersey, but don’t use them on frilly knickers). Can also be used for scrubbing floors. No home should be without one. They are less likely to scratch plastic surfaces or wood, so you can use them for scrubbing things like dog kennels. But probably be careful with painted surfaces.
Medium brushes (small): These are nail brushes. They are good for cleaning dirt from underneath nails (obviously) and also for removing small stains on clothing – they’re perfect for the typical bloodstain (but make sure you use cold or lukewarm water).
Long handled medium brushes: This is your typical loo brush. Some people hate them and consider them unhygienic. Others swear by them. To stop a loo brush getting unhygienic, store it in a container filled with dilute disinfectant – and don’t forget to change the disinfectant periodically.
Medium-soft brushes: Not as common as they used to be, but perfect for cleaning and polishing leather boots and shoes. You can also use them as lint brushes to remove fluff from clothing after a tissue has gone through the wash.
Soft bristled brushes (large): These tickle when you rub them over your skin. These are often used for washing cars, and can be used for really filthy exterior windows, with the help of a little warm soapy water.
Soft bristled brushes (small): These are commonly known as toothbrushes. Do not throw out your old toothbrushes, as they are ideal for all sorts of cleaning jobs. They are soft and they get into small, tricky places, so they are great for cleaning jewellery. Tricky places an old toothbrush can get into like no other cleaning tool include the hinges of the toilet seat, carved woodwork, bits of knick-knacks, etc.
Wire brushes: Not your usual cleaning tool. Keep these for removing paint and do not put it in your cleaning toolkit or you will scratch everything.
Brooms: Usually soft-bristled, if used indoors for sweeping hard floors and for removing cobwebs. Hard bristled brooms are for outdoor use, e.g. sweeping driveways down.
TweetBecause of the complexity of cleaning a large chandelier, it is one of the most often avoided home cleaning jobs. However, because a chandelier is such an eye catching lighting fixture, people will quickly notice dust and dirt that has collected there. A dirty chandelier does not reflect well on the quality of home cleaning being done in your house. It’s probably best to leave chandelier cleaning to a professional domestic cleaning agency, but if you want to do it yourself, here is how you should go about it.
1. Check the manufacturer’s website for any cleaning tips/instructions and follow them. If they conflict with what is said here, follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
2. Make sure the bulbs are off and cool before starting.
3. Place a thick blanket or quilt on the floor to catch anything that may fall during the disassembling process.
4. Set up a step ladder securely and if possible, have someone to help you by taking each piece you remove and placing it safely on the carpet or you may end up climbing up and down the ladder far more than is comfortable!
5. Take pictures of the chandelier from various different angles or make a detailed sketch of it so that putting it back together again is easier.
6. Dust the complete chandelier before beginning with the disassembly
7. Remove all the bulbs
8. Starting from the outside, remove the pieces one by one and place them on the blanket. Removing pieces is usually straight forward with one piece hooking in to the next. If you are uncertain about how to remove the pieces and if the company website has no information about it, stop and get professional help.
9. Once all the pieces are on the carpet, place a few at a time into a plastic (not metal Ð it may cause scratches) sieve or colander and rinse with hot water.
10. Apply mild detergent and rinse it off. Repeat this process until all the pieces are clean.
11. Clean the metal pieces with a reputed metal cleaner specific to the metal type and then polish as required.
12. Keep doing this until the complete chandelier has been cleaned.
13. Allow everything to dry and then polish with a soft cloth
14. Start putting the chandelier back together again, starting from the inside and working your way outwards.
15. Refit the bulbs.
This will take time and effort. There are other quicker ways of cleaning a chandelier, and most of the time those options are fine. But to prevent dirt from getting ingrained, especially in the fasteners that hold the chandelier together, every fifth cleaning should be a complete one as described above.
TweetMakeup, when applied to the person in the right places, usually looks fantastic and will make your day. Makeup, applied to carpets, clothes, the inside of bags and pillowcases, does not look so attractive and is likely to make you swear. Once you’ve stopped cursing the mess, what are you going to do about it? Because, like all stains, makeup stains are more easily cleaned off if you get onto it quickly rather than leaving it to set and become permanent.
Lipstick: Found on collars, pillowcases and (worst case scenario) smudged into carpets and wallpaper by a small inquisitive child. To clean lipstick off easy stuff (pillows and collars), dab the stain with a bit of meths or some other strong alcohol to dissolve the pigments and the worst of it. If a stain still lingers, then dab with a bit of glycerine to get the grease marks out. Then wash as normal. To get lipstick stains out of carpet, scrape as much as you can out with tissues, loo paper, rags, etc. Try not to spread the stain. Soak the area with meths or strong alcohol (again) and blot up. Then scrub like heck with a medium-stiff brush and warm soapy water. Keep going until the stain disappears (it will, eventually – keep at it). Blot dry. To remove lipstick stains from wallpaper, once again start by wiping off excess with a tissue or a paper towel, etc. Use a paste of baking soda and water applied with a toothbrush to remove it, or even use toothpaste.
Powder (also includes powder blusher and powder eyeshadow): This has a tendency to go everywhere like dust. Fortunately, because it is dry, it is easy to clean up. Just use the vacuum cleaner or even a damp duster to pick up stray bits.
Liquid foundation, concealer, cream blushers and cream eyeshadows: These are mostly oil-based stains, so glycerine is one of your best natural house cleaners for removing this stain. Dab it on and leave the glycerine to soak for an hour or so before washing as normal. If the stain has got onto something that isn’t easy to pop in the washing machine (e.g. the carpet), scrub with warm soapy water. Washing soda added to the water will help attack the oils and will make the job easier.
Nail polish: The Big Daddy of stains to clean up. Act quickly, especially if you have a quick-drying formula. Wiping up is your first step, which you should follow by applying whatever nail polish remover you prefer to use. However, be careful. While using nail polish remover is a fine way to get nail polish stains off sheets and most natural fibres (and most hard floor surfaces), the chemicals in nail polish remover is likely to play merry hell with certain artificial fabrics (especially acetate-type fabrics) and the “finishing” on wood. You can consider yourself lucky if you can escape without damaging the wood a little and leaving a white mark. It’s tricky, but you can try freezing the nail polish with an ice cube before it sinks in, followed by picking it off very, very carefully. If you are reduced to using a little nail polish remover to get the spill off wood, apply a good wood polish to the spot after cleaning to restore the finish.
Eyeliners and lip pencils: Again, these are mostly grease and the stains will come off with either glycerine, scrubbing with warm soapy water or (in the case of wallpaper) baking soda.
Perfume: Unlikely to stain much if spilt if the perfume is clear and it’s fallen on fabric – just leave it and enjoy. If it’s fallen on wood, blot up immediately and apply wood polish once the area is dry to restore the finish. Slightly tinted perfume should be diluted with vinegar or strong alcohol (which perfume mostly is, incidentally) and blotted up. Be nice to yourself: don’t just blot a perfume spill up with a rag. Use a hanky or something nice and you can carry the scent around with you so the perfume isn’t wasted.
TweetMost natural house cleaning doesn’t need recipes, per se. Usually, you can clean most things around the house with simple natural ingredients on their own. Baking soda, for example, is perfect for cleaning the bath or cleaning the inside of the refrigeration, while ordinary vinegar alone can clean glass and can kill mould. And there are very few things that can’t or shouldn’t be cleaned with warm soapy water.
However, sometimes you need a natural domestic cleaning product that’s a bit more complicated. And sometimes it’s fun and satisfying to make your own. Try these.
Pet shampoo:
Combine the following in a screw-top jar: 1 cup of water, 1 t soap gel, 1 T aloe vera gel, 1 t vegetable oil. Shake these together. Apply to a dog that has been doused with warm water. Work to a lather then rinse off. This makes enough to wash a small short-haired dog such as a fox terrier. Double the mixture for a larger dog or for a long-haired dog – or increase the amounts as needed for your dog: you will need masses for a St Bernard or Newfoundland (big and long haired).
Shake and vacuum flea powder:
Use this to treat carpets whether or not you have pets. As it’s gentle, you can use it as a flea powder on cats and dogs. Mix a cup of baking soda with 10 drops essential oil of pennyroyal. Shake over the carpet and let it sit undisturbed (shut the door, if necessary) before vacuuming. This also puts the crisp scent of pennyroyal through the house – lovely!
Aluminium saucepan polish:
If you have aluminium saucepans (some avoid them, as the aluminium can leach into your food if you cook something acidic in the pan), get them shining by putting ½ a litre of water in the pan and bringing it to the boil. Add in 1 t of vinegar and 1 cup cream of tartar. Let it boil and it will scour away the dull outer layer of aluminium from the pan.
General metal polish:
Combine equal parts of flour, salt and white vinegar to make a paste. This is good for most metals: copper, bronze, brass, pewter and stainless steel. To use it, apply it to the metal object (say a door-knocker) and leave it to do its work for an hour (put a notice below the knocker to warn any visitors or they will get an unpleasant surprise). Then rinse off with a soft cloth moistened in warm water.
Buff to a shine with another dry soft cloth.
Wood polish:
For once, this natural cleaning recipe for wood polish does NOT involve turpentine. Simply grate about 250g of beeswax finely then melt it in a double boiler and add a litre of either linseed oil or olive oil – or any vegetable oil, really! Stir for three minutes, then remove from the heat and add 2 t of essential oil of your choice. Store in an airtight container.
TweetHousehold cleaning products contain antibacterial ingredients which are widely available and used by a lot of people. Such products are also quite popular. A possible benefit of using the antibacterial product for home hygiene must be weighed against theoretical risk for antibiotic or antiseptic resistance. Studies and research surveys have been conducted too, to view the benefits of the household cleaning products to the household people using it on a frequent basis.
Surveys conducted on the product usage: There is an advantage of such community based studies as it has an opportunity to track down infections, if any in the household. It was found that, even though such antibacterial cleaning and hand washing products are being used frequently in the United States, a lot of people spread skin bacteria by using products having non-antibacterial soap. Dirty hands are the primary source which spread numerous viruses; one can avoid such bacteria by regularly using the antibacterial ingredients.
The primary concern of such studies was to measure the public health effect rather than determining the causative agents and surveys were conducted about the access of infections symptomatically. This was done because specific symptoms measured the load of household illness.
Findings of such surveys done: The findings, however conclude that some of the infections can be caused by either not using the antibacterial products or by using too much of such products and not washing the hands properly after using the same. Further, the spread of diseases like gastrointestinal infections or any skin infection can be due to hereditary factors as well where household members have lower immunities and resistance to disease.
This survey conducted even suggests that the care providers and the manufacturers should educate the consumers on the appropriate use and limitations of any household antibacterial products. There is also an additional research which is indicated to understand the possible health benefits connected with the increased use of household cleaning products, irrespective of whether such products contain antibacterial ingredients or not.
Interventions: The household people are recommended to use antibacterial products for laundry, hand washing and for general house cleaning. All such products are available at the counter.
Usage of the antibacterial product: Over the past few years, there has been a majority of household cleaning products which advertise antibacterial qualities and the demand for this has increased. However, too much usage of such products is not recommended and improper usage of the product can cause the surviving bacteria to change and become super germs to avoid the antibacterial ingredients. Such germs are antibiotic resistant. If a person wants to use antibacterial products, he should ensure that he uses them for the proper duration in order to prevent their adverse effects.
One can even reduce indoor air pollution. Ones home may become an energy efficient domain which can reduce the use of certain resources like coal or oil. And, the reduction of fresh air in the house can cause the indoor air to be more polluted with toxic chemicals and fumes.
TweetOne of the real beauties of natural cleaning products is that most of them can be used to clean more than one thing. No more cluttering up your cupboards with one product for the bath, another for the kitchen, another for this, another for that, etc., etc. ad nauseam. But if you’ve never cleaned your house using natural cleaners before, you might need to know what to use (and what not to use) with what.
Baking soda: Good for cleaning porcelain fixtures such as the bath and the sink. Also good for cleaning the top of stoves, the inside of ovens (microwave or conventional) and for cleaning the fridge. It cuts through grease and absorbs odours. Baking soda is not so good for glass, as it can leave a residue that takes a lot of rinsing off.
Vinegar: Vinegar is excellent for cleaning most surfaces, including glass. Mixed to a paste with salt, vinegar can also be used to clean metals. Vinegar is also a germ-killer (that’s why it’s been used to pickle and preserve food in the days prior to refrigeration and today) and can be used to wipe down lavatories. Vinegar also mixes well with essential oils, which you can do either to fragrance your home or to add the disinfectant power of plant essences to any home-made cleaners. Make sure that you use white vinegar as a cleaner – the other vinegars are delicious used in cooking and as salad dressing (and for a myriad of other health purposes) but are either too expensive or too dark to use as a cleaner, or both. Never use vinegar to clean pearls or marble.
Soap: Soap, obviously, is used to wash hands and bodies. It can also be used to clean hard floors, cars and fabric. With the help of a scrubbing brush, you can also use it to spot-clean small bits of carpets. The best way to use soap as a cleaner is to melt it into a gel before use by pouring boiling water over whatever scraps, slips or chunks of soap you fancy using (in a container, of course).
Essential oil can also be added to this soap gel. Soap gel is not so good for cleaning glass, as it leaves a residue on these, especially in hard water. Soap works best when it lathers, which it will do most readily in warm to hot water.
Hot water: Boiling water kills germs, and is ideal for sterilizing food surfaces and chopping boards. It can also hurt you, so be careful. Hot water also combines well with soap for cleaning floors and clothes. If you’re handwashing clothes, use water that you can bear touching. Hot water should never be used for removing protein stains – it will set the stain instead of removing it.
Steam: Steam is great for loosening grime inside ovens (both sorts) prior to a good scrub out with baking soda. Cooler steam (water vapour for those more technically minded) is also ideal for cleaning pimple-prone faces. Specialised steam-cleaning machines are also ideal for carpet cleaning and for cleaning car engines, though these aren’t usually within the reach of the average DIY cleaner.
Essential oils: These aren’t so much cleaners as disinfectants and air fresheners. They are best mixed with other natural cleaning products. Lavender, pine, tea tree, eucalyptus and lemon are some of the most readily available and popular disinfectant essential oils (they also have the effect of calming (lavender) and promoting alertness (lemon), which can be a bonus). However, eucalyptus can also be used as a stain remover and can be added to soap gel for this.
TweetSome of these recipes for natural carpet cleaning products will require a bit of hunting around for obscure ingredients – try your local chemist or even ask a high school chemistry teacher where you can get them from.
Stain-removing carpet soap
* 4 oz Fuller’s earth
* 1 oz turpentine (preferably the plant-sourced variety; mineral turps will do instead but this does give off foul-smelling fumes and isn’t as natural. This ingredient is added as a solvent, so if you can’t get hold of natural plant turpentine, then you could try substituting strong alcohol, which is another natural solvent often used in cleaning products)
* 8 oz potash (aka potassium carbonate)
* ordinary soft soap, grated
Melt the soap in a double boiler or microwave set on low until it becomes gooey. Stir in the other ingredients and blend well. Store in an airtight jar. One variation on this recipe is to use soap gel instead of and make a carpet shampoo. A second variation is to add about 10–20 drops of essential oil of your choice to the ingredients.
Home-made dry cleaning carpet shampoo
This is good for using on carpets with natural fibres that have a tendency to run colour – handmade rugs from exotic places tend to fit this description.
Mix Fuller’s earth and water to make a paste. Apply this paste to the spot on the carpet you want cleaned and allow it to dry in place before vacuuming off.
Carpet fragrance
Commercially produced carpet scents of the shake-on-and-vacuum-off are among some of the worst offenders for sources of household toxins – even worse than window cleaning products, as people (especially people under the age of five) often get close to the carpets and breathe them in. This recipe will have your carpets smelling nice and fresh – both by eliminating foul odours and by putting a fresh scent into your house – but without the hazardous toxins.
* 1 cup of baking soda
* 20 drops essential oil (suggested oils: lavender, lemon, neroli, grapefruit, petitgrain or cinnamon)
Blend together well and store in a screw-top jar in a dark cupboard for a week to allow the essential oils to permeate the baking soda. Sprinkle the powder as generously or as sparingly as you like over your carpets and leave it to sit for about five minutes or more to absorb any unpleasant odours. Then vacuum the powder up. As an added bonus, the scent will get blown out the back of your vacuum cleaner as you continue cleaning the whole house.
Fleas-be-gone
While regular vacuuming is your best ally against preventing fleas from infesting your pets and your furniture, sometimes you need a bit of extra help. This spray will chase the fleas away thanks to the pennyroyal. After all, the Latin name for pennyroyal is Mentha pulgefugium, which means “mint that makes fleas run away”.
* 20 drops essential oil of pennyroyal
* ½ pint vinegar
* ½ pint water
Shake the ingredients together in a spray-top bottle and squirt lightly over any carpets or pet bedding you suspect to be infested. If you can’t get essential oil of pennyroyal, boil the water and vinegar together and add a large bunch of fresh pennyroyal to the mixture and allow it to steep, covered, until cool. Strain and bottle, then use as normal.
TweetBack in the day who knew about Mr. Muscle or Flash? People used natural products to clean their homes. These products were inexpensive, they were used for multi-purposes and honestly, in my own opinion many of these products clean much better than the newer products that cover the shelves in the grocery store.
In addition, natural cleaning products offer environmentally sound, cost-efficient alternatives to the poisonous and potentially lethal house cleaning products used in many homes today. Use of these natural options is especially critical as most traditional cleaning products eventually contact the air, water, and/or soil, where they can cause major and permanent harm to animals, plants, drinking water, and food supplies.
So what should you consider using?
Vinegar
Vinegar naturally cleans like an all-purpose cleaner. Mix a solution of 1 part water to 1 part vinegar in a new store bought spray bottle and you have a solution that will clean most areas of your home. Vinegar is a great natural cleaning product as well as a disinfectant and deodorizer. Always test on a not easily seen area.
It is safe to use on most surfaces and best of all its incredibly cheap. Improperly diluted vinegar is acidic and can eat away at tile grout. Never use vinegar on marble surfaces. Do not worry about your home smelling like vinegar. The smell disappears when it dries and if you want, you could always spray the relaxing scent of lavender to rid the smell. Here are some uses for vinegar in the rooms of your house.
Places to use vinegar in your home…
1. Bathroom – Clean the bathtub, toilet, sink, and countertops. Use pure vinegar in the toilet bowl to get rid of rings. Flush the toilet to allow the water level to go down. Pour the undiluted vinegar around the inside of the rim. Scrub down the bowl. Mop the flour in the bathroom with a vinegar/water solution. The substance will also eat away the soap scum and hard water stains on your fixtures and tile. Make sure it is safe to use with your tile.
2. Kitchen – Clean the stovetop, appliances, countertops, and floor.
3. Laundry Room – Use vinegar as a natural fabric softener. This can be especially helpful for families who have sensitive skin. Add ½ cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle in place of store bought fabric softener. Vinegar has the added benefit of breaking down laundry detergent more effectively. (A plus when you have a family member whose skin detects every trace of detergent.)
When you choose to use natural cleaning products like vinegar, you help keep our global home a bit cleaner and safer for this generation and those to come.
TweetHouse cleaning products are expensive. I can go into a supermarket and spend a hundred pounds on cleaning products alone. Now modern research tells us that many of the products we use and spend so much money for carry toxins. They are also telling us that these cleaning products can be hazardous to our health in the long run.
Therefore, I decided to do my own research and I came up with many ways to clean your home inexpensively. The mixtures I came up with are cleaning recipes to create natural cleaning products that you can easily make using the products you already have in your home. These cleaning mixtures are safe and not hazardous to your health and in the long-run will save you lots of money.
Now with the holidays coming up I am sure you need to save every possible penny. So, let us begin. Below is a list of cleaning recipes for all areas in your home.
Glass:
- To wash your windows use 2 to 3 tablespoons of vinegar to three liters of warm water. Dry with rutted newspaper for sparkling results.
- Do you have dirty vases in your home? Put in 1 tablespoon of vinegar and fill with warm water. Leave it to soak for 10 minutes. Rub the vases with a soft cloth then rinse.
Wood Floors:
- Mix one part olive oil with one part lemon juice. Rub on furniture or apply with a spray bottle, then polish the wood with a dry cloth. Use this mix to make wood floors gleam.
Vinyl, Laminate or Ceramic Floors:
- Mop vinyl, laminate or ceramic tiled floors with 8 tablespoons of vinegar watered down in 3 liters of hot water.
- For pet odors and stains in carpets, mix equal parts of vinegar and water. Apply to affected areas. Use the mixture with kitchen paper towels, until moisture is absorbed. You may need to repeat the process one or two times.
Stainless Steel:
- Clean and shine any stainless steel surface with a paste of soda and water. Apply freely with a damp cloth. Leave for about 5 minutes, then wipe.
Microwaves and Ovens:
- Clean with a cloth dampened in equal parts of vinegar and water.
- To remove microwave odors, place some lemon slices in a bowl of water. Then put on high for a few minutes.
Baths, shower doors, tiles and grout:
- To get rid of body oils and soap scum use two parts soda to one part vinegar or lemon juice. This will create a thick paste. Use the thick paste with a damp cloth. Leave for 10 minutes then rub with a brush or sponge. As you rinse it off, drains will be kept fresh too. Use this mix on shower doors, sinks, tiles and grout. If cleaning grout, rub with a toothbrush.
Mildew and mold:
- To get rid of black spots use one part vinegar or lemon juice to one part baking powder. Apply and leave for one or two hours. Rinse off. It may need to be reapplied or left longer, depending on how severe your mold or mildew is.
Air Freshener:
- Baking soda eliminates odors. Mix 8 tablespoons with three drops of your favorite essential oil. Place in a decorative bowl or vase.
- Soda in the bottom of ashtrays absorbs smoke smells. It is also like sand for stubbing out cigarettes.
- Put some essential oil on a light bulb. When on, the heat will diffuse the fragrance.
Toilet:
- Keep the toilet clean and fresh – put eight tablespoons of soda in the bowl. Leave overnight.
- Sprinkle soda onto a damp cloth to clean toilet seat and tank, then wipe with a wet cloth.
Drain cleaner:
- Use one part soda, with four parts hot vinegar. Leave overnight if possible.
