Your cleaning kit.

[WhoTookTheChristmasCookie]

I've been using up the excess cleaning products I had so that I could start again from scratch.

I'm off to Home Bargains at some point this week and was wondering what other people have in their cleaning cupboards.

Any essentials? Things that I absolutely should have?

Beyond bleach, washing up liquid and floor wipes I'm lost.

Thank you

I've never used wipes at home and I no longer use bleach. But yes, washing up liquid. Hot soapy water will clean most things. I use vinegar, salt, bicarb and soda crystals for most cleaning, but if you want to buy rather than make, I'd stick to one spray to cut through grease and grime and one for glass and mirrors.

For hot soapy water, cheap washing up liquid or for dirty floors, biological washing powder. I use warm water with a splash of vinegar, teaspoon of olive oil and essential oils for wood. Other surfaces vinegar and water. Degreasing is washing up liquid and hot vinegar. I have other stuff, but these are what I use most of the time.

I always go back to flash spray and stardrops white vinegar.

@Cynderella I very rarely use bleach. Only in the toilets because we're in a very hard water area and I'm constantly contending with limescale.

Definitely interested in a more natural method of cleaning.
Especially for my floors, I'm mostly tiled/wood floor throughout and constantly battling to keep the white tiles clean.

Thank you.

@Truckingonandon oh flash spray! Which one do you use?

What is stardrops good for?

Oh and if anyone's got any tips on how to get slate flooring clean it'll be much appreciated.

Method products.

Won't be in home bargains though...

On offer in Sainsbury's or Tesco at the mo.

Definitely white vinegar for limescale & also viakal.

White vinegar is fab for Windows, mirrors and de-greasing.

I use flash bathroom on everything!

We also have very hard water. I use soda crystals in the washing machine and citric acid for kettle, coffee maker etc. I'm sure vinegar is more effective than bleach when it comes to limescale.

I make my own washing powder but use Ariel, soda crystals and sometimes some Napisan for whites. A scoop of Ariel and a scoop of soda crystals in hot water is a good floor cleaner.

I did a home bargains cleaning shop today.

2 x zoflora christmas scents (I put an inch of water in the sink and two drops of zoflora and leave it sitting there all day to make the house smell nice). Also dilute it into water (again literally a couple of drops) and put it into a spray and use it as a cleaner for the kitchen.

stardrops window and glass cleaner

Stardrops multi purpose cleaner - again I dilute it - used for bathroom and kitchen

flash floor cleaner (again I dilute this)

You really don't ned bleach. Bleach is not the nest cleaner for your toilet and its dreadful for the environment. There are loads of toilets cleaners which don't contain bleach. Harpic do one which was in HB today.

The HB dishwasher cleaners are really good too.

Thank you for all your suggestions! I tend to stick to the same products time and time again (clearly not using the right stuff though.)

@Cynderella thank you for the tips! I'm going to try the vinegar and soda crystals, I don't like using bleach but I felt as though I was fighting a losing battle.

So my list:

Soda Crystals
White Vinegar
Viakal
Flash (floor cleaner and spray)
Washing Up liquid
Stardrops

Anything else? I'm hoping to do a massive deep clean before the Christmas decorations go up. 3 floors of clutter and mess

@strawberrysweets I've heard mixed views about the Method stuff.
Do they have a good multi-purpose cleaner?

@user187656748 I don't think I'll be able to use Zoflora.
Strong synthetic scents give me the worst headaches! Is it really potent stuff?

Bar keepers friend. Basically really good on anything shiny and smooth. Fantastic on shower screens!

Hg products are great.

Zoflora does smell strongly OP but you can dilute it right down. Its disinfectant. If smells bother you though I'd be sticking to the white vinegar for everything.

Most of these others have already mentioned:

• vinegar
• soda crystals
• kitchen soap
• a cleaner for wooden floors
• a kind of pumice stone for lime scale (hard water area)
• really hot water
• my scrubbing power
• my lowered expectations

Magic Erasers! Fantastic for dirty baths, pen marks etc, but be careful on paintwork.

@WhoTookTheChristmasCookie

I use the specific kitchen and bathroom and then the anti bac stuff too - variety of scents...clementine, rhubarb, mint! I love them 😍

Washing up liquid, some sort of all purpose spray (not Method as I don't like the smells) and loo cleaner. I just use hot water and a lint free cloth, then squeegy, then polish off with a dry cloth for all glass and mirrors. I don't like window cleaner stuff (I don't like the smell and it makes them smeary imo). Plan to make my own cleaning stuff soon.

I use reusable cloths and wash them, rather than wipes.

Loo cleaner is worse than bleach for the environment. It contains a multitude of chemicals.

My cleaning cupboard consists of
Rhubarb method
Flash floor cleaner
Furniture polish
Elbow grease
Bleach
Flash bathroom
White vinegar
Zoflora
Fabreeze
Plug-ins

Loo cleaner is worse than bleach for the environment. It contains a multitude of chemicals.

I'd be interested to see the source for this. Genuinely interested. I have to use septic tank safe toilet cleaner with no bleach since bleach will destroy the micro organisms in the septic tank and then they can't do their job in breaking down the waste. The septic tank safe toilet cleaner doesn't kill them and so I'm extremely surprised to learn its more damaging for the environment. Just because something is a "chemical" does not of course make it harmful.

On the basis that loo cleaner contains corrosive limescale removal agents, artificial fragrances, artificial colouring, thickening agents and disinfectant. Bleach on the other hand is basically made up of salt and thickening agent.

Zoflora, white vinegar, cif but any old cream cleaner - amazing on stainless steel, Elbow Grease spray

My go to Method product is the orange kitchen spray. Cuts through the hob top in no time and I use on the laminate floor in the bathroom

Method bathroom spray

White vinegar (discovered very cheap in Aldi)
Bicarb
Soda crystals
Washing powder or washing up liquid for floors but now have steam mop
Mr muscle for windows

Not a cleaning product as such but I recently got an e-cloth and it's so good.