if you make your own cleaning products/ solutions..

[idontknowwhattosay]

what do you put in it? and what do you use it for?
I got some white vinegar and wanted to start using less chemicals and more environmentally friendly stuff!!

I soaked some orange peel in vinegar. We particularly use vinegar to deal with ant incursions in the house - spray 'em and kill - the vinegar hides any "Over here" scent messages they give out then you kill them. But my dh hates the smell of pure vinegar (as well as ant incursions) so this is my fix.

Any citrus peels in white vinegar, leave them to soaks for a couple of weeks

I've just started doing this,
So far my kit is a set of essential oils, big tub of bicarb and huge bottles of vinegar.
I mix a window cleaner (vinegar, water, essential oil)
A furniture polish (vinegar, olive oil and essential oils)
"Bin bombs" (like bin buddy) which are moulded bicarb, water, lavender, lemon essential oil and vanilla extract. Pop a tablet in the bin bag and it absorbs the odours - super useful as we only generate 2 bin bags full a month so they linger longer in the house.
Next job is to replace more of our bathroom cleaners. I just Google the recipes/home made/natural cleaner I want to replace to find recipes.

Half a spray bottle of hot vinegar mixed with same quantity of washing up liquid. I add peppermint oil. Good for anything that needs more than a quick spray of diluted vinegar. I use it for bathroom and kitchen cleaner.

A slosh of vodka or isopropyl in a vinegar/water mix for cleaning glass/windows.

Hot soapy water for most things - bio washing powder for things that are really dirty. I know detergents aren't great, but I buy in bulk and try not to use other chemicals.

Citric acid to descale kettle. Then put it through coffee maker.

Cotton cloths or rags rather than microfibre cloths.

Might have a go at those bin bombs @LoopyLu2019 - do you make them up as solid tablets and then just pop them in a fresh bag as needed? How do you make the tablets exactly?

My low toxin cleaning tips are as follows:

1. Bio-d washing up liquid - fantastic and completely non-toxic - I buy it in huge 5l containers and use it for:

• washing up (obvs!) - I have an old neals yard pump action hand soap bottle that I refill and use for washing up liquid by the sink
• shampoo - natural shampoos are v expensive - this is cheap as chips for shampoo! - use another neals yard bottle in bathroom - ONLY (and I've tried loads) shampoo that doesn't aggravate my seborrheic dermatitis! And no detrimental effect on my hair at all.
• following a tip on MN the other day I have recently tried it for cleaning the bathroom - a bit of neat washing washing up liquid on a bathroom sponge (I find the spontex ones the best) and it very quickly cleans the bath, tiles, shower screen, taps - amazing!
• I also mix it with 3% hydrogen peroxide to create an oxy action stain remover - 2 part HP to 1 part washing up liquid - I keep this in a brown spray bottle as light and air degrade HP (I also buy 5l bottles of HP).

1. Washing clothes - again tried loads of things - best mix I've found (in addition to homemade oxy spray is:

• I capful of liquid soap flakes and a tsp of dr bronners salsuds in each wash. I also use attitude fabric softener (I tried so many ways of naturally softening clothes and nothing has cut it - I do use white vinegar for towels and tea towels etc) so have relented and use attitude fabric softener which is really good, very little fragrance and has stopped our clothes from going hard and bobbly (even with my soft water washing machine and tumble dryer :-(). I also use a tbsp of bio-d laundry with whites (and sometimes a tbsp with a splash of HP for soaking - grreat for getting out suncream and other stains) - just discovered this and it's VERY good having tried loads of things for whites.

1. I also use a tbsp of salsuds in a spray bottle mixed with water as a surface spray in kitchen and for anywhere in the bathroom that rinsing neat washing up liquid isn't possible. Also use a small squeeze of salsuds (a little goes a very long way) to clean the floors. I also use a single drop of salsuds in my carpet cleaner - works perfectly.
2. Bio-d washing powder - this stuff is amazing at cleaning but I found it makes clothes hard and bobbly. It's fab however for soaking extractor fan filters, and anything greasy - brings them straight up, no problem. I also use them as scouring powder for the bath (enamel) if it gets stained - it's amazing.
3. Cleaning oven - soda crystals - I just sprinkle some in and some water to make a paste. Spread it out, leave a bit, and then it all just wipes away.
4. Cleaning washing machine - wipe drawer and seal with white vinegar. Put a couple of cups of soda crystals in drum and wash at 90 degrees.
5. Cleaning dishwasher - door/seal/filter etc can be cleaned in soapy water. Two bowls of white vinegar in top and bottom trays - Run hottest cycle.

That's everything I can think of right now!

I use old and or used lemons cut in half for wiping work surfaces, chopping boards and sinks before rinsing with very hot water and a microfibre cloth (I'm afraid I've got a lot of those, didn't realise how bad they are for the water courses )

I take an old plastic bottle to be filled with kitchen cleaner from a HF shop and always dilute it with 4 drops lemon or eucalyptus ess. oils and water. (I can make it last for 3 or 4 bottle fulls that way).

I always try to make household recipes for cleaning products as much as possible. I will admit that it's not always as effective as the chemical products and might require some extra scrubbing but what I like the most is the feeling of being completely in charge of my cleaning - I know what I have to clean and I know all the materials. It may seem silly but it's empowering to me. This is the latest video that I found useful -check it out if you are interested in recipies for cleaning the kitchen: