Green Cleaning Solutions That Are Safe, Effective and Moneysaving

Presented by KUTV.Com.

Green Cleaning Solutions

That Are Safe, Effective and Moneysaving

Presented by KUTV.Com

The time for spring cleaning is upon us. But as you enjoy the fresh air and warmer weather outside, you don’t want to release scores of harmful chemicals inside. Most common cleaning products contain solutions like ammonia, chlorine bleach and artificial fragrances that can wreak havoc on not only on the health of our families, but on the world around us. However, there are several products that are free of such toxins and perform just as well as commercial solutions.

With just eight safe and effective products you can clean nearly every nook and cranny of your home. Furthermore, you will probably find that these do-it-yourself solutions are not only better for your health and the environment, but also better for your wallet.

Here is everything you’ll need to make all of the green cleaning solutions described here:

• Baking soda: works well for scrubbing and fizzes when added to water, vinegar or lemon juice, speeding up your cleaning
• Borax: great for laundry; disinfects, bleaches and deodorizes
• Distilled white vinegar: breaks up dirt and disinfects surfaces
• Hydrogen Peroxide: disinfects and bleaches
• Lemons: grease cutters
• Olive oil: lifts dirt, polishes wood
• Vegetable based (liquid castile) soap: serves as an all-purpose cleaner
• Water / Steam: always a good alternative to chemical based cleaners
• Washing soda: removes stains, unblocks pipes and serves as a heavy-duty cleaner

You will also need an empty spray bottle and some cleaning rags or brushes. Try to recycle old toothbrushes and t-shirts for an even cheaper – and greener – cleaning kit.

Main Living Areas

Add ½ cup of borax to one gallon of hot water to create an all-purpose cleaner. The solution can be mixed in a bucket or made in smaller batches. After cleaning with the solutions, wipe your surfaces clean with a rag.

Glass can be cleaned with solutions of lemon juice or vinegar. Add either ¼ cup of white vinegar or 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to at least two cups of water. Your glass cleaning solution can then be added to an empty spray bottle.

Wood floors can be cleaned effectively with a simple mixture of ¼ cup white vinegar dissolved in one gallon of warm water.

Linoleum floors can withstand a higher concentration of white vinegar, generally ½ cup for each gallon of warm water. After cleaning floors with the vinegar solutions, you can simply rinse and dry.

Furniture can be polished with a solution of ½ cup white vinegar and one teaspoon of olive oil. After mixing, apply the solution with a clean rag to all wood furniture. If the wood seems too oily after using, you can reduce the amount of olive oil in your mixture.

Copper and brass fixtures inside your home can be cleaned and polished with a combination of salt and white vinegar. To create the cleaning solution, add white vinegar to a container of salt until a paste is formed. If the salt seems too abrasive for your fixtures, flour can also be added. The solution should be applied with a clean rag and wiped clean.

Stainless steel fixtures in your home can be cleaned with baking soda and white vinegar. After applying baking soda to the surface with a damp cloth, use the vinegar to clean stains.

Bathroom

Your toilets can also be cleaned and deodorized with baking soda and white vinegar. After adding a bit of baking soda to the toilet bowl, pour in some white vinegar and scrub with a brush.

Your sink, tub and bathroom tile can be scrubbed with a solution of borax and lemon. This solution is most effective when a lemon half is dipped directly in the borax to create a handheld scrubber. After cleaning, simply rinse and dry the surfaces.

Kitchen

Marble countertops can be cleaned with diluted castile soap. For best results, mix one tablespoon of castile soap in one quart of warm water. Rinse and dry with a warm cloth.

Synthetic surfaces can be scrubbed with a lemon half dipped in baking soda. Your homemade glass cleaning solution can also be used on synthetic countertops.

Your dishes can be cleaned with a diluted solution of castile soap. Pots and pans can also be cleaned with a solution of three parts water and one part white vinegar.

Kitchen drains and other drains throughout your home can be treated by adding one cup of baking soda and one cup of white vinegar to a pot of boiling water and pouring the hot mixture down the drain. Afterwards, flush the drain with simple tap water.

Tough oven spills and stains can be cleaned by sprinkling baking soda on the dirty area, spraying water on top and letting the solution soak for several hours. Finish by rinsing with water.

When the grease in your oven or on your stovetop is extra stubborn, try a mixture of washing soda, castile soap and hot water. Add ½ teaspoon of washing soda and ¼ teaspoon of castile soap to two cups of hot water inside of a spray bottle. Be careful with washing soda, though, as the solution is caustic.

Cleaning With Steam

People frequently forget that old fashioned hot water is still one of the greenest ways to clean your house and requires no chemicals or products, natural or otherwise. But hot water and elbow grease gets old extremely quickly. Companies are now offering an new alternative to the old standby. Steam cleaners that blast a small jet of superheated water are as efficient as any cleaning solvent; and much more healthy.

Rather than a dozen cleaning concoctions for every surface steam cleaners promise a single healthy solution to our most common problem.

Laundry Room

To create a safe and effective laundry detergent, start with one ounce of castile soap and add a combination of washing soda (½ cup), borax (½ cup), and either white vinegar (¼ cup) or baking soda (¼ cup). Adding baking soda to your mixture will reduce static cling and act as a fabric softener, while white vinegar will serve as a bleach substitute for your whites. If your clothes aren’t clean enough after using the mixture, simply increase the amount of castile soap.

As an alternative to highly-chemical bleach, add ½ cup of hydrogen peroxide to your load.

©Four Points Media 2008