Make your own homemade cleaners, and save money while keeping your house sparkling clean. Expensive cleaners and brand name products promise fast results, but you can clean house and save money by making your own laundry detergent, glass cleaner and fabric softener. These homemade house cleaners are easy to make, and can also be mixed up right in your own home using simple ingredients that you probably already have.
Homemade Household Cleaners
Recipes for homemade cleaners include everything you can imagine from glass cleaner to rust remover. Some homemade cleaning supplies are actually just one ingredient that are used in a creative way. You’ll see that lemons, baking soda and vinegar have an amazing variety of uses.
Try making some of these natural cleaning recipes, and you’ll probably never switch back to store bought products again. These natural cleaners are frugal, easy to make and better for the environment. Of course, you’ll reach for them any time you need your home to sparkle.
Natural Homemade Cleaner
For the most part, I use my all-purpose cleanser or my glass cleaner for almost every job. If I’m feeling particularly lazy, I will stop by the dollar store and pick up supplies for a dollar. But, for the most part, it’s very easy to make these two cleaners or use baking soda and vinegar, which are able to go a long way towards keeping your house frugally clean.
General All-Purpose Cleaner
My natural cleaning recipe for general cleaning will probably make you laugh because it’s so simple:
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup vinegar
Shake well and off you go. Use the solution right away. If you plan to make it in advance, I recommend using distilled water, because it will keep well over a long period of time without growing any mold spores.
This all purpose cleaner is excellent for many purposes from cleaning the kitchen to the bathroom (but it is NOT safe on marble) and even cleaning hardwood floors. Make sure that you don’t use straight vinegar on the floors because it will make it too slippery.
For homemade window cleaner, I use a recipe with Dawn dishwashing detergent. Some people prefer a recipe that uses ammonia, but I don’t like to use ammonia because it can be dangerous if you mix it with bleach. Instead, I prefer the milder window cleaner recipe.
My Window Cleaner
- 2 cups water
- 3 Tablespoons vinegar
- ½ tsp Dawn dishwashing detergent
Just mix all these ingredients together and shake well. You can keep it in a spray bottle that you bought at the dollar store, but make sure that you mark it well.
Quick Sink Cleaner
Looking for a quick and easy cleaner for your stainless steel sink? You don’t even have to make your own homemade cleaner. Just cut a lemon in half, then generously cover the open area of the fruit with baking soda. Spray your sink with water, then scrub your sink using the baking soda-covered lemon.
Just make sure that you rub the lemon in the same direction as the lines in the grain of the stainless steel sink. Rinse when done.
Microfiber Cloths
I recently stopped wasting money on billions of paper towels by switching to microfiber clothes. I switched to microfiber clothes for several reasons:
- They don’t leave dust particles behind.
- They won’t be easily confused with washcloths, so I don’t have to worry about washing my face with window cleaner.
- They’re easy to throw in the washing machine and re-use.
Now, don’t get me wrong – I didn’t totally give up on paper towels. I still use paper towels on raw chicken juice, egg whites or anything especially gooey. But I’m a bit germophobic, so I really don’t like to touch anything icky.
If you don’t want to spend the money on microfiber clothes, try cutting up old t-shirts and make old rags that can be easily washed. It’s just as easy to pick up the clothes at the dollar store.
Rust Remover
There are several natural cleaning recipes for removing rust from your favorite objects. One of my favorites is to use lemon juice to help you take the rust off your ceilings, counter tops or stove. Once you have applied the lemon juice, let it sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, wipe the lemon juice away and rinse with water. Thoroughly dry the object.
Another natural cleaning recipe for taking away rust is a vinegar based recipe. Generously apply white vinegar to the rusty object and let it sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, wipe away the vinegar and rinse with water. Make sure you dry the object well. These frugal homemade cleaning recipes can help you save significant amounts of money on expensive store bought products.
