Many consumers are seeking alternatives to conventional household cleaning products that can contain harsh chemicals and toxins. In addition to the environment friendly cleaning supplies available in our stores, you can also easily make your own effective cleaning concoctions at home using simple, natural ingredients.
- Oven cleaner: Make a paste of equal parts salt,
baking soda and water. First, wipe away any grease and
scratch off burnt spots with a scouring brush or steel wool.
Finally, apply the paste, let stand five minutes and wipe
clean with a damp rug. Scrub if necessary. Do not allow
baking soda to touch heating elements or wiring.
- Wood floor polish: Mix 1/2 cup
vinegar and 1/2 cup vegetable oil. Rub on
floor and buff with a clean, dry cloth.
- Toilet bowl cleaner: Combine 1-cup borax with
1/4 cup vinegar or lemon juice to make a
paste. Apply it to the inside of the toilet bowl and let it
sit for one to two hours before scrubbing.
- Mold remover: Saturate a sponge with
full-strength vinegar and scrub the moldy area. Rinse well.
- Glass cleaner: Combine 1/4 cup
vinegar and one quart of water. Plain club soda also works!
- Multipurpose cleaner: Combine 1-teaspoon borax, 1
teaspoon baking soda, 2 teaspoons vinegar, 1/4
teaspoon dishwashing liquid, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 2
cups hot water.
- Heavy-duty disinfectant: Combine 1/4
cup powdered laundry detergent, 1-tablespoon borax,
3/4 cup hot water and 1/4 pine oil.
Slowly stir the detergent and borax into the water to
dissolve. Add the pine oil (available at hardware stores and
supermarkets) and mix well. For bathrooms, use the mixture
full strength. For kitchens, dilute with water.
- Carpet freshener: In a container with a
tight-fitting lid, combine 1 cup crushed dried herbs (such
as lavender or rosemary) with 1 teaspoon ground cloves, 1
teaspoon ground cinnamon and 2 teaspoons baking soda. Shake
well to blend. Sprinkle the mixture on carpet and let sit
for one hour. Vacuum.
- Rust remover: Sprinkle salt on the rust and then
squeeze a lime over the salt until it is soaked in juice.
Let the mixture sit for up to three hours. The leftover lime
rind can be used as a handy scrubber to remove the rust.
Another option is to rub the rust with balled-up aluminum
foil after wetting it with water. Use caution as aluminum
foil will scratch chrome.
- Drain clearing agent: Sprinkle a generous amount
of baking soda in and around the drain opening. Follow with
1 cup of white vinegar. Repeat if necessary and flush with
hot water.
- Tile floor cleaners: Mop floor with solution of 1
to 2 teaspoons of liquid dish soap dissolved in 3 gallons of
warm water. Rinse with 1 cup of white vinegar in 3 gallons
of cool water.
- Grease stain remover: Cover stain with a mixture
of borax and water. Rub in and wipe off. Rinse well after
applying stain remover.
- Natural laundry bleach: The only ingredients are
1/4 cup of lemon juice and some sunshine! Use
the lemon juice in the washing machine's rinse cycle. After
clothes have spun, hang in the sun to dry.
- Wall and wallpaper cleaner: Dissolve 1/4
cup borax in 1-gallon hot water. Stir to blend. Use a sponge
or rag.
- Silver cleaner: Rub the silver with toothpaste;
wipe off tarnish and then rinse. Dry with a soft cloth.
- Kitchen disposal freshener: Just drop in a few lemon wedges and flip the switch.
A carpet cleaning solution that kills odors is something that we are all searching for. We’ve heard all of the suggestions from all of the sources: Infomercials, friends, retailers. And all we’ve realized is that there is no solution that is the perfect carpet cleaning solution.
Here are some tips. The best method may be to try experimenting for a while. Do not try more radical methods first though. Your carpet is a big investment and to ruin it in a half-assed attempt to save a couple bucks would be a real shame.
- Ammonia
Ammonia is the all purpose cleaner. You will probably find that no matter what you are cleaning someone somewhere will suggest ammonia. This isn’t bad advice really. Ammonia can be a great cleaner, as long as you use it sparingly and you take precautions. For instance, be sure to open all of the windows when you are cleaning. Also, be sure that your pets aren’t exposed to the solution. It could disrupt their…housetraining.
- Baking Soda
Baking soda is probably your best bet. If you want to save money save the environment and get rid of odors and stains, use baking soda when carpet cleaning. Sprinkle the baking soda on the carpet and mist the area with hot water. If it's a really tough stain or odor, apply a lot of baking soda and scrub with a stiff brush. Leave the baking soda on to soak and work it's magic, then vacuum it. Rinse the area with water and use the wet vacuum to drink up the water.
- Elbow Grease
The problem that most people encounter when they have a carpet is that they only clean it once a year so they have no choice but to rent a carpet cleaner. However, a mixture of ammonia and water, with a little vinegar can make all the difference if you clean it once a month. Most of us have better things to do with out time, even doing this once a season will go a long way to keeping your carpet looking new.
- Club Soda and Salt for Stain Removal
This is the tried and true, old wives tale carpet cleaning solution that has rendered the best result over the years. It is cheap and safe and it works. All you have to so crush some salt into the stain and add club soda. Come back in an hour and vacuum, then rinse and your stain will be gone!
- Bonnet (Dry Cleaning)
Again, this is not dry cleaning in its most strict sense. Often this is a cleaning product that is mixed in with carbonated water (club soda does it again). This mixture is then deposited onto the carpet in the form of a light spray of a mist. After this a round buffer is then used to scrub the carpet in a rotating fashion. The cleaning mixture and the carbonation work in tandem to lift of particles.
The only real drawback to this method is that it often takes a long time to clean and that it usually only cleans the top one third of the carpet. This is perfect if the carpet has no sentimental value, and you are just looking for a quick cleaning solution. However, if you want to get down to those smells and deep down grime you are going to need to find another solution.
- Clothing Detergent
One carpet cleaning solution, and this one is my favorite, is using simple laundry detergent. When you think about it, if it can get wine and bile out of a tuxedo, it can get spaghetti sauce out of your carpet. It also smells nice. Just watch out for static cling!
- Water
Yeah sometimes water is all you need. Do not be surprised if all it takes to remove a stain is water. This of course depends on the stain. For instance you will never get grease or oil out of a carpet with water. If the offending stain is organic in nature, like say grass, water will get right to the satin and remove it.