Cleaning Green, Saving Green

I’ve been making my own cleaning supplies for the past five months. I started this journey to limit my family’s exposure to chemicals and to save money.

Many things have worked well. Some have not.

My sources were two books I borrowed from a friend: “It’s Easy Being Green, A Handbook for Earth-Friendly Living,” by Crissy Trask and “Green Clean, The Environmentally Sound Guide to Cleaning Your Home,” by Linda Mason Hunter and Mikki Halpin.

The basic ingredients are: vinegar, water, baking soda, washing soda, Borax, scented oil and vanilla/almond extract.

Basic supplies include (all from the Dollar Store): spray bottles, permanent marker, large flour container, cut up microfiber rags, and glass parmesan cheese containers (holes on top).

I give these items top ratings: toilet cleaner, glass cleaner, laundry detergent and bath cleaner. I’ve saved the most money making my own laundry detergent (one part borax/one part washing soda stored in a sealable flour container). I’d previously been buying hypoallergenic no dye detergent.

What I’m not too thrilled about are bleach alternatives for my counter. Salt, lemon, baking soda, vinegar, and hot water haven’t worked. The bleach alternative I purchased from a health food store is better than my concoctions, but it can’t compare to the clean I got with bleach. My lungs are a lot happier though.

The homemade dishwashing detergent sometimes gets stuck in the dispenser. It also tends to make the glass cloudy. Nothing I can’t live with, but I am still tinkering with the recipe. (My husband is a harsher critic.)

My switch to cleaning green wasn’t a difficult one. Once I tracked down the basic ingredients, bought them in bulk and gathered the containers to store them in, it was easy.

Why not give it a try one cleaner at a time? You can even use your old cleaning bottles for your new cleaners – just rinse them out first.

Here’s a few to get you started in the bathroom:

1. Mirror/Window cleaner: 1/3 part vinegar, 2/3 water, add vanilla extract or almond extract to scent it (do not use an oil based extract like peppermint) Mix and add to a spray bottle
2. Toilet Cleaner 1 part vinegar, 1 part water, add oil based scent (peppermint extract, rose oil) Mix and add to spray bottle, spray toilet and clean with toilet brush. Spray all around toilet and wipe clean.
3. Bath cleaner: baking soda put into a parmesan cheese holder. Sprinkle baking soda on damp tub, spray with window cleaner from above (note chemical reaction of vinegar and baking soda), scrub with brush or microfiber rag. Repeat as necessary.

Window and Toilet cleaner can also be used on the sink and/or tile floor