Natural Cleaning Alternatives & 5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners (2024)

Home Living Green

By Michelle Marine

on Sep 24, 2015, Updated Mar 31, 2023

15 Comments

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These Natural Cleaning Alternatives Tips and Recipes for toxin-free cleaning will help you keep your family safe, your home clean, andmore money in your budget without exposing your family to toxic cleaners.

Natural Cleaning Alternatives & 5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners

Cleaning can be one of the most burdensome and tiring jobs in the world. As well as one of the nastiest too. Having to come face to face with so many disgusting germs and grime is a sad reality we face daily. Nevertheless, we all enjoy the smell of a clean home. Unfortunately, the smell of clean tends to come from toxic chemicals. Sadly, we use too many harmful substances to clean our living spaces.

Table Of Contents

  1. Natural Cleaning Alternatives
    • White vinegar
    • Lemon juice
    • Baking soda
    • Rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol.
  2. 5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners
    • 1. All-purpose cleaner
    • 2. Mold remover.
    • For more information onNatural Cleaning Alternatives:
Natural Cleaning Alternatives & 5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners (3)

It’s no secret that many household cleaners are loaded with chemical compounds which are anything but safe for our families and pets. Then why use them at all? Isn’t the price we have to pay too steep? Are we ready to sacrifice our health for a clean environment? If the answer to this question is “no,” we suggest you look at the natural cleaning alternatives we have provided below because it is possible to keep your home clean with safe, natural cleaning alternatives.

Natural Cleaning Alternatives

White vinegar

It’s no secret that vinegar has amazing cleaning powers. Our great-grandmothers probably used it all the time to sanitize their homes before toxic store-bought cleaners came to light. Its antimicrobial properties make it a perfect pick for any cleaning and disinfecting job.

Mixing it with other natural ingredients, you can create powerful house cleaners. And while vinegar is an inexpensive alternative to store-bought cleaners, you shouldn’t use it on iron, stone tiles, marble and granite countertops, and hardwood floors. But it’s ideal for the rest of the fixtures and fittings.

Lemon juice

It can work its magic when killing bacteria and loosening dirt and grime. A bowl of water and lemon juice will leave your microwave sparkling in just 10 minutes.

Baking soda

The white powder has been known for centuries for its deodorizing and cleaning properties. It is slightly abrasive, which makes it a strong yet gentle cleaner. It scours, softens water, and cleans.

Rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol.

Whenever you need a natural disinfectant, use rubbing alcohol. It is safe to use, and it works miracles.

Cornstarch.

Cornstarchcan absorb spills, polish furniture, and clean windows. If you like implementing natural substances into your cosmetic products, you should know that cornstarch is a basic ingredient in homemade deodorants. So many uses so little money.

Natural Cleaning Alternatives & 5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners (4)

5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners

1. All-purpose cleaner

Mix 1 cup of water (distilled), ½ tablespoon of castile soap (liquid), and 10-15 drops of essential oils (of your choice). Pour the mixture into a spray bottle and use it around the home.

2. Mold remover.

Combine two parts of water with one part of hydrogen peroxide in a clean spray bottle. Apply to moldy areas. Let it sit for a couple of hours. Rinse well.

3. Bathroom cleaner.

Mix two tablespoons of vinegar (white), ½ cup of water, ½ cup of liquid soap, and 1 ½ cups of baking soda in a spray bottle and shake vigorously. Use on bathroom sinks, tiles, floor, and bathtub.

4. Glass cleaner.

Mix about 4 cups of water (warm), two tablespoons of cornstarch, ½ cup rubbing alcohol, and ½ cup white vinegar into a bowl and stir it. Transfer the mixture to a spray bottle and clean your windows with a microfiber cloth.

5. Sink cleaner

For stainless steel, copper, and brass fixtures and sinks, combine salt and lemon juice equally and stir until you form a paste. Cover your sink with the paste and let it sit for a while. After that, gently scrub and rinse.

I hope these tips help you avoid using harsh chemicals to clean your home. Being environmentally friendly is no longer a trend. It’s a reality that thousands of people have come to embrace. It deserves a try for the health and financial savings they offer.

For more information onNatural Cleaning Alternatives:

Do you know what’s in your cleaning products?

Decrease toxins with 4 frugal cleaning ingredients.

Green Carpet Cleaning

How to Clean Porcelain Sinks without Bleach

How do you keep your home clean and safe at the same time? Please leave your best tip below!

About Michelle Marine

Michelle Marine is the author of How to Raise Chickens for Meat, a long-time green-living enthusiast, and rural Iowa mom of four. She empowers families to grow and eat seasonal, local foods; to reduce their ecological footprint; and to come together through impactful travel.

Read More About Me

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Natural Cleaning Alternatives & 5 Easy Recipes for Everyday Cleaners (2024)

FAQs

What is the best homemade all-purpose cleaner recipe? ›

DIY All-Purpose Cleaner Recipe
  1. 1/4 cup vinegar.
  2. 12-20 drops essential oil.
  3. 1 tsp castile or phosphorous-free dish soap or washing soda.
  4. 2 cups boiled or distilled water.

What are the 5 natural cleaning materials and their use? ›

A basic natural cleaning toolkit includes white vinegar, baking soda, borax, citrus fruit, and empty spray bottles. You may also want hydrogen peroxide, cornstarch, castile soap, tea tree oil, and other essential oils for scent. Add microfiber cloths or old cotton T-shirts instead of paper towels for less waste.

How do you make homemade cleaner with vinegar and dawn? ›

Heat vinegar in microwave until hot and pour into squirt bottle. Add the Dawn soap. Put the lid on and gently shake to incorporate. You now have a powerful cleaning product that will melt soap scum and tub and shower buildup, clean sinks, appliances and just about anything.

How to make homemade cleaner with rubbing alcohol and dish soap? ›

How to Make an Alcohol-Based DIY All-Purpose Cleaner
  1. Mix the ingredients: Add the following to a glass spray bottle: 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol, 3/4 cup water, 5 to 10 drops of essential oil, and 1 teaspoon dishwashing liquid soap.
  2. Use the alcohol-based cleaner safely: Shake the spray bottle well before each use.
Jan 3, 2024

What is the simplest cleaner of all? ›

  1. WATER: Water is the simplest cleaning agent and some form of dirt will be dissolved by it, but. ...
  2. DETERGENT: Detergents are those cleaning agents, which contain significant quantities of a group of. ...
  3. ABRASIVES. ...
  4. DEGREASING AGENTS. ...
  5. ACIDS AND TOILET CLEANSERS. ...
  6. ALKALIS:

How do you make a simple all-purpose cleaner? ›

To make it, combine half a cup of distilled white vinegar with 2 cups of water. Add a few drops of your favorite essential oil or a squeeze of lemon for scent; since these are in low concentrations, they'll be safe for more surfaces.

How can I sanitize my house naturally? ›

Here's how to do it: Combine 1 1/2 cups rubbing alcohol with 3/4 cups water and 15 drops each of lavender and lemon essential oil in a metal or glass spray bottle. You can use this spray to disinfect everything you would typically use Lysol for, including toilets, laptops, bathrooms surfaces, door handles, and more.

How can I clean my house without chemicals? ›

Water and white vinegar do a good job on floors; ditto vinegar and newspaper for cleaning windows; baking soda, vinegar, salt, and boiling water do a volcanic job on drains. Bon Ami brand cleaning powder is a relatively nontoxic commercial mix that works well for scouring, too.

How do you make homemade cleaning solution? ›

Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner
  1. 1/4 C. Dawn Dish Soap.
  2. 1/2 C. Lemon Juice.
  3. 3/4 C. Vinegar.
  4. 1/2 C. Rubbing Alcohol.
  5. 1.25 C. Water.

How do you make homemade cleaner with Dawn? ›

To make the solution is simple and easy on the wallet! Pour equal parts of vinegar and Dawn into a spray bottle. Gently shake, then spray liberally onto the surface to be cleaned. I have found the best results is when I use it to clean chrome shower and sink fixtures.

How do you make homemade cleaning solution with alcohol? ›

Mix a cup of water, a cup of rubbing alcohol, and one tablespoon vinegar in a spray bottle. “This concoction will work on glass, chrome, stainless steel and hard tiles,” says Mock. “Just use a clean cloth or an old newspaper to scrub the surface for a streak-free shine.”

How do you make alcohol and vinegar cleaner? ›

Pour 1 cup of rubbing alcohol, 1 cup of distilled water, and 1 tablespoon of vinegar into a spray bottle. Shake to mix and label the bottle.

How do you make glass cleaner without alcohol? ›

Dish Soap DIY Glass Cleaner

Combine 16 ounces of hot water and a few drops of mild dish soap in a large bucket. We recommend using distilled water to get a streak-free finish. Mix thoroughly and pour into a spray bottle.

What is the best homemade cleaner and disinfectant? ›

To make your own disinfecting spray that can be safely used on a variety of surfaces around your home, just combine the following ingredients in a large glass spray bottle: 1 cup water, 1 cup white vinegar, 2 tablespoons rubbing alcohol, 20 drops lemon essential oil, 20 drops tea tree essential oil.

What is a 2 ingredient all-purpose cleaner? ›

My all-purpose cleaner combines two must-haves for budget-minded cleaning enthusiasts: Dawn dishwashing liquid and white vinegar. Both are excellent for cleaning—Dawn for its grease and grime-fighting powers and vinegar for its acidic muscle, good for cleaning dirt and build-ups.

How do you make all-purpose cleaner with vinegar and dish soap? ›

All-Purpose Cleaner: Combine 1 teaspoon baking soda, 2 teaspoons vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon dishwashing liquid, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 2 cups hot water in a spray bottle and shake well.

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