8 Homemade Spring Cleaning Recipes
Have you ever thought of making your own homemade spring cleaning recipes? Perhaps you don’t know where to start and the thought of switching over is just overwhelming. We’re here to help with that!
A few years ago, that was the furthest thing from my mind, but over the last couple of years as a mom, I had a growing concern about the toxic chemicals that I was using to clean my home and how that was affecting my family.
Soon I became weary of our growing health issues and the effects of the chemical cleaners and toxic household items I was using.
So our family made some radical changes, and began a journey to transform our home environment to an all-natural one. It has taken some time, but I have been surprised at not only how easy it is to make my own homemade cleaners and household products, but how much money I save!
Maybe you have considered doing the same but don't necessarily know where to start. On my blog, I dedicate most of my writing to giving practical easy ways to transition to the natural home lifestyle. So today I wanted to share with you 8 homemade spring cleaning recipes that are simple to make and start using right away.
You will need:
Baking Soda
Vinegar (white and apple cider)
Washing Soda
Epsom Salts
Borax
Castile Soap (Bar and Liquid)
Fresh Lemons or lemon juice
Once you have gathered up these easy natural ingredients, then you are ready to get started.
8 Homemade Spring Cleaning Recipes
1. All-Purpose Spray Cleaner
Spray cleaners cost a small fortune in the stores. Many have strong chemicals in them too that can even burn your eyes (the fumes) and hurt your skin using them. However, check out this recipe for a natural, spray cleaner that is gentle on your skin, no fumes for your eyes and cleans effectively.
Ingredients
1 cup of water
1 cup of apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon of liquid Castile soap
15 drops of lemon essential oil
Directions
Mix these ingredients together and stir thoroughly. Place the mixture into a spray bottle. This mixture is ideal for your kitchen and bathroom countertops, stovetop and kitchen table. It is an ideal gentle cleaner.
2. Simple Microwave Oven Cleaner
Ingredients
1 cup of water
1/2 fresh lemon or 2 tbsp of lemon juice
Directions
Squeeze the half of a fresh lemon into cup of water (make sure the cup is microwave safe). Place the cup in the center of the microwave oven and turn on 5 minutes. Allow the cup to sit without opening the door for 10 minutes after it stops. Open the door, carefully remove the hot cup, discard the liquid, and wipe down the interior of the microwave oven.
3. Natural Dishwasher Tablets
Ingredients
1 cup of Epsom salts
2 cups of washing soda
2 cups of Borax
1 1/2 cups of fresh lemon juice
Directions
Add all the powdered ingredients to a large bowl and stir to combine. Slowly add the lemon juice until you have a moldable paste. Place the paste into ice cube trays. You do not want to put the paste any thicker than the depth of the detergent tray in the automatic dishwasher. The paste will quickly dry to where you can pop out the tablets out of the ice cube trays. Let them air-‐dry completely before you store them in an airtight container. Use one per load of dishes.
4. Homemade Laundry Powder Soap Recipe
Ingredients
10 cups of borax powder
6 cups of washing soda
6 cups of fine grated Castile bar soap
6 cups of baking soda
Directions
Stir all the ingredients together in a bucket. Make sure the bucket has a lid that fits on it. Use about 1/8 to 1/4 cup of this powder for each load of laundry depending on the size of your washing machine.
5. Front Load Washing Machine Rubber Ring Freshener
As you know the front loading washing machines can get stinky. I love this simple spray to spritz my washing machine rubber ring and give it a fresh smell.
Ingredients
Water
5-10 drops of Melaleuca essential oil
Directions
Fill a small spray bottle with water and essential oil. Shake up the mixture in your spray bottle. (and before each use) Between washes you can spray this mixture on your rubber ring of your front-‐ loading washing machine. Leave the door open and allow the mixture to air dry, or wipe clean.
6. All Natural Fizzing Toilet Cleaner
This is my all-‐time favorite toilet cleaner, and the bonus is that my boys love to clean toilets, so they can watch the fizzing action! I love using toxic-‐free bathroom cleaners, and I can feel good about my kids using them as well. I hope you give this super easy toilet cleaner recipe a try.
Ingredients
1/4 cup of baking soda
4 drops of melaleuca oil
1/4 cup of white vinegar
Directions
Add all the ingredients into the toilet bowl in the order they are listed. Let the fizzing action happen, then swish and scrub with a toilet brush making sure to get under the rim. Flush to rinse. You will be amazed at the results and the nice pleasant smell.
7. Easy Disinfectant Toy and Surface Spray
10-‐20 drops of lemon or melaleuca essential oil Add essential oils to a spray bottle of water.
Shake and spray on all surfaces to disinfect. This is great for cleaning and disinfecting surfaces in the bathroom, kitchen, and kid's toys.
8. Eco-Friendly “Carpet Fresh” Powder
I love the effects of the commercial carpet fresh powder for freshening my carpets, but not the sweet floral scent that comes with them. Here is a super simple alternative that won’t leave you with a headache.
Ingredients
20 drops of your favorite essential oil
3 cups of baking soda
Directions
Stir essential oil into baking soda and place in a glass jar with lid. Let mixture sit overnight. Sprinkle on carpets and upholstery to deodorize and freshen. Let powder sit on surfaces for several hours or overnight, then vacuum.
I hope you enjoy trying these easy homemade spring cleaning recipes. Let me know how it goes and if you give them a try.
You will notice that some of the recipes require essential oils. Together with The Better Mom site, I use and recommend doTERRA certified pure therapeutic grade essential oils for all my cleaning products. You can find out how to purchase doTERRA essential oils HERE.
If you would like more toxic-free recipes, tips and ideas for going green in your home, you can head over to my blog to receive my brand new free ebook The Natural Home Makeover.
Be sure to grab your FREE copy of this power-packed book of ideas.
Happy Spring Cleaning! Denise - Little House On The Valley
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