Saving on Cleaning Products - Make your own products

[SM101]

I have been experimenting the last two years with making some of my own cleaning products ~ partly to be more green, partly to cut having so many different chemicals in the house, and mostly to save money.

My top three:

DIY Laundry Detergent: (Costs about $22; lasts my family of 2 about 18 months for one batch)

1 box Arm and Hammer Washing Soda
1 box Borax
4 lb baking soda
4 lb Oxyclean (or generic - I use Sun)
3 bars Fels Naptha soap, finely grated

Mix all ingredients together. Use 2 tablespoons per wash.


Spray cleaner: (Substitute for Fantastic, Lysol Kitchen, etc). Cost: about 20 cents per bottle

In a spray bottle (dollar store) with a 1 quart capacity: 1 cup white vinegar, 1 tablespoon Dawn dishwashing liquid, top off with water.




Glass cleaner: Cost: about 15 cents per bottle.

In a spray bottle (dollar store) with 1 quart capacity: 1 cup white vinegar, top off with water.



I'm still looking for an acceptable substitute for the dishwasher.


So what things do you do to make your own cleaning products/cut back on costs?

 

[hops&dreams]

• Glass Cleaner: straight vinegar in a spray bottle - doesn't streak!
• to clean bathtubs and baked on foods on stove or in oven: baking soda sprayed with straight vinegar - it'll bubble, but let it do it's thing... even bakend/burned on stuff will come right off!
• antibacterial spray for kitchen and bathroom counters: a few tablespoons of castile soap (Dr Bronner's), distilled water, and 5-10 drops of Melaleuca (Tea Tree) and /or Lemon Essential Oil. (I think OnGuard is also antibacterial)- I get my oils from DoTerra.
• Instead of Bounce sheets in the dryer, I use 3 balls of aluminum foil. Reuse them over and over again.

 

[southlakejr]

I soak lemon peels and rosemary in vinegar for two weeks. Then, I dilute that 1/3 to 1/2 with water, add a few drops each of lemon and rosemary essential oils, as well as a little dap of vanilla. Smells WONDERFUL and serves as a great all purpose spray.

I also use one of those dish scrubbers that you can put soap in in the shower. Fill with vinegar and dish soap and it works very well for keeping the shower clean.

I also spray hydrogen peroxide around the toilet to help keep things fresh between cleanings.

Rubbing alcohol is great for cleaning mirrors as it is completely streak free.

 

[Tuffy4God]

I use this recipe for dishwasher soap...

Dishwasher Soap
1 cup borax
1 cup washing soda
½ cup kosher salt
1/2 c. citric acid (or 5 packets unsweetened lemonade mix instead)
Mix all ingredients and store in a tightly sealed jar. Use 1 tablespoon per load, or 2 tablespoons for extra-dirty dishes. Makes 42 loads.

Cost per load: 2 cents

Also, we have hard water, so I place a small cup right-side up on the top rack with a couple Tbsp of vinegar in it. Some people put the vinegar in the rinse spot, but I heard it could eat through the rubber, so I just put it on the top rack.

 

[SnowBelleAlice]

I enjoy cleanin with vinegar! I dislike the smell of bleach.
Thanks!

 

[crazelion]

Simple vinger and water

 

[aliceindisneyland]

I clean a lot, and I don't find premade cleaners to be expensive at all!
I tried the vinegar/peroxide/etc. homemade cleaners for a few weeks once. When I used my trusty 409 on the same area my paper towel was absolutely filthy with the grime that the natural cleaners did not remove!
My most expensive purchase is Clorox wipes, and I buy a pack of those from Costco every few weeks. Even those are relatively cheap, and they pay me back in labor as my kids use them to clean the bathrooms and no harsh sprays!

Second most expensive is Method hand soap, because my kids get chemical burns from the residue of any other brand of soap. They wash their hands probably a dozen times a day; I probably wash mine 50+, and one refill lasts at least a month.
I use the industrial powdered detergent from Costco, and use half the recommended amount. One giant container (20lbs?) lasts me 6 months, and I do a minimum of 4 loads of laundry every day. I think it's like $15.
All told, I know I spend under $200 a year for every bathroom and laundry cleaner, including paper towels - and really, it's probably half that amount.

 

[SM101]

When I first started using vinegar to clean, I hated the smell. Now, it just smells "clean" to me - didn't take long at all to make that connection.

Another use for vinegar - add 1/4 cup or so to the rinse cycle of your wash to soften your clothes. You can add a couple drops of essential oil to it if you want.


Also: baking soda is an amazing deodorizer. You know this because you have an open box in your fridge and freezer. Sprinkle on your carpet, let sit for about 15 minutes or so, then vac as usual. Once every couple of months, I strip my bed down to the mattress and sprinkle all over - again, let sit and then vac off. Same with pillows. Keep some extra on the washing machine to add to particularly stinky loads of laundry.

To clean your coffee drip machine, mix half water and half white vinegar together and run it through the brew cycle. Dump out, then run a pot of plain water through to rinse. If you have a tea kettle, fill with half vinegar half water, bring to a boil. Dump out, fill with cold water, bring to boil again.

 

[hsmamato2]

All purpose spray cleaner, works on stainless steel,floors,windows,anything! (and it disinfects) 1 cup wh. vinegar,1 cup alcohol,1 cup water,mix in spray bottle. I love it, use it in toilets also with some .99 cleanser tossed in for scrubbing. It is truly all purpose,and SO cheap. When my smoothtop stove needs extra cleaning, I spray,and add some baking soda,work into a paste,and it's clean.
For my bathtub, with old grout in old tiles (ew) I mix water and straight bleach maybe 20/80 in a spray bottle- it's the only way to keep the grout clean.
I mix a cup of white vinegar into my wash ,which allows me to use less Arm and Hammer detergent,which saves money (and freshens clothes)