Some people have asked for the recipes I use for cleaners. I do admit these are not my original creations by far, but here are the ones I use:
SOFT SCRUB:
-2c. Baking soda
-1/2c. Liquid soap (We use Peppermint Dr. Bronner's)
-2/3c. Water
-2 tbsp. Vinegar
This stuff is GREAT! The BEST thing about it is you wipe it on and walk away. Resist the temptation to rinse it right away and take care of it the next time you take a shower by wiping it off then. You will find the next day that it has formed a crusty film over everything. Wipe that off and you're done...No scrubbing...just wiping it off. This is a staple in my cleaner cabinet!
Laundry Soap:
1 bar of soap (grated)
2c. Baking soda
1 1/2c. Borax
2-3 gallons of Hot or Boiling water
Melt the grated soap in a sauce pan with enough boiling water to cover the soap, so about 5c. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring frequently until all the soap has melted. In a large bucket, pour in 2-3 gallons of hot water, add the melted soap and stir well. Lastly, add the baking soda and Borax. Keep stirring until everything is dissolved.
***I got this recipe from my friend Susan and she has had a TON of luck with it. I on the other hand, just couldn't seem to get this to work out for us...I have no idea what kind of stains Rachel gets herself into, but this soap couldn't get them out. Susan is still using this mix and has had no problems getting the stains out her little boy causes...so again...it probably was user error on my part.***
Window Cleaner (32oz bottle):
-3/4c. Vinegar
-Fill the rest of the bottle with water
Drain Cleaner:
-1c. Baking soda (make sure most if not all actually makes it into the drain)
-2c. Vinegar (add this slowly)
About 20 mins or so after you have poured the vinegar down the drain, add a kettle of boiling water. This has worked in several drains in our house. I have also heard pouring a can of Coke or Mountain Dew have the same effect when followed by the boiling water, but we tend not to have soda around the house.
Now, as you can tell this is only a few cleaners...I am slowly trying to integrate more natural, homemade cleaners into our cabinet, but I haven't gotten completely to homemade, so here are the ones we buy otherwise:
-Ecover Dishwashing tabs http://www.ecover.com/us/en/Products/Dishes/Dishwasher+Tablets.htm
-Earth Friendly Products Laundry soap and Linen water http://www.ecos.com/laundry.html
-Life Tree Bathroom cleaner and dish soap http://www.lifetreeproducts.com/lt_Homecare.html -the Bathroom cleaner can be used most everywhere in the house...
-Seventh Generation dryer sheets, fabric softener (winter months), toilet cleaner, bathroom cleaner and all-purpose spray (though we are replacing the bathroom cleaner and the all-purpose with the Life Tree) http://www.seventhgeneration.com/products
-Biokleen Bac-out stain and odor eliminator (laundry and carpet) http://biokleenhome.com/products/household/general
Now we have tried lots of products and have taken a lot of suggestions. We belong to a couple different groups that give GREAT suggestions on homemade cleaners and ones that can be purchased, so I'm just passing them along. You may also notice I don't mention a rinse aide for the dishwasher, as we just use Vinegar as a rinse aide and I also mention using a fabric softener in the Winter months, we actually use Vinegar all the time in the rinse, but add the additional softener to help with the static in the Winter.
Happy Green living to you,
-Ally
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