Baking Soda
Baking soda works as a mild abrasive, helping to gently scrub things that need to be scrubbed. The benefit of scrubbing with baking soda is that it won’t scratch and damage most delicate surfaces. Baking soda also works well to remove smelly odors, making it a prime candidate for a bathroom and kitchen cleaner. Baking soda is a great stain remover and can be used to help soften loads of laundry. Because baking soda is great in so many areas, many cleaning supply recipes will call for it.
Borax
Borax is a laundry booster that can be used in a few different ways around the house. Borax can be used as a stain remover and a substitute for bleach. Borax is often used in laundry and even some dish cleaning recipes.
Castile Soap
Castile soap is an oil-based soap, that can be used to clean almost anything in your home. Diluted liquid castile soap can be used as an all-purpose cleaner. Liquid castile soap is an excellent degreaser.
Cornstarch
Cornstarch can be used as a starching solution for clothing. Cornstarch also absorbs oils and greases, making it a great help in the laundry room or for stains on countertops.
Essential Oils
Essential oils help add a pleasing scent to homemade cleaning solutions. Be careful when using essential oils. A little goes a long way. There are people with high sensitivities to essential oil fragrances.
Lemons and Lemon Juice
Lemons can be great for scrubbing copper bottom pots. The juice works to clean and shine the pans. Lemon juice is a natural bleach, especially when combined with the sun. Lemon juice is a natural degreaser, which comes in handy with dishes.
Salt
Salt is an abrasive solution for scrubbing. Use salt to get rid of rust and mildew. Salt also works to help polish copper and silver.
Toothpaste
Toothpaste works as a very mild abrasive, similar to soft scrubbing gel solutions. Toothpaste can be used to clean silver. It can also be used to remove stains on white clothing, tennis shoes, and in many other places where a light scrubbing is needed.
Vinegar
Vinegar can be used as a fabric softener in the rinse cycle of your washing machine. Vinegar makes a great all-purpose cleaner. Mopping with vinegar is an inexpensive way to keep your floors clean. Vinegar is a great stain remover. Vinegar carefully combined with baking soda makes a great foaming toilet cleaner.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide can be used as a disinfectant. It also is one of the most effective blood stain removers. With all of these ingredients, be careful about mixing cleaners together. Use new clean bottles. Follow storage guidelines for cleaners. Rinse thoroughly, and always follow instructions.
