The Best Green Cleaning DIY Recipes – You Need These!
Good morning to you! Today, in the spirit of spring, I am going to share my top three diy green cleaning recipes.
Full disclosure, I became more interested in a low tox approach to life when I experienced some challenges with my health, and when I started to realize that coughing (from chemicals) every time I wash my bathtub wasn’t normal…
So, I became determined to find alternatives. Little did I know that some of the most common household items can be used for green cleaning. You probably have these diy ingredients at home too – white vinegar, baking soda, castile soap, and coarse salt.
I have vivid memories of my mom cleaning our kitchen floor with white vinegar and warm water because it was kinder to her hands, and there was a streak-less shine to the tile. We both hated the smell but the benefits far outweighed the unusual scent.
However, this begs the question – when did we become so comfortable with chemicals permeating every surface of our homes and bodies?
Who is ready for a change?! If you raised your hand…keep reading, if not you can stop right here.
Why is Green Cleaning So Important?
Green cleaning gives you a chance to remove toxins from your home. Toxins can come from everyday activities like cooking, the paint on our walls, or the household products we use. To be honest, its as if the cards are stacked against us in the fight against toxins. But, I hope by sharing these three recipes you feel more equipped to break the cycle.
All Purpose Spray
1 cup warm water + 1 cup white vinegar.
I love that white vinegar is an eco- option for us all (eco-friendly + economical). But to be honest, while I am completely comfortable cleaning my tile floors with white vinegar… the smell is not one that I want to have welcoming friends + family into our home. In other words, I don’t want it to be my everyday go- to cleaner. So, I use this recipe:
4 tbsp. On Guard Cleaner Concentrate
10 drops Tea Tree Essential Oil
10 drops OnGuard Protective Blend
Fill to the top with warm water
It’s been my go- to recipe. I love the aromatic benefits, the effectiveness against the biggest messes from my littles (in every room of the house) not to mention, it provides natural protection.
GREEN CLEANING FOR YOUR MATTRESS
Admittedly, this diy is 100% better with doTERRA essential oils. But, it could still be effective without them too. If you don’t have essential oils on hand, then this will be the easiest of all because all you need is baking soda (the same holds true for your carpets too (only needing baking soda)). You can determine the amount based on the size mattress you are working with. But, I wouldn’t do less than a cup.
However, this is my favorite mattress cleaner diy:
5 drops Lavender
5 drops Tea Tree
10 drops Purify
2 Tbsp On Guard Cleaner Concentrate
Add ingredients to a 8 oz spray bottle, fill with water. Shake well. Spray mattress, and allow to dry. Perfect for the change of sheets or when your kiddos might have overnight accidents.
SOFT SCRUB
Even though I wipe down the surfaces in our bathroom every other day and scrub down our toilets at least 2x a week. I always seem to hold off on the tub. I’m not sure why, but that’s the way it is.
So, I usually find myself ready to call our girls for bath time but, absolutely need to give the tub a good scrub down first. This diy has given me peace of mind – because I’m not letting our girls marinate in chemical residue during bath time…
This is the diy for our bathtub:
¾ cup baking soda
¼ cup castile soap
2 tablespoons water
5-10 drops Lemon essential oil (optional)
In a bowl, combine baking soda and castile soap. Add water and stir. Add essential oil (I prefer lemongrass over lemon in the bathroom). Stir into a soft paste. Apply to surface, and let sit for up to 10 minutes. Scrub and wipe surface clean. Keep leftover paste in airtight container.
So, you may ask…can this diy be used in other places? Not just the bathtub? The answer is …yes.
It can be used on your tile and kitchen sink as well. So, have at it!
This Isn't Even The Half Of It...
The truth is you can use diys for many of your household needs, like:
Dishwasher tabs
Liquid laundry soap*
Dryer sponges
Washing machine cleaner
Toilet Scrub, and more!
I hope this inspired you to always have white vinegar, baking soda, castile soap, and coarse salt on hand. I know I didn’t really highlight coarse salt in this post but it can be used in the DIY liquid laundry soap mentioned above. These multi-purpose items can do so much for our health and the environment.
What’s stopping you from diving into green cleaning?
