Floor Cleaner

Vinyl and Linoleum floor cleaner: White vinegar, water

Mop with a mixture of 1/2 cup vinegar in a bucket (pail) of warm
water. The vinegar smell will go away soon after the floor dries.

Wood floor cleaner #1 (for unvarnished floors): Castile or vegetable oil soap

Damp mop with light solution of the soap in warm water. Repeat with clean water.

Wood floor cleaner #2 (for unvarnished floors): Liquid soap, vinegar, glycerin, water

1/4 cup liquid vegetable oil based soap

1/2 teaspoon glycerin

1/4 cup white distilled vinegar

2 gallons warm water

Wood floor cleaner #3 (for varnished floors): Damp mop using 1 part vinegar to 10 parts water.

Wood Floor Cleaner #4 : Black tea

Brew a very strong infusion of black tea using 2-4 teabags in a quart of boiling water. Add this to a pail of mop water. Damp mop wood floors. No rinsing necessary.

Furniture Polish

Furniture polish #1: Olive oil, lemon juice

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice

Mix. Apply with a soft cloth, rubbing into the grain. Buff with a clean rag.

Furniture polish #2(for wood): Vinegar and oil

1/4 cup white vinegar
A few drops of food-grade linseed oil, jojoba or olive oil.

Mix ingredients. Test on wood first, and then polish.

Furniture polish #4 (for wood): Olive oil, vinegar, lemon oil, squirt bottle

3/4 cup olive oil

1/4 teaspoon vinegar

5 drops lemon essential oil (optional)

Mix in a squirt bottle. Squirt on furniture or rag and rub into wood (rubbing with the grain). Shake well before each application.
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Glass Cleaner

Window and mirror cleaner #1: White vinegar, water

In a spray bottle, put 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water. Spray on the surface. Rub with a lint-free rag or newspaper.


Window and mirror cleaner #2: Club soda

Use club soda in a spray bottle. Spray on the surface. Rub with a lint-free rag or newspaper.

Window and glass cleaner #3: Borax powder, water

Mix 2 tablespoons of borax or washing soda with three cups of water. Spray or sponge wash.

Window and glass cleaner #4: Cornstarch, vinegar, water

1/4 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 quart warm water

Mix the ingredients and apply with a sponge or pour into spray bottle and spray on. Wipe dry with crumpled newspaper, buff to a shine.

Outdoor window cleaner: Castile soap, sponge, squeegee

Use a sponge and wash with warm water with a few drops of liquid castile soap in it. Rinse well and squeegee dry.

Hand Cleaner

Hand cleaner: Beach sand, pumice powder, glycerin, screw-top jar

Mix together 4 oz.. of beach sand, 1 oz. pumice powder, and enough glycerin to make a paste. Store in screw-top jar. Use about 1 TBSP at a time to remove heavy soiling from hands.

Leather Cleaner

Leather cleaner (not for suede): Olive oil, vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vinegar

Mix in a squirt bottle and shake before each application. Rub with soft cloth into leather for cleaning and conditioning.

Do not use on suede.

Suede leather cleaner: Art-gum Eraser, very fine sandpaper or emery board.

Dirt marks on suede can be rubbed out with an art-gum eraser. Then buff very lightly an emery board or very fine sandpaper.

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Laundry Helps

Bleach (non-chlorine):  Hydrogen peroxide (H202)

Add 1/4 cup hydrogen peroxide to regular wash load. H2O2 is safe on all colors and fabrics except silks and fabric with metallic threads.

Brightener: Borax powder

Use 1/2 cup of borax powder to regular wash load

Detergent or soap "booster": Washing soda

Use 1/2 cup washing soda for a regular wash load

Fabric Softener #1: Vinegar, "Downy" ball dispenser (optional)

To final rinse, add 1/2 to 3/4 cup of white vinegar. (Vinegar may be put in a commercial ball-type fabric softener dispenser to be released in rinse cycle.)

Fabric Softener #2: Baking soda

Add 1/4 cup of baking soda to final rinse

Grease stains: Use a paste of borax powder and water.

Odor-killer: Use 1/2 cup of white vinegar per wash load to kill musty odor in fabrics

Perspiration stains: Use a paste of baking soda and water


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Mold and Mildew Killer

Mold and Mildew Spray #1: Vinegar spray

Straight vinegar reportedly kills 82 percent of mold. Use white vinegar in a spray bottle, spray on the moldy area, and let set without rinsing. The vinegar smell will dissipate in a few hours.
Use regularly to prevent regrowth.

Mold and Mildew Spray #2: Tea tree oil spray

2 teaspoons tea tree oil
2 cups water

Combine in a spray bottle, shake to blend, and spray on problem areas. Do not rinse. The tea tree scent will persist for a couple of days.
   

Oven Cleaner

Oven cleaner: Baking soda, water

Mix 1 cup of baking soda with just enough water to make a paste. Apply to oven surfaces and let stand a little while. Use a scouring pad for scrubbing most surfaces. A spatula, bread knife. putty knife or scraper is effective to get under large food deposits. This will require more scrubbing effort, but it is not toxic or allergenic. (Commercial oven cleaners are severe lung, eye, and skin irritants.) Do not use this cleaner recipe on self-cleaning ovens.

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Refrigerator Cleaning and Deodorizing

Refrigerator Deodorizer #1: Baking soda,  ventilated container

Fill a ventilated container (such as a margarine tub with hole in the lid) about 1/2 full of baking soda. Place in the back of the refrigerator. (Tip: Change baking soda in spring and fall, when you adjust your clocks.)

Refrigerator Deodorizer #2: Dry coffee grounds, ventilated container

Use a ventilated container such as an empty margarine tub with holes in the lid. Save coffee grounds and allow then to dry out.
Place the dry coffee grounds in the container and put it in the back corner of refrigerator to absorb odors. Change coffee grounds as needed. (Tip: You can leave the coffee grounds in a paper coffee filter to dry and transfer. A "basket" filter fits nicely in a margarine tub.)

Refrigerator deodorizer #3: Vanilla, cotton ball

Put 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract on a clean cotton ball. Put the cotton ball in a suitable open container (saucer, jar lid, small bowl, etc.) Place in refrigerator until odors are gone.

Roach Killer

(Caution: The sugar in these mixtures may make them tempting to pets and small children. Borax and boric acid powder can be toxic to children and pets if ingested. Keep out of reach.)

Roach powder: Borax, brown sugar, flour

Mix borax with a little brown sugar and flour and sprinkle behind appliances, under sink, and in corners. Cockroaches carry the mixture back to their nests.

Diatomaceous Earth (pure silica):

Sprinkle around floors, cracks and crevices. Kills crawling insects by dessicating them.

Caution: This is a very fine dust. Use a dust mask when applying to avoid inhaling.

Heloise's Homemade Roach Bait:

1/4 cup shortening
1/8 cup sugar
8 oz. boric acid
1/2 cup flour
Ample water to form a dough

Mix all, form small balls of dough and set out in open plastic sandwich bags (to retain moisture longer, when hardened, replace with new dough)

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Silver Cleaner

Silver cleaner #1: Paste of baking soda and water

Silver Cleaner #2: Paste of lemon juice and salt

Silver cleaner #3: Baking soda, salt, aluminum foil or aluminum container

Find an aluminum dishpan or container to hold the silver pieces. (Alternately, place a square of aluminum foil in the bottom of the container.

Place silver to be cleaned in a the container and cover with water.

For each quart of water used, add approx. 1 TBSP of baking soda and 1 TBSP salt.

Allow silver to soak. (Silver will brighten and aluminum will darken.)

Silver cleaner #4: Toothpaste, soft polishing cloth

Polish silver with a white, non-gel toothpaste, and wipe clean. The mild abrasive will remove tarnish without scratching.

Silver cleaner #5: Olive oil, lemon juice, soft cloth

Mix 1 teaspoon olive oil and 1/2 cup lemon juice; apply with a soft cloth and rub. Buff with a clean corner of rag.

Sticker and Adhesive Remover

Decals/Gummed Labels/Price Tag Remover (for washable surfaces and paints only):

Remove non-slip appliques and strips from bathtubs - saturate a cloth or sponge and squeeze hot vinegar over decals.

Remove "stick-on" hooks from painted walls -- Soak a cloth or sponge with vinegar and squeeze the liquid behind the hook so that the vinegar saturates the adhesive.

Remove price labels and other decals from glass, wood, and china -- Paint the label or decal with several coats of white vinegar. Give the vinegar time to soak in and after several minutes the decal can be rubbed off.

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Toilet Bowl Cleaner

Toilet bowl cleaner #1: Baking soda, liquid soap

Sprinkle baking soda inside the bowl as you would any scouring powder. Add a couple drops of soap. Scrub with a toilet bowl brush and finish outside surfaces with a rag sprinkled with baking soda.

Toilet bowl cleaner #2: Borax powder, lemon juice

Tub and Sink Cleaner