Cleaning Green and Saving Green ~ Round 2

A couple months ago, I tried out three make-it-yourself natural cleaning recipes: Furniture Polish, Window and Mirror Cleaner, and Carpet Cleaner. I've been using all of them since and I love them. As my other store-bought cleaning supplies begin to run low, I've been looking into replacing them with natural recipes too. So I'm here today to share three more formulas that will save you money and protect our home environments. 

This time around I made an all purpose cleaner, cleaning wipes, and the easiest toilet bowl cleaner you can imagine. 

All Purpose Cleaner

I use an all purpose cleaner on just about everything - counter tops, floors, door knobs, light switch plates, etc. I found a natural formula here. 

• 2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Dish Detergent
• 4 tbsp White Vinegar
• 1 2/3 cups Water

Combine all of the ingredients into a spray bottle. Be sure to add the baking soda slowly to avoid a "volcano". I doubled the measurements above because I had a larger spray bottle. This formula is safe on floors and counters and most other surfaces.

Cleaning Wipes

I love cleaning wipes. They are so handy. I keep a tub under the kitchen sink and one under each bathroom sink for quick clean ups. I was super excited to find this recipe because cleaning wipes are expensive!

• 1 Cup White Vinegar
• 1 Cup Water
• Few Drops of Dish Detergent
• Essential Oil (optional)
• Roll of Paper Towel

I just used up a container of Clorox Wipes so I kept the empty container to store my DIY ones in. If you don't have a used wipes container, you can use a Tupperware container with a lid that is large enough to hold a half roll of paper towel. 

First, cut a roll of paper towel in half. You want to use a good quality paper towel that will hold up when it's wet. I used Viva Rolls. Remove the cardboard insert in the middle. Add your ingredients to your container. Then set your paper towel roll down into the container. The paper towel will begin to absorb the liquid. I tipped mine side to side and upside down to speed up this process. Then I just pulled out the inner most sheet and voila! Homemade Cleaning Wipes that are so cheap and kind to the environment. 

Easiest Toilet Bowl Cleaner

Toilet Bowl Cleaner is another one of those things I hate spending money on and it fills the bathroom with nasty chemicals when I use it. That's why I'm so excited to share this formula with you. It's not even a formula really. Brace yourself, this is so easy.

First, sprinkle some baking soda in to the toilet bowl making sure to get the edges, etc. Then spray some vinegar in the bowl to activate that chemical reaction. Let it sit for 15-30 minutes depending on the severity of stains. Then scrub with a toilet brush and enjoy a sparkling clean toilet! Told you it was easy! 

Obviously, this isn't a recipe you'd mix up and store in a spray bottle for future use. I did fill a spray bottle with white vinegar though to make this process easier. I also plan to use the vinegar spray bottle in the laundry room to help remove difficult stains. 

I created some more labels for these three products so they'd match my previous ones. 

I highly encourage you to try these three formulas out. They will save you a ton of money and are friendly to the environment and work just as well (if not better) than the store-bought chemical filled versions.

Do you have additional green cleaning formulas you'd like to share?