Homemade Non-Toxic Cleaners – Floors, Counters, Tubs & More!

Where is a good place to buy essential oils ? Or a good website that anyone recommends? Thanks!

I make a bleach alternative with peroxide, lemon juice, white vinegar and water...it doesn't whiten like regular chlorine bleach, but it does disinfect...and I feel safer using it around my kids and pet.

Does anyone have something that just works great for toilets? My daughter needs something to use and I would love for it to be natural. I have tried baking soda before, and maybe we just need for her to learn to scrub harder... but just wondering. Thanks

I use a similar recipe to the one from the website except mine calls for 2 cups water, 1/2 c vinegar, 3/4 c hydrogen peroxide, 1 teaspoon castile soap, 20 drops tea tree oil and another 20 drops of essential oil (optional). I love this cleaner. I mix it with baking soda to make a paste for scrubbing sinks, and I spray it on the counters, bathrooms etc. for other cleaning. Its from the book Gorgeously Green.

I live in an area that has hard water....Unfortunately, natural soaps and essentials oils for cleaning absolutely does not work. These ingredients will not rinse away in hard water. I would recommend exploring using this basic recipe for general household cleaning: 2 cups distilled water 1 teaspoon borax (works better than baking soda) 2 Tablespoons of white vinegar Warm water to warm in microwave, add borax and stirr to dissolve, add vinegar....Put in a clean spray bottle. Spray surface, wipe off, rinse and dry....OPTIONAL: a pinch of dishsoap (greener type) Please note: Borax can be posionous if ingested....Keep all cleaning products away from children and pets!

I also use baking soda and vinegar to open and deodorize the drains. I pour a handful of baking soda and a cup of vinegar down the drains. When the bubling stops, pour hot water. Repeat this until water runs freely down the drains. I also use vinegar to clean and shine mirrors, glasses and chrome.

I use baking soda and water to scrub my sinks and showers, then pour vinegar over it to make it bubbly (foamy). Once the bubbles go down the drain, I rinse thoroughly. This not only cleans the sinks and showers, it cleans the drains as well. Additionally, it leaves them smelling fresh and squeaky clean! You can add vinegar (1 cup or so) to the rinse cycle instead of fabric softener. This environmentally friendly solution leaves no residue on your clothes, like most fabric softeners. There may be a faint vinegar smell if you don’t get the laundry totally dry. You can also hang dry in the sun (weather permitting).

I try to use only natural cleaners as well, thanks for the tips. I now see that I was not using baking soda to it's full potential. I also use peroxide to get a nice "whitening" effect on my counters, floors, etc.

I found that if you place a paper towel soaked in vinegar on spills in your oven while it is still warm for about thirty minutes, you can simply wipe up the spill with a damp dish cloth. It's much better than scrubbing with soap pads or using toxic oven cleaner. It's works great for self-cleaning ovens, too.