Make cleaning products at home and save money

Some of my 2012 resolutions are to reduce my impact on the environment, improve my health, and save money.

When I last cleaned my apartment, I discovered mold growing on the window frames. I suspect my indoor plants succumbed to this mold, as they dyed one after the other. I also have to battle scale buildup caused by hard, mineral-rich water, and easily-clogged drains. The variety of expensive commercial cleaners that I have tried don't seem to help much with these problems and I feel they may contribute to headaches, allergies and sinus issues.

To save some money, and hopefully impact my health a little less, I am switching to more home-made cleaning products in 2012.

I will be making cleaning products from the following products. Most should be found in supermarkets, although I think the oils may be more easily found in pharmacies.

• white vinegar
• bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• methylated spirits
• vanilla essence (alcohol based)
• table salt
• lemons - a staple for cooking
• eucalyptus oil - another staple during the flu season
• lavender oil
• lemon oil
• tea tree oil
• microfibre cloths - these are great for dusting, and cleaning wood or tiled floors
• reusable cotton kitchen cloths instead of throw-away sponges or cloths

I found that pure cotton cleaning cloths for washing dishes or cleaning surfaces worked much better than the sponges, which always smelled and fell apart too quickly. It is important to wash the cloths in hot water regularly (in the washing machine). I try to remember to change high-usage cloths every few days.

These cloths can be used for dish washing, window cleaning, dusting, as well as floor cleaning. There are many floor mops available today using washable cloths instead of disposable sponges.

Microfibre cloths can also be cleaned in the washing machine, but should not be treated with fabric conditioner or they may lose their static dust-catching properties.

I have yet to find a good source of cotton cleaning cloths where I currently live. I will build my collection of re-usable, natural fibre and microfibre cloths this month!

As with commercial cleaning solutions, I feel it is important to air whenever these home-made cleaning solutions are used.

Plus, bringing fresh air into the home regularly is healthier.

Bicarbonate of soda is a staple for baking in my household, and I have found that the open box in the door of the fridge helps with odors.

I also try to clean all the surfaces of the fridge with a solution of 500ml hot water, 1-2 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda, and a few drops of vanilla essence (alcohol based), once each season, as leaves a lovely smell.

1 part white vinegar in 3 parts water, or a little liquid soap on a wet cloth, plus some elbow grease, plus a few drops of lavender or lemon for a light scent, should work well.

I used to use a paste of bicarbonate of soda and water, stand for 10-20 minutes then scrub. This worked wonderfully, and was much cheaper than purchasing commercial scrubs.

However this is not good for porcelain that has been treated to have a water-repellent 'lotus' effect, or for glass stove surfaces, both of which I have. For these surfaces, I will stick to liquid soap or the surface cleaner above, hot water and more elbow grease.

I used white or brown vinegar as a rinse aid in the dishwasher instead of a commercial rinse-aid, when I last had a dishwasher. Much cheaper too! But I don't use a dishwasher now.

A cup of vinegar to a bucket of hot water, or half a cup of methylated spirits in a bucket of hot water are both excellent indoor and outdoor window and mirror cleaning solutions. Newspaper may work better as a cleaning cloth than paper towels or cloth towels, but I prefer to use the squeegee style tools that are easier for me to handle.

Alternatively, I will use a reusable microfibre cloth without any cleaning solutions on less soiled windows and glass surfaces.

For the tiled floor I will use 1 part vinegar in 3 parts hot water with a few drops of eucalyptus, lemon or lavender oil. For the wooden floors, I continue to use the commercial liquid to maintain the seal on the wood, once every 2 months.

At other times I use microfibre clothes to sweep, and a second swipe with a little hot water to clean.

In my current home, I have incredibly hard water. I have found I must treat my appliances every couple of weeks to control the build up of minerals and lime scale. The commercial de-chalking solutions don't seem to work well, so I want to switch.

I will use use 1 part vinegar in 2 parts very hot water to run through my appliances - boil the kettle, use the de-scale cycle on the coffee machine, and as a soaking solution. Occasionally, I have had to chip away at the solid minerals with a spoon or wooden skewer, especially around heating elements.

I need to remember to treat the shower and tap heads more often, these are currently badly blocked. I suspect they require multiple treatments to get the deposits back to a manageable level.

I will use undiluted vinegar with a large dose of elbow grease to scrub the bowl, and do this regularly. Some people have reported better success with bleach-based solutions, but I have trouble with bleach fumes.

100-250ml of white vinegar as a fabric softener removes soap residue on clothes and in the washing machine.

I add a few drops of tea tree, eucalyptus or lavender oil for a subtle fragrance or extra antibacterial power, particularly good during the flu season.

Pure vinegar sprayed on the mildew and grout can be left to sit for a while before it is scrubbed off. A paste of vinegar and bicarbonate of soda, left for 30 minutes then rinsed may also work well.

Recently, to remove the mold/mildew on the windows, I scrubbed the windows and frame with pure methylated spirits and then left them open to dry and air well. This was extremely fume heavy! I will see how well it works in the longer term.

On the exceptionally stubborn stains in grout, then I will use a bleach solution while keeping all windows open, even though I get bad headaches from the fumes.

The commercial drain cleaners do not seem to work well, especially with long hair. So I will be using 1 part each bicarbonate of soda, vinegar and salt instead. Put the salt and soda into the drain then pour over the vinegar. Let this sit for a few hours, then flush with water.

Making your own detergents, soaps, laundry detergents and cleaning solutions may be cost effective, providing you can find the component ingredients cheaply. It is fun, and can be better for those who have allergies to commercial cleaners.

I am not going to start making soaps or detergents at the moment, as I don't have the time, energy and would need to search for ingredients. But I'd love to make my own soaps sometime in the future.

What are your cleaning tips, products or recipes?
How do you save money, health and / or the environment with your cleaning?
Please leave a comment below!