#nontox

Me and my friend Phoenix made a new server, that’ll be replacing my own

JOIN IF INTERESTED! It’s tbhk themed, but everyone is welcome!

https://discord.gg/TSHFduNp

There are many ways to approach all purpose cleaners. Technically you could use just water to clean something. As long as there's no grease or dirt particles on something it is clean, but that doesn't mean we should really be comfortable with that level of clean 😂 I use vinegar most often because it's the most simple, but I have a few recipes to choose from.

Vinegar Cleaner:

This really is the most simple option, but that doesn't mean it doesn't work extremely well!

1 part Vinegar (I love infused vinegar)

1 part Water

15 drops Essential Oil (optional, if using infused vinegar you may not find this necessary)

Castile Soap Cleaner:

If you don't feel like things are clean without a bit of soap this recipe is perfect for you! It's still incredibly simple to make.

2 cup Filtered Water

2-4 tablespoons Castile Soap

15 drops of whatever essential oil (optional, if you buy a scented castile soap you might not find this necessary)

These are great cleaners for basic cleaning to get the grime off, but neither have real sanitizing power. Isopropyl alcohol (also called rubbing alcohol) is amazing for disinfecting.

Disinfecting Cleaner:

This is great for cleaning with a bit of disinfecting power, but this is also an amazing glass cleaner!

1 cup Filtered Water

1/2 cup Vinegar

1/2 cup Isopropyl Alcohol

Personally I don't love the ingredients in most conventional cleaning products. They generally have artificial fragrance and other endocrine disrupters and things you don't really want to be breathing in. For the last year I have been making most of my own cleaning products and in addition to being healthier, I've noticed I save money doing this as well. I want to share some of my favorite recipes for cleaning products, but there are definitely things you need to know about the different ingredients first so I'm sharing this first.

Vinegar- Vinegar is an amazing all purpose cleaner for tables, counters, any surfaces that aren't natural stone like marble or granite. I also love using it for washing produce and replacing fabric softener (no your fruit won't taste like vinegar and your clothes won't smell like it). It can effectively remove some pesticide residue, as well as help the produce last longer. Some recipes you find online recommend mixing vinegar with baking soda or castile soap-neither of these should be mixed with vinegar. Both baking soda and castile soap have a basic pH, while vinegar is acidic. Mixing baking soda and vinegar makes a cool chemical reaction, but you're left with fancy salt water. Mixing it with castile soap basically unsaponifies the soap, making it completely useless as well. If you want to add some scent to your vinegar you can add citrus peels or pine needles to it and let them sit for a few weeks before straining. NEVER mix vinegar with bleach or hydrogen peroxide. Vinegar and bleach makes chlorine gas, vinegar and hydrogen peroxide makes peracetic acid. Both of these are extremely dangerous.

Baking Soda- Baking soda is a great abrasive for scrubbing, and a great deodorizer. I use baking soda on my glass top stove, scrubbing my toilets, scrubbing the shower, anywhere I need extra scrubbing help. As I mentioned before it shouldn't be mixed with vinegar because they cancel each other out. I do like using it with castile soap for bathroom cleaning though.

Castile soap- Castile soap has soooo many uses. If you've ever looked at a bottle of Dr Bronner's you've seen the huge list of things they recommend it for. It shouldn't be mixed with vinegar, but castile soap can leave behind some soap scum if you have hard water so rinsing with a vinegar/water mix after use is often recommended. I like using it in the bathroom as well as dish and hand soap (I wouldn't put this in your dishwasher though, hand washing only with this).

70% Isopropyl Alcohol- Also known as rubbing alcohol, 70% isopropyl alcohol is a great disinfectant. When using it you need to make sure you're using 70%. This is a standard dilution you can get at the store, but many people don't realize how important the dilution percentage is. If you mix it with water there won't be enough alcohol to disinfect, and if you use higher than 70% there's too much alcohol and it will evaporate before it can do it's job. I use this all over my house from the kitchen, to the bathroom, to disinfecting my nail supplies after doing an at home manicure. It also works amazingly as a glass cleaner.

Washing your produce before you eat it is so important. I know it's an extra step we'd rather just skip, but there can be so much crap on your fruit and vegetables due to how many people have handled them before you bought them. I use either baking soda or vinegar to wash mine (do not mix them or you'll just have salt water!). Both of them have been shown to reduce pesticide residue on produce.

Using Vinegar:

I usually do this for small things like berries and grapes because when combined with storing in a glass jar I find my berries lasting at least two weeks with no mold.

1 cup Vinegar

4 cups Filtered Water

Let produce soak for about 10 minutes.

Using Baking Soda:

This is what I do the most because it's right in my kitchen cupboard and I keep my vinegar in my laundry closet since I use it to replace fabric softener lol.

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

2 cups Filtered Water

I try to mop my floor at least weekly. Avoid using steam mops on laminate, it can ruin the flooring. Swiffer mops are convenient, but the solution they use tends to build up and attract more dirt. I think there are brands that make their own version that you can refill now, and that would be fine if you're using a good cleaner. I use vinegar diluted in filtered hot water in an OCedar spin mop and love it. You can also use 70% Isopropyl alcohol if you want a little bit stronger of a disinfectant.

Vinegar:

1/2 cup Vinegar

1 gallon Warm Water

Alcohol:

1 cup 70% Isopropyl Alcohol

I love this for my entire bathroom! For toilets I'm lazy and just sprinkle in some baking soda and drizzle in some castile soap and call it good since there's already water in the bowl lol.