Household Cleaning Products are becoming a major concern for many people. Some may think that the quality of air within their homes is fine; however the Environmental Protection Agency said that the toxic chemicals found in household cleaning products, are more likely to cause cancer than any other air pollutants.
So many people want to clean their homes without using harsh chemicals, but where do they start?
Well the first ingredient that is a must have for anyone's cleaning kit is vinegar. We are talking white vinegar here not the malt vinegar you use on your chips! Nearly everyone has heard how vinegar is great to clean windows, by just making a 50/50 solution with water you can have squeaky clean windows in no time. Spray onto your windows and wipe off with an old rag, some people swear they sparkle more if you wipe off and buff with old newspaper. As vinegar is an acid you can use it to attack lime scale on the taps. Soak vinegar onto cotton wool then wrap around your taps, secure with an elastic band, in a couple of hours the lime scale should just peel off.
Use vinegar as a carpet and stain remover, get a spray bottle and pour in one part vinegar to seven parts water, then spray and blot.
Vinegar is also great in the kitchen, it cuts through grease with ease, great for washing out the oven after cooking but it excels as a multi surface cleaner. A lot of surface cleaners state that they will kill all bacteria, however we need friendly bacteria to keep our immune systems healthy. Vinegar is the perfect solution, mix 50/50 with water and spray onto your surfaces and it will kill bad bacteria but let all the friendly bacteria live on. You can even use vinegar in the dishwasher rinse cycle for sparkling plates every time.
The second ingredient for your cleaning kit is bicarbonate of soda, another product with so many uses. It can be used as a deodoriser in the refrigerator, to deodorise dog baskets, sprinkled on smelly carpets and on upholstery. When you get a blocked drain pour some down it, pour on hot water and watch it fizz, it should soon dislodge the blockage.
If you need to get your laundry softer, especially cotton nappies, pour a cup of bicarbonate soda into your washing, it will soften the fabrics as well as the water.
Remember the softer the water is, then the less lime scale your home will have.
For polishing keep a bottle of olive oil handy. Mix with a couple of drops of white vinegar and this will soak into the wood, nourishing it as well as giving it a lovely shine.
More and more people are boycotting air fresheners as they become aware that the synthetic fragrances are causing head aches, dizziness and depression. Burning essential oils creates a lovely calm atmosphere as well as leaving a subtle fragrance.
You can also put out small bowls of bicarbonate of soda with a couple of drops of lavender oil in each, not only will this leave a fresh fragrance but the bicarbonate will deodorise as well. Get the vase out and fill with fresh cut local flowers or just open the windows, you would be surprised at how many homes just never have the windows opened.
The other two ingredients that I think a natural cleaning kit should have would be lemon juice, as this can be used as a bleach in the laundry. You can mix it with bicarbonate of soda to clean brass, or mix with salt to clean copper, this combination can also remove rust.
The other one is salt which is a mild disinfectant and is a very good scouring ingredient. Mix salt with a couple of drops of lemon juice and it makes a great scrub to clean wooden chopping boards with.
These great alternative ingredients will sparkle your home as well as any chemical laden cleaning product that you can buy from the super-market, they also will not cost you the earth, literally!