Your Environmentally Friendly Cleaning Toolbox

Keeping your home clean doesn't have to rely on using harsh, environmentally damaging chemicals.  You can use many safe substances you probably have around your house as cleaners and also recycle items as cleaning tools.

Please Note:  With all of these ingredients, test first on inconspicuous areas.  Also, wear rubber gloves if you have sensitive skin.  If a rash develops, wash well in cold water.  Other than obvious food type ingredients, please don't allow  in your mouth... or eyes.

Salt
The granular formation of salt helps scour.  I use this regularly on my stove top and it works well.  It is also a disinfectant.

Bicarbonate of Soda (aka carb soda, bicarb, baking soda)
Absorbs odours and spills.  Place in an open container in your fridge to absorb fridge smells, sprinkle on your carpet and vacuum, add to cat litter in litter trays.  Mix with vinegar or lemon juice for a nice cleaning 'fizz'!

Borax
Multi benefits such as removing stains and grease, deodorising, disinfecting and inhibiting mould.  Although any toxcicity from borax quickly dissipates in the environment, please be careful and do not allow it in your mouth!

Washing Soda
Good stain remover, degreaser and water softener.

Dishwashing Liquid
This cleans more than dishes!  You can use this alone as a cleaner for all kinds of things, or mix with salt or bicarb.  Mix some with water and put in a spray bottle as your own mild spray on cleaner.  Make sure you find an environmentally friendly dishwashing liquid.

Soap Scraps
Keep the remnants of your environmentally friendly soap and grate it to make soapy cleaning flakes.  Dissolve soap bits in a little hot water to make a thick cleaning cream gel.

Toothpaste

Toothpaste is a mild abrasive cream, plus leaves a pleasant minty scent.

Soda water
Use on carpets.  The bubbles help raise the stain to the surface, where it can more easily be removed.  Also helps eliminate odour.

Potato
Cut a potato in half and dip in carb soda.  Use this to remove rust by rubbing the potato on the rusty area.

Grapefruit
Once again, cut in half.  Sprinkle with salt.  Use to scrub limescale, then rinse.

Bananas
Use the inside of a banana skin to spot clean leather, then wipe with damp rag.

Lavender Oil
Great as an anti-bacterial agent and for deterring mildew... with a lovely scent to boot!

Eucalyptus & Tea Tree Oils
Removes sticky substances brilliantly.  Natural disinfectants.

Essential Oils
Can be added to various other cleaning agents to add a delightful scent to your room and many also have mild disinfectant properties.

Vanilla
A great safe natural substance for wiping out your fridge.  Put a few drops in warm water and wipe over surface.  No need to rinse.


Old Toothbrushes
Excellent little scrubbing brushes for hard to reach or tight areas.

Orange Bags
Knot up into a suitable scourer size.  Great for scrubbing bathtubs.

Body Cleaning Equipment
You can also use old nail brushes, personal body cleaning sponges, poufs etc as cleaning tools, once it's time to replace them.