Cleaning Recipes

Cleaning Recipes

Ok my Green cleaning alchemists... Get your measuring bowls, bottles and ingredients ready...

I've made a handy dandy downloadable printable - business card size - So you can either print it on paper or print it out on card stock, snip, cut and stick in a business card holder... Easy peasy reference cards

Homemade Cleaner Recipe cards

But now for the recipes... 

We'll start with my dailys :

All Purpose Disinfectant Spray

4 Tbsp. Vinegar

2 Tsp    Borax

10-20 Drops EO's

1/4 Tsp Dawn

Hot water 

Combine Vinegar, Borax & Dawn in a bottle.  Add hot water until almost full, swish to dissolve Borax, add EO's.  Shake Before Use

Window Cleaner

1/2 C Vinegar

1 Tbsp Rubbing Alcohol (Optional)

2 C. Water

Mix up ingredients into a spray bottle, Shake and Use

Wood Cleaner

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

1/4 C Vinegar

1 3/4 C Water

Essential Oil (10-20 drops)

Add olive oil, vinegar & water to bottle - Shake before use 

Ok but Off to do the family thing... I'll be back shortly bwa ha ha ha and Happy Cleaning... 

Ingredients & Cost comparisons

So down to the nitty gritty - 

The cost comparison - My cleaners would be replaced every 4-6 weeks.  Yes I clean A L O T.  So that's a lot of money and a lot of chemicals getting used daily... 

Soooo In my researching - I have found the ingredients list - If you have these things on hand you can just about make any cleaner you can think of... Although the Ingredients usually last 2-3 months even with the amount I CLEAN... For Essention Oils (EO's) - There are a few great ones to have on hand and I'll get to that in a little bit - but first the breakdowns and then - the Recipes!!!!!

Store Bought Cleaners	Cost	Oz.		Ingredients	Cost	Oz	Cost/Oz
Mr. Clean - Antibacterial	2.97	40		Dawn Dish Soap - Blue	2.97	48	.06
Windex - Original	2.87	32		Borax	3.38	76	.04
Soft Scrub w Bleach	3.87	36		Baking Soda	2.24	64	.04
Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner - Lime & Rust	3.81	24		Arm & Hammer Washing Soda	3.24	55	.06
Swifter - Antibacterial	5.22	42.2		Vinegar	1.50	128	.01
Pledge - Dust & Allergen	3.97	9.7		Rubbing Alcohol	1.48	32	.05
Febreeze Fabric - Allergen	4.97	27		Hydrogen Peroxide	.88	32	.03
Febreeze - Air	3.97	9.7		Olive Oil	6.38	17	.38
Total:	31.65			Castile Soap - any scent	16.19	32	.51
				Tea Tree EO (Drops not oz)	7.97	2	.01
				Lavender EO (Drops not oz)	7.27	1	.02
				Total:	53.50

So what I did was made a spreadsheet with the measurments of all the cleaner recipes, and broke it down so you can see what it really costs to make a bottle of cleaner... Mr Clean - .32 - Windex .09, wood cleaner .47 yes dahhhhlings that's PER bottle.  See for yourself ~~~~> Homemade cleaner cost Breakdown 

If you look over there... I have made a page for the Cleaner recipes I use on a daily/weekly basis and will add the new ones I try out over time... Hey this is an ever evolving process - but here we go - Alchemists get your measuring bowls ready...