How to clean your house safely and naturally: Amazing natural concoctions for household cleaning!

Are you sick and tired of all the harsh chemical cleaners you are using to clean your house that leave you with a funny smell in your nose and peeling hands?

Yes? Then you've come to the right place!

If you are looking for a gentler way to clean your house, then you must read this information about 14 amazing, all-natural household cleaners.

Once you try these, you will never use anything with chemicals in it, ever again!

Click 'next' to begin learning how to clean your house the natural way!

Use a grapefruit tub scrub

Instead of using a harsh, caustic cleaner to make your bathtub sparkle and smell good, try this instead.

Cut a grapefruit in half, sprinkle each half with salt, and squeeze its juice out onto your bathtub as you clean it.

Then just rinse the bathtub and enjoy the great smell left behind… easy peasy grapefruit squeezee!

Make your own deodorising discs

We’ve all dealt with ‘smelly situations’ in our homes — whether it’s the trash can, garbage chute or baby’s diaper bin — and the way most of us would probably get rid of the offensive smell is to attack it with a harsh chemical such as bleach.

However, there is an effective and all-natural alternative to using harsh chemicals to get rid of smells. You just need to make your own deodorising discs which you can then pop in places which often get smelly.

Here’s how to make them:

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

- 2 cups baking soda

- 1-2 cups distilled water (or use water that has been boiled for 10 minutes)

- Lavender or citrus essential oil

- Silicone mold or muffin pan

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO

- Add 3 to 4 drops of essential oil to approximately 1/2 cup water.

- Pour the water/oil mixture into the baking soda and mix well.

- Continue to add water until you have a thick paste.

- Divide the mixture into your molds or muffin tin cups.

- Let the discs dry for 24 to 48 hours, until completely hardened.

- Pop a disc in the bottom of your garbage bin, diaper bin or wherever else needs deodorising — it should last for about a month.

Image and information from ‘one good thing by Jillee’

Get drains unblocked and burnt pans clean — with vinegar and baking soda

We’ve all scrubbed at our burnt pans with strong detergents till our hands ache and the skin on them starts peeling.

Well, we never need to do it again — with a great natural solution that uses just 2 cheap ingredients: white vinegar and baking soda.

All you have to do is fill the bottom of the pan with water, then add a cup of vinegar and boil it. Remove the pan from the heat and add baking soda, then empty and scour as you would normally do.

Another great use for vinegar and baking soda is to unclog drains.

Just pour ½ cup soda, then ½ cup vinegar, down a clogged drain. Cover the top of the drain with a wet cloth, wait 5 minutes, uncover it, and then flush with steaming-hot water.

Try this DIY carpet freshener

Kids and pets can really mess up your carpet. Whether it’s the food your toddler spits out with perfect aim on your lovely carpet, or the massive amounts of fur from your dog who just loves rolling on your rug, carpets can really take a beating.

Here’s a very simple way of refreshing your carpet or rug without chemicals.

You will need:

- 1 cup baking soda

- 10-20 drops essential oils of choice (lemon, sweet orange and eucalyptus might be nice options for your home)

Then just place all ingredients into a glass jar and shake.

Depending on the type and brand of essential oils you choose, you may need more or less. You can’t go wrong with lavender!

Next, scoop the powder into an empty spice shaker or similar container. You can also drill holes into the lid of a jar. (You need the holes to be big enough for the powder to shake out easily.)

Shake the powder over any carpet spot that is needing a boost of freshness.

Wait about 15 minutes, then vacuum the powder up. Your carpet will smell beautifully fresh right away!

Clean your dishwasher the natural way

Say 'no' to using harsh cleaners or artificial fragrances to take away that musty odour that dishwashers can emit after some time.

Instead, fill a dishwasher-safe bowl or jar with 2 cups of vinegar and set it on the top rack of the dishwasher.

Run through on a hot cycle with no other dishes in the dishwasher — this will clean your dishwasher and take away any odour inside it.

Source: www.wellnessmama.com

Get great-smelling laundry without softener

Put some lavender water into a spray bottle and give your laundry a quick spritz before throwing it into the washer.

Just enough scent will remain after drying to keep it smelling fresh for a long time. If you don’t like the smell of lavender, try your favourite essential oil.

Get rid of mold naturally

Living in the tropics, mold is a problem many of us face, and you might think that cleaning mold with bleach is the only solution. Actually, it’s not — there’s a much gentler, yet as effective, way of getting rid of mold.

You just need to combine 1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide or white vinegar with 1 cup water. Spray on mold and do not rinse.

You could also get rid of mold by spraying it with a solution of 2 teaspoons of tea tree oil and 2 cups of water.

Homemade air freshener without the chemicals

We’ve all had times when we’ve wished the living room or bathroom smelled as fresh as a daisy. So what do we usually do?

We reach for that bottle of air freshener, full of artificial fragrance and chemicals, and spray away.

Well, you don't need to do that anymore. Here’s a way of making your own air freshener spray using just 3 ingredients — the best thing is that it’s all natural!

You need:

- 1 oz gin, vodka or rubbing alcohol

- 6 oz filtered water

- 20 – 40 drops of essential oil (A few suggested oils are: peppermint, jasmine, citrus oils)

Simply mix in a spray bottle and spray around for instant freshness. You can even use it on your son’s or husband’s smelly shoes!

This mix will keep well for at least a month.

Source: www.apartmenttherapy.com

Polish your furniture with olive oil

No more nasty spray on polishes that leave you sneezing because their fumes are so strong, or cause outbreaks of allergies in your family.

Just polish your furniture with a few drops of olive oil and a soft cloth. That’s it. So simple!

Clean your showerhead

We’ve seen that scummy-looking residue that often builds up on showerheads. The only option to clean this is to use a strong cleaner with chemicals, right? Wrong!

All you have to do is fill a plastic bag with white vinegar and then tie the bag around the shower head so that the shower head is immersed in the vinegar.

Leave it on for up to 12 hours then remove it carefully. Pour the vinegar down the drain and your shower head should be clean and free of hard water residue.

Make your own multi-purpose cleaner

We all know the amount of harsh chemicals that are often found in many cleaning products to be used around the house — from cleaners for windows and floors, to bathtubs and sinks — they’re all chock full of chemicals.

Now you can say goodbye to these nasty concoctions and make your own multi-purpose cleaner using 2 cheap and simple ingredients.

Here’s what to do:

Fill a jar with citrus peels (organic if possible) and pour undiluted white vinegar over them.

Leave for a few days (up to 2 weeks) and strain out the vinegar to use as a natural cleaner.

This works as a window cleaner (dilute with water), for mopping floors, or even for disinfecting surfaces.

Source:www.wellnessmama.com

Clean your chopping board the natural way

Is your wooden chopping board in need of a good clean? Do it the natural way!

Here's what you need:

- 1 lemon

- Crystal salt

Start by cutting the lemon in half. You can use one half per side (if you use both sides of your cutting board and are planning on cleaning both sides).

Rub down the cutting board with one half of the lemon (pulp down) and set aside.

Next, cover the cutting board with salt and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.

Finally, use the previous lemon half and rub the salt into the cutting board.

If it starts getting dry, squeeze some juice out of the lemon as you scrub.

Rinse with only water (no soap) and dry.

Repeat on the other side of the chopping board.

Clean your keyboard with sticky tape

Have you looked at your computer keyboard recently? Seen all the dust and grime trapped between the keys?

Well, this little trick makes cleaning your computer keys simple.

Slide a 2½-inch strip of tape between the rows of your keyboard. The adhesive side will remove all dust and crumbs!

Salt as an iron cleaner

You know that yucky, sticky residue that builds up on the flat side of your iron? Here’s a really simple and all-natural way of getting rid of it.

All you need to do is run the hot iron (no steam) over plain paper sprinkled with salt. That’s all. Really!

Written by

Nalika Unantenne

householdnatural remediesnatural cleaning methodshousehold cleaning