Easy to make, cheaper than regular, store bought cleaner and SO much better for your health AND the environment...safe for the whole family and a total WIN!
It's no mystery that typical household cleaning products are extremely toxic. Most contain ingredients like formaldehyde, bleach, ammonium hydroxide and artificial colors that are known to cause cancer, infertility and respiratory disease. And even worse...did you know that it's not even required by law that the companies that make these products disclose the ingredients?
Say whaaatt??!?? How is that even possible??
Don't be fooled by brands that claim to be "green " or "all natural" either. Most contain extremely toxic ingredients as well and just use the "green" label to fool and manipulate consumers. I hate to sound the alarm bell here and be THAT person, but this stuff is LETHAL and we use it day in and day out on our floors, furniture, dishes and clothes. And why? Because we've been brainwashed to believe that these are the only things that will work to keep our homes clean. We think that homemade products take too long to make, are a pain in the you-know-what (because...let's be honest...we're lazy) and probably don't work. Right?
WRONG!
Couldn't be more wrong. DIY all purpose cleaner takes less than 30 seconds to make (less than 30 seconds!) and works JUST as well as it's cancer causing, brain damaging, lung compromising counterparts.
Worth it?
Ummm...yeah pretty much.
It's also way cheeper to make yourself and it's so much better for the environment. No water treatment plants can totally rid our water of the toxic ingredients found in regular household cleaners...meaning that stuff goes into our ground water affecting our soil, our oceans, our animals and plant life...making our planet sick and toxic. It doesn't just disappear into the abyss once it goes down the drain, just like the plastic bottles that it comes packaged in don't just POOF, disappear once we throw them into the trash.
My hope is that YOU lovely readers will take into consideration what you're spraying all over your homes just as much as the care you put into the food on your plates. Perhaps if we consumers stop buying these toxic, lethal products, the companies that make them will get the message and actually clean up their act, creating products that are safe for us to use. Now isn't that a wild idea??!?
Regardless of what those companies do or don't do though, the power is in OUR hands to keep ourselves, our families and our environment safe.
Below is my super simple DIY Non-Toxic All Purpose Cleaner that can be made 2 ways. Each with 3 ingredients (most of which you probably already have). Takes less then 30 seconds and WORKS! Use distilled water to prevent bacteria growth.
*Optional...you can add a little rubbing alcohol or vodka to increase germ killing power, though really not necessary since the lemon, and sal suds (or vineger...depending on which one you're making) will very effectively do the job! They have immense antibacterial properties AND the lemon smells great!
The BEST DIY Non-Toxic All Purpose Cleaner: 2 WAYS
What You'll Need:
Distilled White Vinegar
16 oz. Reusable Glass Spray Bottle (I ordered mine off Amazon)
Distilled Water
Lemon or Orange Essential Oil . I like citrus but you could also use tea tree, peppermint, bergamot, eucalyptus or basil. Thrive market is a great place to shop online for essential oils.
Fresh Lemon Juice (optional)
How to Make With Sal Suds (can be used on all surfaces including marble and granite):
add 1 tblspn of Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds to glass bottle.
add 20-30 drops of either lemon or orange essential oil to glass bottle.
fill up with distilled water, seal and shake to blend ingredients.
How to Make with Vinegar (CANNOT be used on marble or granite):
add 1 cup Distilled White Vinegar to spray bottle
`add 1 cup Distilled Water to spray bottle
add 1/2 lemon juiced (optional)
add 20-30 drops lemon or orange essential oil
seal bottle and shake to blend ingredients
And that's it! I've been using reusable microfiber towels to cut down on waste as well which can be easily ordered off Amazon. I'll be posting recipes for other typical household cleaners soon so stay tuned!
Tip: You can use a couple tablespoons of Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds for an average load of laundry and as a powerful scouring agent for bathtubs and sinks when mixed with baking soda.
Happy cleaning Loves! Please comment below if you have any other DIY cleaning solutions you love!
From my heart to yours...
