Homemade.
I love being able to make my own cleaning supplies. Looking up different recipes and trying different mixtures never gets old to me - it's something I find myself looking forward to sometimes! I first read about all of these homemade house cleaners several years ago, and if I'm honest my grandmother has always told me how great it was to clean with vinegar. The problem was always that I hated the smell, I was young and single and all I really wanted was the strongest and fastest cleaner imaginable! Looking back on it now I was so incredibly blind to what's really out there! I've figured out a recipe that not only cuts the smell but also works just as well (if not better than) products from the store.
Behold, Citrus Cleaner! All you need is a few lemons (I used 5, but add or subtract more for scent), a few oranges (same deal as the lemons - more or less for desire), a jug of vinegar and a container (I used a mason jar but any jar/jug/container with a lid will do!).
As you can tell I'm horrible with a camera so I don't have a pic for every step, but it's a pretty simple project so fear not!
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Printable coming soon!
INGREDIENTS:
3+ lemons
1+ orange
2 cups vinegar (not an exact measurement, I just poured from the jug into the jar.)
Jar or container
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Optional: 1-2 tsp. Baking soda or Borax. I don't always do this step, but it does help to boost the cleaning power when I do!
1. Wash all of the lemons and oranges
thoroughly (I can't stress that enough! Have you seen what's in some of the pesticides used?).
2. Cut all of the lemons and oranges take out as many seeds as you can (I've found that cutting them into wedges makes it easier to locate the seeds.)
3. *Optional. I slightly juiced the lemonsinto a separate container for lemonade. (Try rolling the citrus on counter top first to loosen the juices. You can also microwave them for about 10 seconds to make them easier to juice.)
4. Put all of the pieces of cut up citrus into your mason jar. When filling jars, it's all up to you how much citrus to use. I like to lightly pack the citrus to the top of the jar, but filling about 1/4 to1/2 full will do as well.
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Optional: Now is when you would also pour in the baking soda or borax.
5. Pour vinegar on top of citrus until there's about an inch left until the top of the jar.
6. Screw lid on tightly and shake it up!
7. Slightly unscrew the lid to allow for gases to leak out.
This cleaner is so versatile, it's absolutely my favorite frugal cleaning project! When you are ready to use, just mix a teaspoon or two with water. I generally like to use 2 teaspoons per gallon of water when cleaning floors and about a teaspoon in a spray bottle filled with water. There are so many other uses for this stuff... I smell a new blog post coming soon! ;)
Just a few notes: Our 6 year old loves eating lemons and would eat them raw if we would let him, so I squeezed most of the lemon juice into the lemonade jug. I also love having lemon juice in the fridge for all the little things that come up!
Also, the longer this stuff sits in a dark and dry area, the more potent it becomes, so I like to use an entire jug of vinegar and tear up the citrus pieces a little more and shove them through the top of the jug, directly into the vinegar (be sure to pour some vinegar out first or you will over spill. Ask me how I know ;) ). I've heard of people letting this stuff sit for up to 6 months months! I can never wait that long, which is why it's so great to make in the jug. You need a very small amount, so I just store it and use it as I go. It takes the vinegar smell right out!
If you look closely at the picture below you can see that I left the lid slightly unscrewed to allow all of the gases to escape. When I make them in separate jars I like to store them on a shelf as decoration. :)
Doesn't it seem so much cleaner already?
Here are the filled jars, before shaking:
& when we were done we had 2 jars of cleaner & a whole lot of lemony-sweet lemonade!
