Tips from Good Housekeeping that ring true! Sometimes we get overwhelmed from our houses lack of a cleanliness . These tips below can be seen as common sense tips ,but not always followed.
1. Wipe up spills in the refrigerator as soon as you notice them, and if you have time, do the rest of the shelf or any gloppy jar bottoms.
2. Go through just one refrigerator or pantry shelf and toss anything that's past the expiration date, that you'll never use again or that's less than a single serving.
3. Toss the jumble of unused takeout disposable containers, glass jars and condiment packages you've collected.
4. Wipe fingerprints off all the kitchen cabinets.
5. Cut time when polishing the floors: Apply the wax with a long-handled paint roller.
6. As you cook, rinse dirty utensils, pots and pans and put them in the dishwasher. You'll have the kitchen in good order when you sit down to eat, and you'll have less to clean up after dinner.
7. Ease the weekday morning rush by setting the table for breakfast before you go to bed. Put out cereal boxes, sweeteners and other nonperishable items. Prepare the coffeemaker and set the timer.
8. If the dishwasher's not full, add burner covers or small shelves from the refrigerator — anything that needs washing.
9. While you're talking on the phone or waiting on endless hold, clean out five to seven unwanted, unused things from the kitchen junk drawer or pantry or your purse.
Tricks you can do with the magic of vinegar. We use vinegar ourselves on our customers houses.
Harsh cleaners might do the job, but many families told us they didn't like using unknown chemicals. And some wanted to avoid contact with commercial cleaners on sensitive skin or kid's skin.
Since we got so many ideas about natural cleaning solutions, we organized the best tips for easy browsing. Here is what real families are doing to clean their homes, the green way:
Cleaning with Vinegar
1. Wipe up spills in the refrigerator as soon as you notice them, and if you have time, do the rest of the shelf or any gloppy jar bottoms.
2. Go through just one refrigerator or pantry shelf and toss anything that's past the expiration date, that you'll never use again or that's less than a single serving.
3. Toss the jumble of unused takeout disposable containers, glass jars and condiment packages you've collected.
4. Wipe fingerprints off all the kitchen cabinets.
5. Cut time when polishing the floors: Apply the wax with a long-handled paint roller.
6. As you cook, rinse dirty utensils, pots and pans and put them in the dishwasher. You'll have the kitchen in good order when you sit down to eat, and you'll have less to clean up after dinner.
7. Ease the weekday morning rush by setting the table for breakfast before you go to bed. Put out cereal boxes, sweeteners and other nonperishable items. Prepare the coffeemaker and set the timer.
8. If the dishwasher's not full, add burner covers or small shelves from the refrigerator — anything that needs washing.
9. While you're talking on the phone or waiting on endless hold, clean out five to seven unwanted, unused things from the kitchen junk drawer or pantry or your purse.
Tricks you can do with the magic of vinegar. We use vinegar ourselves on our customers houses.
Harsh cleaners might do the job, but many families told us they didn't like using unknown chemicals. And some wanted to avoid contact with commercial cleaners on sensitive skin or kid's skin.
Since we got so many ideas about natural cleaning solutions, we organized the best tips for easy browsing. Here is what real families are doing to clean their homes, the green way:
Cleaning with Vinegar
- To clean the mirror I use vinegar and water.
- To clean the tub, I found that a 40/60 solution of vinegar to hot tap water in the bottom of the tub works well. You let the vinegar/water solution soak for about 15 minutes and then scrub with a brush and drain. Rinse with hot water and done. If you don't like the vinegar smell, don't worry it will go away after you rinse the tub. Happy safe and natural cleaning.
- Put some vinegar in a baggy and use a rubber band to hold it on to the shower head to clean away buildup.
- To keep your plastic shower curtain free of mildew, keep a spray bottle filled with white vinegar and water by the tub. At the end of your shower, spray the shower curtain, especially along the lower edge. You'll be amazed by the difference!
- The cheapest way to mop your kitchen floor is to mix vinegar with water. Buy the large containers and it makes some cheap disinfecting mop water. The vinegar smell will go away when the floor dries.
- Here's how to clean your kitchen cabinets and any woodwork in an inexpensive, green way. Mix equal parts of white vinegar with hot water (you can use less white vinegar if your cabinets are not real dirty, smudged up, greasy prints, etc.) add a few drops of olive oil and use a soft rag to clean. The white vinegar cuts grease and grime effectively and safely and also disinfects. The olive oil leaves a nice shine behind. I also use this mixture to mop my hardwood floors - it leaves them beautiful. It is so easy to use and so very inexpensive.
- We use a spray bottle with plain white vinegar as a kitchen cleaning spray. It's cheap and green. But my favorite part is that it's safe enough for my young daughters to use. So, for less money, I can help train my daughters and get some needed help in the kitchen.
- I use vinegar for everything in the kitchen. It is so easy to use. I clean my stove with it, it cuts the grease very well and I use it to clean my counters and my floors. I double mop my floors but the vinegar first helps cut the grease on the floors from regular cooking troubles.
- Use vinegar on the bathroom floor to get rid of the urine smell if you have small children or your husbands friends are messy or for a cat litter box kept in the bathroom.
- For extreme hard water problems while washing dishes in the dishwasher add 1 cup of distilled vinegar to the rinse cycle. Simply open the door and poor it in. Not only does it correct old spots, but in prevents new ones. It also helps keep the mechanics of the dishwasher free of deposits.
- Tired of wasting money on a special or fancy solution to clean out your coffee pot? Simply use vinegar! Mix part vinegar with part water and run it through like you would if you were actually making coffee (be sure to keep the carafe underneath!). The vinegar combined with the heat will leave your coffee pot like new (and your coffee will taste better too!). P.S. This is also a trick I use when I want to use my coffee pot to make hot water (it removes all the coffee taste that would otherwise be there).
- The simplest way to soften your clothes naturally is to add 1/4-1/2 cup of distilled white vinegar to the rinse cycle. I bought a softener ball and use it strictly for this purpose.
- Add just about 1/4 cup of white vinegar to sheets and towels, shower curtains and other household linens to prevent that mildew smell.
- White vinegar will also whiten your white clothes and it is not as damaging as chlorine bleach. You can use it in every load, not just once a month!