Homemade Cleaner With Vinegar That Smells Nice!

With spring cleaning top of mind, It’s time I shared my homemade cleaner recipe with vinegar! It’s a very easy DIY cleaner recipe with apple cider vinegar and essential oils such as Lemon and sweet orange essential oil. Plus guess what? You can make it in 5 minutes,  it smells nice and works very well!

Check my before and after photos below if you don’t believe me! And please don’t mind the dirt you will see, I let it go that bad at home to prove you that a natural homemade cleaner with vinegar works as well as commercial cleaning products. You realize the things I do for you, haha?!

Let’s make the switch to a more natural and safer alternative with my homemade cleaner recipe.

My Homemade Cleaner Ingredients

• Apple cider vinegar
  

  Obtained by fermenting apple juice, apple cider vinegar is one of nature’s best cleaning agents and can remove even the toughest of stains.

• Lemon essential oil
  

  Cold-pressed from lemon peels, lemon essential oil is a natural disinfectant that helps eliminate fungus and mold.

• Sweet orange essential oil
  

  Packed with antifungal and antibacterial properties, sweet orange essential oil helps remove grease and grime from surfaces.

• Thyme essential oil (optional)Thyme essential oil is an excellent antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral essential oil, it has a sweet herbal aroma that will also help mask the vinegar smell.

How to infuse Vinegar with orange and lemon peels to remove the smell

• Lemon peels and orange peels
  

  Soaking these peels with the mixture for a week in a mason jar and it will add a lovely citrusy fragrance to it.

How does vinegar work for cleaning?

The acetic acid in vinegar is what makes it such an excellent cleaning agent. Its low pH helps break down even the most stubborn of stains, grease, scum buildup, and other debris from your household surfaces, making it an effective natural cleaner. On top of that, the acidic nature of vinegar lends its mild disinfectant properties. While it won’t be effective against some harmful pathogens like salmonella, it does work to inhibit the growth of certain bacteria.

How to use this homemade cleaner?

Here’s what you can do with your homemade cleaner

• Touch jobs such as cleaning sink, bathtubs, toilets
• Cleaning windows or mirrors
• Disinfecting surfaces such as kitchen counters, tables, shelvings.

Simply spray or apply the homemade cleaner on the surface you want to clean, then wipe.

If this is a bathtub or toilet bowl, leave the vinegar cleaner on for a few minutes before scrubbing with a sponge and then rinsing.

How to reduce the vinegar smell?

I’ve yet to meet a person who doesn’t hate the smell of vinegar. Luckily, you can still benefit from the cleaning magic that vinegar has to offer without subjecting your household to its icky smell. All you need to do is tone down the cleaning mixture with essential oils such as lemon essential oil and sweet orange essential oil.

If you have the time and patience, you can also infuse the vinegar with organic lemon peels and orange peels and let the mixture sit for 3 to 4 days, after which you’ll strain.

Why make your own homemade cleaner?

Shopping for home cleaning supplies is no easy task. You’ll go to the department store and be overwhelmed to find aisle after aisle flooded with cleaning agents, and all claiming to be miracle workers.

What these commercial cleaners fail to properly advertise, though, are the cocktails of toxic chemicals included in their composition. As such, there is a degree of health risk associated with them.

Instead of raking the supermarket shelves for the perfect cleaner, make your own at home, with the help of a few simple ingredients from your kitchen. Not only is it extremely easy to make, it’s also way cheaper and you get total control over the ingredients.

DIY homemade cleaner Before and after photos

Proof that my homemade cleaner with vinegar and essential does work!

My shower window before and after applying my homemade vinegar….

My bathroom sink tiles before and after applying my DIY bathroom cleaner!

Are commercial cleaning products dangerous?

Here’s a list of the most common compounds that you’ll find in your cleaning products:

Phthalates: Commonly included in fragrant cleaning agents, these compounds are absorbed either through inhalation or through direct contact with skin and can affect the liver, kidneys, lungs, and reproductive system.

Ammonia: Exposure to low concentrations of ammonia over long periods can drastically increase the risk of developing chronic bronchitis and asthma.

Chlorine: A respiratory irritant – exposure to chlorine has been linked to developing asthma or allergies, plus a host of other health problems, including cancer and coronary heart disease.

Sodium hydroxide: Commonly known as “lye”, sodium hydroxide is a powerful irritant and corrosive agent. It can cause severe burns and even permanent damage to skin tissue.

PERC: Perchloroethylene, or PERC, is a possible carcinogenic compound. Even the most minimal of exposure to it can cause dizziness, drowsiness, nausea, whereas prolonged exposure can cause adverse neurological effects.

Ditch the toxic commercial cleaners and opt for natural alternatives for a safer and healthier household. Happy cleaning adventures to you!