DIY Cleaning Product Recipes

Laundry Detergent for a year:

1 (4 lb 12 oz) Box of Borax- Found in the detergent aisle
1 (3 lb 7 oz) Box of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda- Found in the detergent aisle
1 (3 lb) Container of OxyClean- Found in the detergent aisle. (This is optional but I highly recommend adding it)
2 (14.1 oz) Bars of Zote Soap, grated- Found in the detergent aisle (You can order this online if your store doesn't carry it like mine, or you can also use Fels Naptha if you don't want to order it)
1 (4 lb) Boxes of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda- Found in the cooking aisle (You could also get 2 2 lb. boxes, if you cannot find the 4lb. box)
1-2 (55 oz) Bottle of Purex Crystals Fabric Softener- Found in the detergent aisle (totally optionally, but if you like your towels to be soft, get this)
1 (5 gallon) bucket with lid- because it's going to make a lot!

The longest part is grating the soap, but once it's done, you will fill gratifying that you are saving on laundry detergent for a year (or more!). I poured each item one at a time in the bucket, starting with borax, then the washing soda, baking soda, oxyclean (if you are using it), purex crystals (again, if you are using it), then I grated the soap. Once everything was in the bucket, I put the lid on it and had my husband turn it and shake it for me to mix everything together. If you have a long wooden spoon (and I mean long!) you can use that to mix everything up. Once everything is mixed, I poured the mixture in the purex crystal bottles (I purchased two of them). This recipe is great, especially if you like your clothes to smell nice!

**Review: Greatest detergent ever! I have made this twice already. The second time, I omitted the OxyClean and used the Gain pellets instead of the Purex as my husband's uniforms will get ruined if I use fabric softener.

Oven Cleaner #1:

1 Tbsp of Borax
1/2 cup vinegar
1/8 cup dish soap (I used Dawn, original blue)
1 cup boiling water
baking soda for sprinkling

Combine borax, vinegar, dish soap, and water in spray bottle and shake well. Sprinkle baking soda inside your oven, then spray a thick layer over the baking soda. You can sprinkle more baking soda ontop of that, but I don't see the functionality of doing that, so I didn't. Let set for 4 hours (you can do overnight, but it works about the same waiting 4 hours) and wipe with a hot wet rag, or sponge.

**Review: This works good, but takes a lot of time to clean out all the baking soda.

Oven Cleaner #2 (preferred method):

1 cup Ammonia

1-2 cups boiling water

Preheat oven to 200, while the oven is preheating, boiling the water. Once the oven reaches 200, turn it off. Place the cup of ammonia into an oven safe bowl and place on highest rack. Place the pot of boiling water (lid off) on the lower rack. Close oven door and leave over night. The next morning, open the oven to let it air out for at least 15 minutes and remove the ammonia, water, and racks. Now you have two ways to "wipe out" the oven.

Option 1:
use a hot wet sponge sprinkled with baking soda

Option 2:
Save the ammonia and add a couple squirts of dawn and 4 cups of warm water.

Which ever option you choose, be sure to use heavy duty cleaning gloves as both the ammonia and baking soda can irritate your skin very easily!

**Review: I have done option 2 and it worked pretty well. Review for option 1 will come after I have used it.

"Febreze":

1/8 cup fabric softener (your preferred smell)

2 Tbsp baking soda

hot water

spray bottle

Combine fabric softener and baking soda in a spray bottle. I used an empty febreze bottle I had lying around. Fill the rest of the bottle with hot tap water then shake well.

**Review: Not too fond of the homemade febreze. Everything did not mix well at all and it left the furniture feeling grimy.**

Countertop Cleaner:

1/2 cup bleach

1 gallon of water

spray bottle

Instead of using those clorox cleaning wipes for your countertops, try using this cleaner instead. Add 1/2 cup of bleach to one gallon of water. The tall spray bottles are typically a gallon.

**Review: One of my most favorite countertop cleaners! Works wonders on even the toughest stains.

Window/Mirror Cleaner:

1oz of Ammonia (2 Tbsp)

4oz of Rubbing Alcohol (8 Tbsp)

1 drop of  laundry detergent (optional)

spray bottle

water

combine ammonia, rubbing alcohol, and detergent if you are using it, in a spray bottle. Fill the rest of the bottle with water. It's streak free :)

**Review: coming soon

Soft Scrub:

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup dish soap

1 2/3 cup baking soda

2 Tbsp vinegar

**Review: coming soon

"No-scrub" Tub/Shower Cleaner:

**Warning: VERY Strong smelling!**

1/2 cup cleaning grade vinegar, warmed up (found by the regular vinegar, or sometimes near the cleaning products)

1/2 cup dish soap

As long as it's a 1:1 ratio, I don't think it matters how many cups you use for each. I did a cup of each with still some left over for later use.

Make sure to heat up the vinegar at 90 seconds. Carefully add the vinegar and dish soap (I used Dawn Original Blue) into a spray bottle. Shake gently to mix. Spray tubs and showers, let stand at least 1 hour, then swipe away with a rag. *For best results, be sure to RINSE the tub/shower after you wipe the mixture off. It is very sudsy, but it actually does a really good job of getting the rest of the soap scum, etc. off that you might have missed when wiping. Also, I would do a 2:1 ratio (more vinegar, less soap) if you don't want a lot of suds.*

**Review: I know it says that it's a "no-scrub," but I did have to use a little elbow grease on the sides where the "ring" had accumulated. 

Microfiber Couch Cleaner:

vinegar

water

couple squirts dawn (original blue)

It doesn't matter how much vinegar and water you use, but be sure they are equal parts. Put everything into a spray bottle and shake until dawn is mixed into the vinegar and water well. Spray couch well and use a bristle brush (like one for a bath tub) to scrub where you sprayed. Next use an old white towel and rub the area some more (this will definitely show you how dirt your couch really is). Let it dry completely then vacuum so the microfiber isn't stiff.

**Review: I found this recipe through pinterest and it seems to be very popular among the crowd. This works really well, especially when potty training a toddler! It makes the couches look brand new.

Stain Remover:

Hydrogene peroxide

Dawn (original blue)

Use equal parts peroxide and Dawn. Shake well. Spray stain on clothes. Rub it in and let it set for a little bit (usually wait for the next load of laundry) before washing. For the tougher stains, use an old toothbrush and some backing soda to scrub it.

**Review: Works wonders when getting stains out of white clothes that your children wear! Even for the unsightly menstrual stains.

Fridge Door Tray Cleaner:

Vinegar

toothbrush

Dawn (original blue)

This cleaner is for that little tray where you dispense ice and water. Remove your little tray from the door. Pour enough vinegar to cover the tray (you don't need a lot of it, trust me!), let set for a couple of minutes, then dump the vinegar. Put a little bit of dawn on your toothbrush and scrub the tray. Wash out with warm water.

**Review: Even the littlest things gets clean at my house, and this recipe, by far, is a great little secret for keeping that darn tray clean! Be sure to keep scrolling when you click the hyper link for this recipe.

Microwave Cleaner:

1 cup vinegar

1 cup hot water

Pour 1 cup of vinegar into a two cup glass measuring cup (pyrex makes these) then pour 1 cup of hot water into the measuring cup. Microwave the liquid for about 10 minutes. Let it rest, then carefully take out the measuring cup (use an oven mitt). Wipe down with a wet cloth or sponge. If you worry about the liquid exploding on you, put a wooden spoon or wooden drink stirring stick in the measuring cup while it's microwaving.

*Review: I think everybody knows this little cleaning trick so I won't say too much. It works great and is very easy to use. You don't have to worry about any hard scrubbing.

Carpet Cleaner for Steam Cleaners:

2 tablespoons ammonia

1 teaspoon dish soap (it says any kind, but I stick with the dawn original)
2 cups rubbing alcohol
a few drops of essential oils (optional; I used Lavender and Vanilla)

Combine the above ingredients in an empty gallon sized milk or juice container, and fill it up the rest the way with water. Use this solution just like you would use any steam cleaning solution. This mixture is not concentrated, so don't add any more water to it when you put it in the machine. 

*Review: I have not used this solution yet on my carpets. I used a different mixture that I threw together as I did not have any more cleaning solution. I cannot wait to try this out! You can also use it as an all purpose cleaner for mopping floors and cleaning bathrooms. I am still trying to get rid of my other "commercial" cleaners I had bought before I made the switch to DIY cleaners. I will update it once I get the chance to use it!