I made up this natural, homemade, all-purpose cleaner recipe years ago. I copied a more expensive cleaner that I really liked. I looked at the other cleaner’s ingredients and realized I had everything it included, so I started making it myself for a fraction of the cost.
The alcohol in this makes it evaporate very quickly. It is the type of cleaner you can spray, wipe, and leave. But I do rinse it off counters that food will touch — such as when kneading bread. 🙂
We use this cleaner for general purpose cleaning throughout the house — kitchen, bathroom, dusting and more! I write the recipe on the side of the bottle so others in the household can make more as needed. We keep one spray bottle in each bathroom and one in the kitchen.
Natural, Homemade, All-Purpose Cleaner
The recipe is so easy. Too easy for a video, perhaps. But since I get requests all the time for what cleaners I use — here you go. See the top for the video recipe and below for the print recipe.
Natural, Homemade, All-Purpose Cleaner
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons rubbing alcohol
- 3 tablespoons liquid soap I usually use my homemade liquid castile
- 30 drops essential oil (1 teaspoon) such as lavender, tea tree, pine, or peppermint
- pure water
Instructions
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Using a funnel, put the first three ingredients into an empty spray bottle.
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Fill to the top with water.
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Use!
Recipe Notes
Let me know how you like it. 🙂
Do you have a favorite homemade, natural cleaner? Please share!
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is that about 2 cups of water?
Tammy — Probably. I’ve never measured the water, though. 🙂
I use a 1:1 ratio of vinegar to water. It works really well (and I love that I can put it on my kitchen counter and it doesn’t matter if it gets on the food – well, other than taste!).
My husband doesn’t like the smell of vinegar, so I’m going to pick up some essential oil to add to it, hopefully it’ll cover the smell enough to make it bearable. At this point I just warn him that I have just sprayed vinegar and not to come close! 🙂 Although he claims to be able to smell it for quite a while afterward!
grapefruit oil has an awesome scent.
I keep a large glass jar of white vinegar under my bathroom sink. Whenever I use a lemon I put the rind in the jar. Every once in a while I take out the spent lemons and start replacing again. I mix this lemon-scented vinegar 1:1 with water in a spray bottle! Just top up vinegar as you use it. Works great!!
That sounds great Wardee. I cannot use alcohol…I wonder if I could sub with vinegar?
SueEllen — I would think so! Give it a try and let me know. 🙂
Vinegar and Castile soap don’t mix – they basically cancel each other out. You can read more here: http://www.liverenewed.com/2012/10/days-green-clean-common-green-cleaning-mistake.html
I am wondering how you make your homemade liquid soap? I am very excited to try this, thank you!
Me too!!!!
Same here!
Always love watching your videos – i really enjoy them!!!
Yes, please!! 🙂
I’m sorry, I haven’t written it up officially yet. Gonna have to do that!
In the meantime, you can see these two blog posts where I linked to the tutorial I followed and shared my progress:
http://suchtreasures.com/2007/04/17/making-liquid-castile-soap-today/
http://suchtreasures.com/2007/04/18/liquid-castile-soap-progress/
I wonder if you have ever measured how many teaspoons/tablespoons 30 drops would be? I dont have a dropper…..
Allison — Good question! 30 drops is 1 teaspoon, at least with liquid rennet. 🙂 I can’t think why it wouldn’t be the same for EOs.
Most essential oils use a smaller dropper. For instance, a 5mL bottle is 1 teaspoon, but most 5mL bottles hold from 70-100 drops of oils, depending on the viscosity of the essential oil. I would start with 1/4-1/2 teaspoon and see if that works.
I make my own spray cleaner too, and use it both at my house and in my classroom. It is 1 cup water, 2 cups vinegar, and about 20 drops of Eucalyptus Essential Oil. I use it on anything that needs disenfecting, which includes kitchen and bathroom surfaces, but also doorknobs, lightswitches, and the phone. Spray and wipe, no rinsing required. I may have to give your recipe a try, too. My students either love the smell of my concoction or hate it, yours might be a little more neutral! 🙂
That sounds great! I have seen some other recipes and never liked them. I currently use diluted castille soap but this sounds better. I wanted to be sure I was disinfecting. Thanks!
I LOVE the idea of writing the recipe on the bottle! Perfect!
I love it! I just made some and it performs wonderfully well. Thank you, Wardee!
I am going to try your alcohol cleaner. I was using vinigar water. I now also use Hydrogen peroxide water in places like the bathroom and floors where my baby crawls around. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Wardee,
Your videos and directions are always so simple and easy to follow! Thanks. I’d like to try this in our home. I did try a similar “recipe” for a spray for the shower each day, and it didn’t work well at all, but for counters, etc., this should work well!
Do you have anything different you use for cleaning toilet bowls?
Julieanne
http://www.JoyInOurJourney.com
I, too, always wonder how others properly (yet naturally) disinfect their toilet bowls! That is the one place I dread [shudder] to clean, probably because I’m a bit OCD. 😉 I would love to know how you do it!
That sounds like a great recipe that I would like to try—-thanks for sharing!
Do you have a source for essential oils that is reasonably priced?
Laura — I purchase mine from Azure Standard or Mountain Rose Herbs. I have not found them exorbitant. As good essential oils are not cheap, these prices seem reasonable to me.
Another good quality source is Heritage Essential Oils. I order from Young Living as well, and found HEO to be on par with quality, and much cheaper on price. I believe the website is http://www.heritageessentialoils.com, but I would suggest you google it to be sure. Their customer service is excellent (family owned and operated) and their shipping turnaround is pretty quick.
Hi Wardee,
Have you ever heard of Norwex? It is a way to clean without chemicals using antibacterial microfiber cloths. There is silver woven into the microfiber cloth. I am a consultant and just recently got a website. http://www.marilynkjellman.norwex.biz
Marilyn
I make all of my own cleaning products. I have two favorites. Toilet bowl cleaner: 1/2 c soap (I usually use Dr. Bronner’s eucalyptus/peppermint or any scent you prefer or have extra of), 1 c baking soda, 1/4 c water, 2 T vinegar, 1/2 t tea tree oil. Mix soap and soda toghether and work out the lumps with a fork. Dilute with water; add vinegar to make foam, then tea tree oil. I use a squirt bottle that seals well, as the only downside for me is that sometimes it clogs the spout. I recommend rinsing the spout on a bottle that doesn’t seal well after each use. Squirt inside toilet: under the rim and on the sides. Scrub, rinse wtih scented vinegar if desired (I don’t). The second one I love is sink scrub: 1/2 c soa; (I prefer Dr. Bronner’s almond-it smells wonderful when you clean the sink!), 2 T water, 2 T vinegar, 1 2/3 c baking soda. Mix soda & soap in bowl, dilute with water; add vinegar last. Stir well. (Add warm water, if it dries out). I put it in a wide-mouthed tighly sealed jar (Tucks). Use a wet spont on top t9o help prevent drying, if you prefer (I don’t). Scoop out with soft cloth. Scrub sink, Rinse well. Use vinegar rinse, if needed (I don’t). Barbara
Oh, I forgot, both products fizz when the vinegar is added, making them creamy. The sink cleaner makes about 2 cups. I also use club soda in a spray bottle (doesn’t need to be fizzy) to clean my mirrors . . . another of my favorites. Barbara
I use to make my own cleaners too until I found out about Norwex – ever heard of it? It is the BEST way to clean your house – bye-bye time spent making my own cleaners, hello cleaning my house with just water, really!! Check it out at norwex.com
Oops! Guess I should have read all the comments first before responding! Well, at least you know 2 people love Norwex!!
I am very excited to try this, thank you! Mix soap and soda toghether and work out the lumps with a fork. I currently use diluted castille soap but this sounds better. Scoop out with soft cloth.
Hi Wardee,
Adding (rubbing alcohol) to your cleaning solution looks interesting. I have not tried this mixture and am anxious to see how it’ll do.
I absolutely love tea tree oil with its antibacterial and antiseptic attributes. And, while certainly not as inexpensive as vinegar or hydrogen peroxide; the aroma left behind is certainly easier to live with (when using vinegar).
Will be giving your home-brewed blend a go soonest – Thanks for the tip Wardee!
Wesley
I use vinegar water (1:1) for *lots* of things: kitchen counters, sinks, faucets, light switches, vinyl mattress covers after a night time accident. So versatile and safe around food (and generally around big kids). Once in a while I use hydrogen peroxide too.
Hi Wardeh, I make your home made castile soap bars. I saw above that you also make castile liquid soap. Are you planning to do a video on that? I’d love to learn how to make the liquid soap. Thanks for being a blessing.
hank You for sharing…..
Lyndsay Booker-Arbenowske, when I first saw this picture I thought it was you!
1/2 vinegar 1/2 water and a drop or two of dish soap
silly question–what size is the spray bottle???
.
I just used this on my counters, stove top, fridge and even got down and cleaned the kitchen floor with it and my kitchen smells wonderful!! I didn’t have any liquid soap, so I used 2 tbsp. of Palmolive and added some extra alcohol. Floor feels great on bare feet! Thank you, for a great tip!
My very favorite cleaner! Use it everyday! I just used one I put peppermint in to clean my bathroom and it smelled like candy canes for a long time!
DIY All-Purpose Cleaner — recipe.
Sounds great I will have to try the alcohol addition for quick evaporation. I use half & half water to vinegar and then add a squirt of Dr Bronners Sals Suds and 40 drops of GSE to make it antibacterial. The Sals Duds with pine really work great on cutting grease in the kitchen and soap scum in the bathrooms. I do use regular Dr Bronners too but the other is my “heavy duty” cleaner 😉
I have been using this for several years and absolutely LOVE it! TY!
All about saving $ and using homemade stuff ! Being economical, frugal, and anti -corporation is for the greater good ! 🙂
I use lavender EO for killing germs and smells gr8!
It’s just alcohol and soap. How does that clean stuff? I’d love to use it if someone can explain that to me please.
Thanks!
– peel about 6 lemons and put the peel into a gallon of vinegar and let sit at least 24hours.
-clean out a reusable spray bottle (or buy a new one) and fill it up about half way with warm water and then fill the rest up with the vinegar solution. Add about 30 drops of citrus essential oils (optional) and clean like there’s no tomorrow. The vinegar can hardly be smelled and you have an all-natural cheap and great working all purpose cleaner.
Could I substitute witch hazel for the alcohol?
I avoid vinegar because I understand the acid is bad for our granite counters. Does anyone know if alcohol is safe for granite counters? Thanks