Our country homestead — a work-in-progress as ever — has many unfinished projects. The building process was completed a few years ago, but we still have a few finishing touches left, such as a paved walkway to our front door. As you can imagine, what with all of the chicken and garden work, there’s a lot of mud around, and some invariably gets tracked into the house on a daily basis. 😉
It’s difficult to maintain a clean floor, even though I planned for this and chose to have cement floors laid down when we built our house. This past spring, after a series of unexpected snowstorms followed by rain, my floor was a mess.
Well, I’m not going to sacrifice cleanliness just to own and operate a homestead. So, what to do?
Instead of popping over to the store for a conventional cleaner, I whipped up my own DIY All Purpose Pine Cleaner, inspired by a recipe in this book.
In an afternoon, my floor was clean and smelled of fresh pine.
Not only are the ingredients familiar and easy-to-find, the recipe is quick and gets the job done!
DIY All Purpose Pine Cleaner
Ingredients
- 32 ounces pure water hot
- 1 1/2 teaspoons liquid castile soap such as Dr. Bronner's, see note below
- 6 drops pine or fir needle essential oil feel free to use more or less
- 4 drops rosemary essential oil feel free to use more or less
Instructions
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Mix well and store in a spray bottle.
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I spray the solution directly onto the floor and use my microfiber mop.
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No rinsing was needed.
Additional Notes
Liquid castile soap (named after Castile, Spain — a region known for its olive oil) is an ingredient commonly used in homemade cleaners and some toiletries. It is a soap made from vegetable oils like palm, coconut, and olive. While it is available scented, I prefer to use a mild, unscented variety and add my own scent if necessary.
Have you tried making any of your own household cleaners? How about a DIY All Purpose Pine Cleaner? Feel free to share a recipe or a link in the comments!
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I love Vinegar of the Four Thieves with raw apple cider vinegar and herbs. Here’s the recipe.
http://justso.co/four-thieves-herbal-vinegar/
That’s good to know Andrea. Thanks for sharing. My mom likes to use theives oil a lot.
I had read this post a few weeks ago and made this using lavender and rosemary oils, my floors have never been cleaner!! And so economical too!!! I love this!! Thank you for posting this
I’m so glad to hear that it worked for you and that you enjoyed it Maria! I’m sure the lavender smells lovely.
Been using this mix for many years:
General cleaner
1 Tablespoon liquid soap
1 teaspoon borax
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup white vinegar
Add to a 500ml spray bottle and fill with hot water. Mix by shaking the bottle until powders dissolve – wallah!
Even goes to work on the black bathroom/shower mould between tiles!
Thanks for sharing An! That does sound like it would be great in the bathroom.
An, I have been so happy with this cleaner with soap, salt, vinegar & borax. It is time to make another batch. Thank you from Texas.
Be aware of the fact that fir needle oil (as well as other pine derived oils) can cause severe, even fatal health issues in cats and dogs. Be careful where you use this if you have either.
Thanks for the heads up. Is this harmful if it is inhaled or just ingested?
I will try these recommendations AND can anyone recommend a good source for spray bottles? So many that come with store bought products stop working and a spray bottle that does not spray is useless. The bottle in the picture looks great. Where did it come from?
Lana I got that at a discount linen store. I purchased it about six years ago and have not had any problems with it.
Is this also ok to use on laminated wood floor?
Florence I really don’t know. I have a concrete floor. If you have any cautions or concerns I would either test it out on a small spot or not use it at all and stick with something you know will work.
I make our foaming hand soap with 1/4 cup Dr. Bronner’s mild
unscented, 10 drops of essential oil, then fill the rest of the foaming soap bottle with water and mix. I like tea tree oil in the kitchen and rose geranium oil in the bathroom.
Wardee, what brand of essential oils do you recommend? I would like to start using them. Thank you!