baking soda • Mary Hunt's Everyday Cheapskate

11 Of The Very Best Homemade Cleaners That Really Work

Items in your pantry like baking soda, vinegar, cream of tartar, lemon juice and even tea bags, can work as effective cleaners. Even better, compared to pricey commercial products, homemade cleaners cost next to nothing.

So the next time you’re staring down a big mess but you’re out of your favorite product, don’t run to the store—open up the pantry and try mixing up one of these DIY cleaning recipes instead. Step back and enjoy the results and the savings, too!

Vinyl Siding Cleaner

In a two-gallon bucket, carefully mix together:

2/3 cup Spic and Span Liquid All-Purpose Floor Cleaner
1/2 cup Liquid Tide Laundry Detergent (do not use the Tide liquid that has fabric softeners added)
1 quart liquid chlorine bleach
3 quarts hot water

Using a funnel, carefully pour into an ordinary hose-end wash gun or (garden sprayer) set to the highest concentration and apply to vinyl siding. You will see the dirt, film, and mildew just slide off. After five minutes, rinse with the hose and clear water. In all cases, label clearly and keep out of the reach of children.

All-Purpose Liquid Cleaner

1/2 cup white vinegar
1 cup plain household ammonia
1/4 cup baking soda
1-gallon warm water

Mix all ingredients together, label clearly and keep out of reach of children. Use as you would any commercial all-purpose multi-surface cleaner such as pricey Formula 409 or Lysol All-Purpose Cleaner.

How to Get Rid of The Dreaded Toilet Bowl Ring

Cleaning

It’s not the most elegant question I get, but certainly one of the most common. “I’ve tried everything I can think of, but that stubborn, ugly toilet bowl ring won’t go away!” Or ” … It goes away, but just keeps coming back!”

Toilet bowls develop discolorations for many reasons that have nothing to do with the quality of the housekeeping. Basically, the dreaded toilet bowel ring is the result of hard water conditions together with water standing in a toilet that sees a lot of use.

While there are lots of commercial products out there that promise to remove hard water stains in the toilet, ordinary household pantry items you have already can be just as effective to rid your toilet of the dreaded toilet bowl ring without harsh chemicals.

What are those stains, anyway?

Toilet bowl stains that look like rust are likely due to mineral deposits and hard water. Green, orange or black streaks or rings may be mold. A bacteria called Serratia marcescens shows up as pink. Knowing what is causing the ring makes it easier for you to choose the best method for getting rid of it.

Under most conditions, regular weekly cleaning prevents heavy stain buildup and reduces the appearance of any existing stains so the bowl can look pristine and white again.

And when none of that works? Don’t worry, I have the mother of all solutions for that too, in a bit. But let’s start with the easiest.

Cheat Sheet for 3 Best Ways to Unclog a Toilet—Quick and Easy!

Home & Family

No one likes to talk about it, but truth be told it happens. Toilets malfunction. They get clogged.

Sure, it’s inconvenient but more than that, downright embarrassing if you’re somewhere other than the privacy of your own home. Here’s a cheat sheet so you’ll know ahead of time how to deal with the situation.

Quick! Stop it from overflowing

The moment you realize something’s wrong, and the water level is rising, you need to act fast to turn it off. There are two ways to do this. I’d do both just to be sure:

Take off the lid, then reach in (that water is clean) and close the open flapper.
Reach behind the toilet near the floor and turn off the water supply off by turning the handle clockwise.

Now you can stop worrying about flooding the place and move on to freeing the clog using one of the following methods.

Posts

Vinyl Siding Cleaner

All-Purpose Liquid Cleaner

What are those stains, anyway?

Quick! Stop it from overflowing

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