Using natural ingredients around the home

by Heather Finlay

Try these natural ingredients in place of your usual chemicals:

Lemon juice

• Use lemon juice to clean your chopping boards
• Clean glass and china by mixing equal parts of water and lemon juice to remove hard water stains
• Put a tablespoon of lemon juice in a cup of water and heat in the microwave to help to loosen grease when cleaning
• Rub chrome, copper and brass with a lemon to clean them
• Soak white clothes that have gone grey in a mixture of warm water and a ½ cup full of lemon juice (per laundry load).  Agitate occasionally and then rinse
• Put lemon juice onto a sponge to clean soap marks from your bath.  Rub on, leave for a few hours and then rinse off
• Remove limescale by soaking affected areas in lemon juice (similar to the effect of white vinegar)

Soda crystals

• Clean your washing machine – put 300g of soda crystals into the drum and wash through on the longest, hottest cycle to remove bacteria and odours.  Repeat with 500ml of white vinegar to remove detergent and limescale
• Remove burnt-on residue in pots and pans – soak overnight in water and soda crystals (not suitable for aluminium pans)
• Clean kitchen floors - use with hot water on kitchen floors; be careful as it will remove any wax coating
• Keep sinks and drains fresh and blockage free by putting a mug of crystals down the sink; add some hot water but allow to drain down slowly to remove grease
• Wash shower curtains in a water and soda crystal solution to remove mildew
• Re-fluff towels by soaking in a soda crystal and water solution for 10 minutes; rinse through and put in the washing machine.  Add your usual detergent, and add white vinegar to the fabric softener compartment; rinse and spin as per your normal cycle
• Use a water and soda crystal solution to clean tiles and grouting in bathrooms and kitchens
• Barbecue grills and utensils can be soaked in a soda crystal solution to remove grease; you will also need a wire brush
• Pour soda crystals down your outside drains and rinse with boiling water to remove grease and other blockages
• Remove moss and algae from patios and paths by sprinkling soda crystals onto the affected area, wet with a watering can (or put down the crystals just before expected rain) and leave for a couple of days.  Brush or scrape off with plenty of water.  Be careful next to ponds and plant life – although biodegradable, a large concentration of soda crystals is not advised in any one area

 

Bicarbonate of soda

• Soak tea and coffee stained mugs with bicarb dissolved in water to remove stains
• Make a paste of bicarb and water to polish silver
• Use a bicarb solution to remove scuff marks on laminate floors and skirting boards
• A small open bowl of bicarb in the fridge will remove bad odours; replace every 3 months and throw down the sink so it can deodorise that as well
• Put bicarb on a clean damp sponge to clean your microwave
• A scoop of bicarb will keep flowers fresher for longer
• Bicarb added to a wash will help to whiten your whites
• Cover rusty tools and gates with bicarb, pour over some white vinegar and leave to bubble.  Scrub off with a stiff brush when bubbling has stopped

Vinegar

• Clean your dishwasher – put 2 containers of white vinegar, one on each of the upper and lower racks, and run through a hot wash.  Heated white wine vinegar is better to remove limescale; use it regularly in the rinse cycle
• Clean your washing machine – put 500ml into the drum and run the longest, hottest cycle to remove detergent and limescale.  See also the soda crystals section
• Descale your kettle - cover the element of your kettle with white vinegar, switch on and then leave overnight.  Rinse thoroughly before use
• Remove limescale from your toilet bowl – push out as much water from the bowl, over the u-bend, using your toilet brush, as possible.  Pour white vinegar into the bowl and leave overnight; flush away
• Clean your iron and de-scale – empty the water reservoir and re-fill a third full with white vinegar.  Switch on and set to steam setting; iron an old piece of cloth until the reservoir is empty.  Re-fill with water and repeat until the water has flushed through all of the vinegar
• Use with bicarb to remove rust – see Bicarb section
• Remove red wine stains - spray white vinegar liberally onto the stain and leave for 30 seconds before rinsing.  Repeat as many times as necessary and wash as normal
• If your glasses are cloudy from the dishwasher, wrap them in paper towels soaked in vinegar, leave them for a few hours and rinse