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Cleaning Savings

Use the Cheap Stuff

Okay, I have four children, four dogs and two cats, cleaning is something I'm very familiar with.  I could go broke if I chose to purchase all the trendy  and expensive cleaning supplies that I see advertised.  There are just a few inexpensive products I use every day.  They include ammonia, distilled white vinegar, bleach and rubbing alcohol among a few others.  All of these items are really inexpensive, but they're also very effective and do a great job.  Just remember to never mix ammonia and bleach or vinegar and bleach!

Ammonia

I use diluted clear non-sudsy ammonia, as a regular household cleaner.  Mix in spray bottle, 1 part ammonia to 3 parts water to clean your windows, appliances, counter tops, floors and more.

One place that I personally find ammonia to be a huge savings is in my steam cleaner.  Like I said,  I have a lot of kids and animals, so I whip out my Hoover Steamvac and/or my Bissell Little Green Machine often.  The prices of their shampoos would kill my pocketbook.  I have found that using a combination of  water,  clear ammonia and distilled white vinegar gets my rugs and upholstery cleaner than anything else and, as a bonus, this doesn't leave the residue that many of the shampoos leave.  Dilute according to floor cleaning instructions on your ammonia bottle and just add a little distilled white vinegar.  It works amazingly well!

Distilled White Vinegar

I already stated that vinegar is great in combination with ammonia for the steam cleaner, but it's great all over the house and especially on glass.  One benefit of white vinegar is that it's free of harmful fumes and is environmentally friendly.  White vinegar can be mixed with water and put in a spray bottle to be used as a great glass cleaner.  Now, I realize that store brand glass cleaners are really not that pricey, but there is still a value here AND I honestly believe  the vinegar works much better for a streak free shine.  One warning, do not use on marble.

Another great tip is cleaning the microwave by mixing 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar and 1/2 cup water in a microwave-safe bowl. Bring it to a rolling boil inside the microwave. Baked-on food will be loosened, and odors will disappear. Wipe clean.

You can even make your own scouring cleanser by combining 1/4 cup baking soda with 1 tablespoon liquid detergent. Add just enough white distilled vinegar to give it a thick but creamy texture.

And if you're in love with the store bought sprays to keep build up out of the shower, trying spraying your shower doors with full-strength white distilled vinegar before you step in and turn on the water.  It will help release the hard water deposits so they don’t remain on the glass.

 Click for   More Great Frugal Uses for Vinegar

Rubbing Alcohol  

Rubbing alcohol is a great cleaner at an amazing value.  What I love most about using rubbing alcohol is that it leaves everything absolutely streak free.  Fill a trigger bottle with full strength for windows, mirrors and faucets.  I have a glass top coffee table and, trust me, the streak free shine can't be beat with this stuff.

Another great benefit of rubbing alcohol is that it's a great germ killer.  You can  keep an empty soap pump bottle by the sink full of 1 part vinegar to 1 part alcohol. This is a multi-use pump for disinfecting hands, freshening sponges after using them, cleaning the counter tops, and rinsing out the sink when through with dishes.

Use Rags & Microfiber

Paper towels are convenient, but having and using cleaning rags will save you money. Of course the most thrifty way to get your rags are from old clothing,  However, I've found a small investment in some microfiber rags are especially great because they can be used on glass without the worry of lint.  They also pick up and keep the dust in the rags.  I'm a big fan of reusable and washable microfiber products.  There are also some wonderful microfiber dusters, both for furniture and floors that really pick up the dust and, best of all, they really are washable and reusable.

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