Cleaning!

After my roommate and I returned from study abroad, the subject came up of buying new cleaning products for the bathroom. I said no.

 I wanted to try cleaning the bathroom with all natural products. This is not only safer for me and my roommate, who do the cleaning and use the bathroom, but also reduces the amount of chemicals going down the drain and contaminating water. I’d heard about cleaning with vinegar and baking soda, so I set about teaching myself to do so.

There are so many how-to’s and videos about how to clean your bathroom with natural products that it was kind of overwhelming. I realized I had to develop my own system that works for me. I improvised and came up with this process. It works for me but may not work for you, so practice and tailor it to your own needs/ means.

 

The tools:

Sponge- I used a regular green and yellow one, the “natural” ones from specialty stores are quite expensive

Plain white vinegar- Vinegar is the agent that kills germs. It is not as strong as other synthetic cleaning products, but it is less toxic because it breaks down easily. Use diluted with water (1:1)

Baking soda- Acts as a deodorizer and abrasive

Towels

Old shirt (leaves less lint on the mirror)

Old toothbrush for scrubbing grout

The process:

For cleaning the sink, bathtub, and toilet I used pretty much the same process. I squirted the vinegar mixture on the surface, or poured it on the sponge, or dipped the sponge in a cup of it. I then used elbow grease to scrub the surface.
 

For tougher areas (TUB) I sprinkled baking soda on top and scrubbed.

elbow grease!!!

 

For scrubbing the tile/grout in the shower, I mixed the baking soda and vinegar so that they would foam/bubble.
 

 For the bowl of the toilet I poured vinegar around the top of the bowl, then shook some baking powder into the water. I used a toilet brush to mix it so it would foam and then waited a few minutes before scrubbing it like usual. For the mirror, since I don’t have a spray bottle, I poured vinegar on the shirt and used it to wipe the mirror and dried with a dry side of the shirt.

 

Sqeaky clean!

My thoughts:

-          Vinegar is made from corn, which is often farmed usnsustainably.

-          These products don’t smell or foam so it doesn’t feel like my old idea of “clean”. Just a cultural thing I need to let go of. (Well, the vinegar does smell, but it goes away very quickly).

-          Because they are not toxic chemicals, there’s no real need to rinse. I just wipe off with a towel and save water. :)

-          I think it is much cheaper to use, haven’t done the calculations though
 

-          Because it doesn’t smell and they aren’t chemicals and they are cheap, I tend not to be careful with the amount I use: I probably waste a lot of vinegar and baking soda.

-          I don’t need to use gloves or feel bad for inhaling fumes.

 

look at that cutie ;)

Now to figure out cleaning the tile floor….

 

Would you ever clean your bathroom with just baking soda and vinegar?