It is easy to see I have had some extra time lately by the bent of my posts. I have based them on conversations I have had lately with people on various subjects and this one falls into that category.
Tried and true homemade floor cleaner. I have used this mixture for several years now. I mix it up and divide it into two spray bottles. One for the Motorhome and one for the tiny house. Sometimes I make a half batch. It is a great all-purpose cleaner and sanitizer. Read all the directions for best results. Common sense, so don't over think it.
How to make homemade floor cleaner from HousewifeHowTos.com
You probably already have all of the ingredients needed to make your own homemade floor cleaner — one which gets your floors just as shiny clean as the commercial stuff.
So, why would you want to? Because it’s for your own good.
Commercial cleaning products contribute greatly to indoor air pollution. For people with allergies or asthma, indoor air quality is critical to good health.
Now, add in pets or young children who spend a lot of time on the floor. Do you really want their paws or pacifiers having that much contact with harsh solvents?
If that’s not enough to convince you, consider this: it costs just pennies to make enough homemade floor cleaner to clean your floors for months. That’s right: pennies. Why shell out $3 or more for a commercial cleaner that’s bad for you and your family when you can whip up your own with ingredients you already have?
You only need this one homemade floor cleaner to clean every hard flooring surface in your home. It works on laminate. It works on hardwood. It even works on vinyl, linoleum, and tile. Yep, you can use it on marble or granite: the vinegar used in the recipe is so diluted that it won’t damage them. It even works on cement!
Have I mentioned that, after powering through grime, it also leaves a gorgeous shine?
How To Make Homemade Floor Cleaner
Ingredients:
2 cups warm water
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol
3 drops liquid dish soap (See Note below)
5-10 drops essential oils (optional)
Important notes: We all like to swap things around in DIY cleaning recipes, but before you do there are some things you should know:
• Don’t use a dish soap that contains moisturizers, antibacterial ingredients, or “oxygen bleach”. I use Dawn Original (Classic), which is similar to Sunlight or Fairy in the UK.
• Do NOT swap Castille soap for the dish soap — it’s an oil-based soap and will, therefore, leave streaks and smears.
• If you use essential oils be sure they aren’t compounds (i.e., those with fragrance added to grapeseed or some other form of oil).
• You CAN use this on granite, marble, and natural stone floors. I’ve been doing it for years without a problem. The reason is that the vinegar in this solution is diluted by the water and other ingredients, so it doesn’t remain acidic enough to cause etching.
How To Use Homemade Floor Cleaner
Follow the recipe above. This works equally well regardless of whether you use a bucket or spray bottle to dispense your floor cleaner as you mop. Of course, you’ll have to dump out what’s left in the bucket after use, while anything left in the spray bottle can be stored in a dark, cool place for future cleanings.
So now what will you do with those different bottles of cleaning products taking up space on your shelves? Use them up if it bothers you to have spent money on them, or get rid of them now and make the switch to homemade floor cleaner. Just, please, dispose of them properly.
