Experiments with "Homemade" Cleaners

Being a person who greatly enjoys Pinterest, I've seen many a homemade cleaner recipe get pinned. They always catch my eye, and I've pinned a few promising, er, recipes, to try out as time goes on.

Toilet Bowl Cleaner

When I ran low on toilet bowl cleaner, I decided to try out one of the recipes! Yeah, combining "toilet bowl" and "recipe" together sounds gross. I shall discontinue that combo.

Anyway, the... steps for making homemade toilet bowl cleaner are very simple. It involves combining baking  soda, water, castile soap, and tea tree oil. I've been subbing dish soap for the castile soap. I strongly recommend sticking to the listed amounts, otherwise your solution will be too runny or way too chunky!

Long story short, you combine the ingredients together and put them in a container that allows you to get it into the toilet. I simply saved one of my last toilet bowl cleaner containers, took off the lid, and used a funnel to add the ingredients. Then use like you would regular ole toilet bowl cleaner... and it works! It does indeed clean out a gross toilet, and it smells very clean afterward. And it seems less chemical-ly than your usual toilet bowl cleaner.

It is indeed a lot of baking soda to use consistently, but did you know that you can get a 13.5 lb. bag of it from Sam's Club for $6.68? Well they do, and you too could feel really proud that you have an abnormal amount of baking soda in your closet! Because I sure do.

Where do you buy tea tree oil? My Target had it in the pharmacy section, hidden in a weird spot. It was about $7, which seems kinda pricey. But you only use a teensy bit, so it goes a long way. I didn't do a massive tea tree oil hunt, so there may be cheaper options out there! If you find one, do tell.

Dusting Spray

I was a little more wary about trying this out, but I wouldn't let myself buy Pledge until I tried it, so it finally happened! I found this blog post that touts a solution of water, vinegar and olive oil. I know... olive oil?!? Hence the wariness.

But my stubborn side prevailed, and I tried it today. Survey says... not too bad. It did indeed allow me to dust, didn't leave a residue behind, and left surfaces shiny and streak-free. My main beef with this solution is that you have to shake it... a lot. Because, well, oil and water, people!! And I assume it won't last long with the olive oil. So... we'll see how I proceed. I may search around for some other ideas, or I may just be cheap and stick with this one, or maybe some Pledge coupons will come along and I'll give in. Suspense!!

I'm Alive! Really!

Whoo boy, I have been a bad, bad blogger! Apologies all around. I can sorta kinda explain.

My routines that I talked up in May? Well I've been verrrrrrrry loosely following them in July, and the cleaning routine has been collecting dust. I had some wonderful family visits at the end of June into early July, and I used them as an excuse to become a big ole slacker. Oopsy! Don't get me wrong, I have been cleaning! But I haven't tackled every cleaning project I should. Please don't be scared of my house. :)

While I've been slacking in the routine department, I've been doing pretty well in the food department. I've been doing really well with meal planning, improving my grocery shopping skillz, and dabbling in freezer cooking.

So now I just need to:
a) get back to work on my cleaning routine, and
b) update the flipping blog at least once per week!!

More to come...

Cleaning Routine: Key for Sanity

Now on to the cleaning routine. Like my general daily routine, the cleaning routine has been key to maintaining my sanity. Like I said a month ago, I used iHeart Organizing's cleaning chart as my inspiration, and started with a list that I haven't really changed much:

Weekly cleaning tasks	Monthly cleaning tasks	Quarterly cleaning tasks
Clean toilets Wipe bathroom sinks/counters Clean bathroom floors Clean bathtubs + shower Sweep wood floor Vacuum first floor Vacuum second floor Vacuum stairs Dust first floor (basic) Dust second floor (basic) Wash sheets Wash towels	Clean refrigerator Clean microwave Full kitchen counter wipe First floor windows Second floor windows Purse / diaper bag reorg Clean kitchen garbage can Wash bath rugs Wash comforter Mop wood floor Flea meds for dog	Change air filter Wash pillow cases Wash couch cover Clean oven Vacuum mattresses

So am I getting every weekly task done per week? Hahahahahahahaa.... no.

But, I manage to get most of them done. Usually! :) And what I don't get done one week, I prioritize the following week. This has kept me from beating up on myself for missed tasks. Vacuuming has been the hardest to get done, because A) I HATE vacuuming, and B) Annabel is sooooo scared of the vacuum. Good enough reasons to slack, right?

Being that it is the last day of May, I can say that I only have one outstanding monthly task left: Clean refrigerator! Will it get done by the end of the day? Er, maybe. I'll leave it at that. Why yes it did!! Apparently posting my negative feelings towards finishing the last May cleaning task made my brain say: Challenge accepted!! Barney-style. And now every single May cleaning task is done. Big sigh of relief right?

As for quarterly cleaning tasks, I have one month left to do the lone outstanding task: Vacuum mattresses! Woo!!

I may keep adding to the lists going forward, but I can vow here and now that the cleaning routine is here to stay! It's given me a lot of satisfaction to keep the house clean, and to cross stuff off my lists. It's also kept me from going out of my mind trying to remember what I cleaned and when!

MoneySavingMom.com has some recent articles with other great cleaning routine ideas & inspiration:

My Money Saving Mom® Inspired Cleaning Schedule
Q&A: How do you stay motivated to get housework done?