Homemade Bleach Cleaner

I really like to use vinegar as a non-abrasive, natural cleaner, but sometimes you need something a bit stronger. While vinegar is a good a disinfectant, it does not compete against the killing power of bleach. Rodale provides a good article "This or That: Bleach vs. Vinegar."  For the most part, they  prefer vinegar over bleach for normal day-to-day use, but recognize bleach is better at killing food-borne germs. I like to use a homemade bleach cleaner on my cutting boards. Occasionally I use it in the bathroom for a deep clean.

Here is what I use in my 500 ML spray bottle.
1 tbsp bleach
2 tbsp laundry detergent (Do NOT use detergent with bleach alternatives. This will cause a bad chemical reaction.)
Fill the rest with water.

This is certainly a lot cheaper than buying the pre-made version. It is mere pennies a bottle to make your own. Happy cleaning!

Natural Cleaner: Vinegar

One of the most versatile cleaners in the world may already be in your kitchen, vinegar. I didn't say it was the most pleasant smelling, but it is cheap and gets the job done. Plus once the vinegar dries, the smell will dissipate leaving your house clean without a strong chemical smell. I keep a spray bottle full of vinegar in my kitchen as my all purpose cleaner. Admittedly, my house quickly goes through the huge gallon containers of vinegar. It is significantly cheaper than all those popular cleaners out there, plus I don't need to worry about accidental poisoning by small children or pets.

- Instead of using glass cleaner, I spray a few squirts of vinegar and wipe the windows with a clean cloth.

- To remove tea/coffee stains, I spray with vinegar, let it sit for a few minutes and wipe clean.

- To disinfect and provide a shiny surface, I spray with vinegar, let it sit for a few minutes, and wipe.

- Back when I had a dishwasher, I would use vinegar instead of Jet-Dry. Dishes came out shiney, and my shopping bill was lower.

- To remove hard water stains from the faucet and stainless steel sink, use vinegar.

- To remove hard water stains and soap scum from shower stall, spray with a solution of half heated up vinegar with half liquid dish soap, let sit for 5-10 minutes, and then scrub. This actually provides amazing results.

- To prevent hard water stains from shower stalls or tubs, spray with vinegar after you're done taking a shower.

- To gentle clean the greasy kiddy fingerprints from our flat screen T.V., spray with vinegar and wipe with a microfiber cloth.

- Use vinegar in the laundry to get out strong smells. I also run vinegar through the washer to disinfect.

- Sparky have a little accident in the house? Clean out the urine stain with vinegar.

- To clean stinky, greasy plastic Tupperware, spray with vinegar, let it sit for a few minutes, and wash out.

Oh, and you can also cook with it. It is the only cleaner I would use in a recipe.