If you want to have it clean and clean at home, you can stock up in the shop with all kinds of products that promise clinical cleanliness and hygiene. But does that have to be the case? Cleaning without chemicals is possible!
Many of the cleaning agents on sale are made of harsh chemicals that are bad for the skin, the respiratory system and the environment. It gets clean but also with various home remedies, which are far less harmful or not and you certainly already have at home. Cleaning without chemistry is good for you and nature. And another advantage: These cleaning tricks are on the one hand much cheaper than expensive cleaners – and often much easier to use.
Vinegar, citric acid, baking powder, soda and curd soap as well as suitable mechanical cleaning utensils – perhaps a little alcohol. That’s all it takes to keep the place tiptop – and hygienically clean.
THE 4 ESSENTIALS OF THE NATURAL HOUSEHOLD
Black soap: made with potash, it is sold in liquid or paste form. It allows you to clean and degrease everything from floor to ceiling. Big advantage: no need to rinse! Perfect also for the care of the linen. It can be perfumed with essential oils because its smell does not always please. In paste, it removes stains, just let it act a few hours before washing.
The baking soda: this king of the household is biodegradable and nontoxic. Extraordinarily deodorant, it also acts against tartar (even more if it is associated with lemon) and cleans even the most stubborn grease: ideal for the oven, the barbecue, the fryer and the dishwasher. On a damp sponge, it cleans the refrigerator and revives the appliance.
Lemon: powerful disinfectant and antibacterial, it is also antilime and deodorant. You can pour a few drops on a sponge, or use directly half a lemon (associated with baking soda) to get rid of dirt, grease or tartar. In essential oil , superconcentrated, it hunts germs and perfumes even more effectively home!
White vinegar: simple, economical, it is a true antibacterial weapon and the king of the anti-limescale (even more if it is heated, and in this case it must always be diluted). It degreases and shines the faucets, windows and mirrors, softens the laundry and revives its colors. Associated with bicarbonate, it is a formidable off-road cleaner! Only precautions : open the window because its smell stings, and never mix it with bleach.
Cleaning without chemicals with the all-purpose weapon lemon
The lemon is not only healthy – it also has great cleansing properties and smells good. The acid contained in the product fights bacteria and the associated bad odours:
For example, you can easily clean your drain with a toothbrush and a lemon. Unpleasant odours come from bacteria and germs that have settled there due to food residues and warm water:
Scrub the drain grille vigorously with an old toothbrush.
Then place a thick slice of lemon in the drain. Let warm water run over it and bacteria have no chance. Additional benefits: Lime also disappears through citric acid.
Citric acid is also available in powder form, which is very suitable for decalcifying kettles, coffee machines and the like. You can also get rid of burnt items in pots and pans – and in the washing machine it not only decalcifies, but also helps to bleach white laundry and remove stains.
Three tablespoons of citric acid powder for a few hours in the toilet also replaces any expensive toilet cleaner. Simply distribute, leave to work in and scrub later with the toilet brush.
Vinegar makes lime steam
And speaking of lime
Ugly lime stains are on the collar with vinegar! Vinegar essence is best suited. Just soak a cloth and wipe the lime edges. For larger stains, soak some kitchen paper in vinegar, place on the calcified area and let it work, then rinse off. Removable or elongated parts such as faucet strainers or shower heads can be cleaned with a vinegar bath. Simply mix a little vinegar essence with water and put in the calcified part.
Refrigerator and freezer can also be easily cleaned with vinegar. Both are real sources of bacteria. Defrosting time and time again and wiping thoroughly with vinegar keeps the refrigerators hygienic.
Miracle cure baking powder: Clean, bleach and co. with soda
With slightly foamed baking powder and an old toothbrush, grease and dust can be easily removed from surfaces. Lacquered wooden surfaces, such as doors, can thus be made to shine again. But be careful with artfully treated surfaces! Test before at an inconspicuous place!
The oven also removes burnt residues from baking powder: Spray one tablespoon of soda onto one litre of hot water: spray on surfaces, leave to work in and clean off.
Soda is also suitable as a bleaching agent for white laundry – especially for greyish discolourations. Simply soak the laundry in 10 litres of water with 1 or 2 tablespoons of soda and then wash as usual.
Incidentally, special washing soda replaces expensive and environmentally harmful detergent. And you can make it yourself: Simply grate 30 grams of curd soap and bring to the boil with 4 tablespoons of soda. With 150 to 200 ml of washing soda you can wash a load of laundry – but no wool or silk!
Sodium bicarbonate as a bactericide
Sodium bicarbonate is similarly all-purpose: it can be used, for example, to keep the washing machine clean. The laundry smells? This is most certainly due to bacteria that settle through residual water. So it’s better to clean the machine every now and then: 50 g sodium bicarbonate in the drum, 50 ml vinegar essence in the powder compartment and off you go with the 60’C programme – but without washing, i.e. idling. Lime, bacteria and germs make the bend.
Similar principle, only without washing: soda in the shoes – helps against sweaty feet and unpleasant foot odour, as bacteria are killed.
With a tablespoon of sodium bicarbonate mixed with 10 g curd soap in 100 ml warm water results in a cheap and environmentally friendly detergent.
Soap or sink against fogged glass and mirror surfaces
In the bathroom, the mirror mists up after showering, the window pane adorns unsightly streaks of which residues remain? Simply apply a very thin layer of rinse aid (e.g. the soda-core soap rinse aid) to a cloth and rub the surface or glide gently over the surfaces with a bar of curd soap – just not too much, otherwise you can see it. Then polish smooth. The soap layer prevents water droplets from settling.
Professional tip: The principle also works with glasses: Fogged up eyeglasses in winter are a thing of the past.
Alcohol also removes stains from upholstery
Alcohol, as pure as possible, can refresh upholstery: It works best with almost pure ethanol, if necessary it is also a clear grain: apply alcohol to the upholstery with a spray bottle and gently rub off with a white sponge. The upholstery can then be brought back into shape with a white brush. The alcohol evaporates quickly and leaves no nasty odours. Also fights bacteria.
Mechanical cleaning combined with household products
Over time, drains and the like can become blocked – but aggressive pipe cleaners not only etch away dirt, they also attack the pipes – and are very damaging to the environment. Better clean blocked drains mechanically from time to time. Usually they can be unscrewed. This is certainly not a nice task, but it works much better than any pipe cleaner. Treat with soda every now and then but prevents blockages: 4 tbsp soda in the drain, add half a cup of vinegar – and after a few minutes rinse with a liter of boiling hot water.
Salt as a mechanical cleaning aid
When ironing, residual dirt likes to burn into the surface of the iron. These can be removed quickly and easily with salt: simply place salt on the ironing board or an ironing-resistant surface and let the iron slide over it on the hottest level without steam function.
Mechanical cleaning is particularly helpful if it is done regularly. Your shower calcifies much more slowly if you dry the shower panels after each shower, for example with a squeegee. Furthermore: the drier a surface, the fewer bacteria can settle.
In general, the faster you remove dirt, the easier it is. The fresh stain on the stove is removed faster than dried food residues.