Green Natural Cleaning Products For Everyday Use

Margaret Mead once said "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world." Using green, natural cleaning products offers one small way that you can do your part in improving the planet's well-being as well as your own. There are scores of natural products to experiment with to see which will work best for you.

Vinegar

Distilled white vinegar may be the most versatile natural cleaning product. HealthyChild.org recommends 1/2 cup of vinegar with 1 tsp. of olive oil for dusting, a 1-to-1 ratio of vinegar and olive oil for polishing furniture and 3 tbsp. of vinegar per quart of water for cleaning windows. Use newspaper to polish your windows without streaks. To clean and disinfect wood floors, HealthyChild.org recommends 1 cup of vinegar to one bucket of hot water.

Baking Soda

A natural abrasive, baking soda cleans enamel-coated cooking pans without scratching their surfaces. For kitchen counter-tops, mix baking soda with liquid castile soap to make a paste that HealthyChild.org calls a "soft scrub." The website recommends 3 to 4 tbsp. of baking soda mixed with water to clean microwave ovens and 1 tsp. of baking soda, 1 tsp. vinegar and 2 cups of hot water sprayed in the air as an air freshener. Sprinkle baking soda on rugs and let it sit for 15 to 30 minutes to absorb odors before vacuuming.

Borax

Borax comes in powered form in the laundry section of your local grocery store. It contains minerals related to baking soda, but is stronger and more toxic---use gloves when handling borax and keep it stored away from children. According to HealthyChild.com, borax works well as an all-purpose cleaner and disinfectant--mix 2 tsp. borax, 4 tbsp. vinegar and 3 to 4 cups of hot water to spray or wipe onto bathroom or kitchen surfaces. Use a ratio of 2 gallons of hot water with 1/2 cup of borax for floors. To clean toilets, pour 1 cup of borax into the bowl, scrub and let the water sit overnight.

Lemon Juice

According to Elissa Altman, editor of "Baking Soda, Banana Peels, Baby Oil and Beyond," lemon juice is a "household superstar." She recommends adding 1/2 cup to the rinse cycle to brighten clothes, using lemon juice to remove water spots from metal shower fixtures, mixing lemon juice and borax for cleaning bathroom fixtures and toilet bowls and, finally, boiling white socks with two lemon halves to turn them pure white again. Also, throw a cut-up lemon into your garbage disposal every now and then to deodorize it and fill the kitchen with the scent of lemons.