In the pursuit of a greener clean, you will eventually come to the conclusion that store-bought cleaners are more expensive than they are worth.
Walk down any cleaning aisle and you can smell the myriad of chemicals, the ones that you are about to cover your home with, and wash down your drain.
Conventional cleaners not only make you – and your pets! – sick, they can be extremely harmful to the environment too.
Rather than shop by colorful packaging, fancy words and intelligent advertising, go the DIY home cleaning route and start making it a routine to keep your home healthy and clean.
6 Homemade Floor Cleaners For a Green Clean
In order to choose the best natural floor cleaner for your home, you’ll have to know what surfaces need cleaning.
Are they wood, tile, brick, cork or laminate?
The best way to keep your home clean is by regular decluttering and weekly cleaning. Discover the cleaning routine that works best for you and stick to it. In the meantime, let’s go over six homemade floor cleaning recipes that you may need for spotless floors throughout your home.
All-Purpose Floor Cleaner
If you have vinyl, linoleum, laminate or tile floors in your home, all you need is 4 ingredients for a sparkling clean.
A good basic recipe for an all-purpose floor cleaner goes like this:
- 2 cups warm water
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol
- 3 drops biodegradable soap
- 5-10 drops essential oil (pine, peppermint, rosemary, lemon)
Combine all ingredients in a glass/ceramic bowl, then add them to a glass spray bottle and shake well before spraying on the floor. Wipe immediately with a mop.
As much as we love Castile soap, do not combine it with vinegar: if you do, you’ll end up with more streaks and smears than you started with.
Homemade Wood Floor Cleaner
Wood floors can certainly take a beating! Over time, it can lead to a beautiful patina, but it can also be considered ugly and undesirable with nicks and grooves.
If you start with a well installed floor, keeping it clean will be easy if you sweep and mop often enough.
And the recipe is super simple, all you need for a natural hardwood floor cleaner is:
- 2 cups warm water
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 drops of essential oil
Same as before, mix all ingredients in a glass spray bottle and spray as you mop, in small sections at a time, so as to not let it dry directly on the floor.
Before mopping, make it a general practice to sweep or vacuum dust/hair first before spraying with any solution, homemade or not.
DIY Tile Floor Cleaner
Tiles floors look elegant when clean, but when there are spills, they quickly become spotted with the most obvious “stains”. Even a bit of dried water can look like a mess.
As such, tile floors must be cleaned often.
Harsh chemicals such as bleach can damage sealants on the tiles and stains can discolor the grout if they sit too long.
If you have tile floors in your bathroom or kitchen, try out these 5 natural ways to clean tile, courtesy of Rainbow Intl.
This DIY All-Natural Orange Vinegar from Bren Did is simply amazing:
1. Start with lemon, orange or lime peels (just the peels!) and load them in a glass jar with a lid.
2. Cover the peels with white vinegar.
3. Let them sit for 3 weeks in a dark place as the vinegar becomes citrus scented.
4. Strain the peels, transfer to a glass spray bottle and use liberally on all tile surfaces.
Rather than throw those vinegar-infused citrus peels away, save them for cleaning the sink garbage disposal. Toss them in and follow up with boiling water.
Homemade Disinfecting Floor Cleaner
With kids and pets in the home, cleaning can become quite a chore.
But it can be a pleasant one at that, provided no harmful chemicals are involved.
If you are inclined to disinfect your floors with bleach or other harsh chemicals, know that there are natural options that really work.
Floor disinfectant ingredients:
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 2 cups hot water
- 10-15 drops tea tree oil
- 1 teaspoon washing soda (optional)
Mix all ingredients in a glass spray bottle, shake before spraying on floors or countertops. This is a multi-purpose disinfectant, use it anywhere you see fit.
A side note: do not use vinegar on marble or granite! The acid will slowly eat it away. Use these 4 Homemade Marble Cleaner Recipes instead @ Tips Bulletin
Natural Laminate Floor Cleaner
Out of all flooring, this is perhaps the easiest to take care of. Hot water will often do the trick, or add in a little vinegar for an extra cleaning kick.
Sometimes, though, they will end up sticky with a tiny screech at every step.
Remember that we never mix vinegar and Castile soap? We are following the same principle here.
Instead you will be mixing:
- 3 cups warm water
- 3 drops Castile soap
- 5 drops citrus essential oil
- 2 drops tea tree oil (optional)
Feel free to add any essential oils to this all natural laminate floor cleaner that you enjoy smelling around your home.
After all, this is one of the most important things about natural cleaning – the aromatherapy session that comes along with it.
Vinegar Floor Cleaner
Vinegar is one of the most wonderful substances made from natural ingredients. If you can also eat it, then all the better for you and the Earth!
To make an eco-friendly floor cleaner you’ll need just a few ingredients:
- A bucketful of hot water
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol or vodka
- 2 tablespoons biodegradable dish soap
- 10-15 drops essential oil (your choice)
Mix all ingredients together in a bucket, mop until your heart is content, or at least until your floor is completely clean.
If you see streaks, simply mop over the floor again with hot water to get rid of any soapy residues.
Once you’ve found the perfect natural cleaning solution for your floors, move onto a natural laundry routine to help simplify your life and green your wardrobe.