I love love love making my own cleaners. It saves me so much money, they smell A M A Z I N G, and I feel good about not adding to the toxic load of my family and home. Not only are these DIY non-toxic cleaners safe, they actually work and do the job well! Here I will share with you all of my DIY recipes here in one post. I make an All purpose cleaner, a stainless steel one for my appliances, and a window and glass spray.
I have made one other post here with some other options, but I have settled on these ones. They are super easy to make so let’s get started! Get yourself some bottles from the dollar store, cute ones from target, or grab a stainless steel or glass one. I find the glass and stainless steel do not come in the larger sizes I want- which means I am refilling more often. The oils do not do much with the plastic bottles so you should be fine using plastic if you want a larger bottle.
DIY Non-Toxic All Purpose Cleaner
This one has a lemon, mint with a hint of woods smell to it. It smells very fresh and clean. This recipe is for a 22-30 oz bottle. You can obviously make it smell stronger or more mild depending on how many drops of oil you want to use.
In your bottle add:
- 1/4 cup vodka
- 10 drops Lemongrass essential oil
- 10 drops Lemon essential oil
- 5 drops Spearmint essential oil
- 5 drops OnGuard essential oil blend
- 3 drops Arborvitae essential oil
- 1 T of OnGuard cleaner concentrate
Fill the rest with water and give it a shake! It is best to shake before each use. It cleans beautifully, and the vodka adds an extra boost. For true disinfecting, like after someone has been sick, use an EPA-registered disinfectant.
You will be able to do at least 25 REFILLS with the 15ml bottles of oil you get.
*And FYI you can use the cleaner concentrate for mopping, making your own liquid foam soaps for bathrooms, cleaning dishes, tubs and shower stains and many more things.
DIY Non-Toxic Stainless Steel Cleaner
In a plastic spray bottle mix:
- 1 part white vinegar
- 1 part water
- 3 drops Spearmint, lemon or lemongrass essential oil to help with vinegar smell.
When vinegar dries the smell is gone, but the oils help while it evaporates. Shake, spray and wipe with a dry cloth with the grain. Then buff out any remaining spots and prevent spots by rubbing a tiny bit of olive oil with a dry cloth.
DIY Non-Toxic Window and Glass Cleaner
In your bottle mix together:
- 2 cups water
- 3 Tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons rubbing alcohol
Add a couple drops of lemon, spearmint or lemongrass for scent. Shake before use, and wipe with dry paper towel. You can add more vinegar if it seems to not be cleaning.
Now you can get to some NON-TOXIC cleaning, I forgot to add the best part… *you can give it to the kids and they can clean for you without the worry of harsh chemicals (just keep the bottles of essential oils up high)! The more the better 🙂
Why I Switched to DIY Non-Toxic Cleaners
Every spray and wipe in our home ends up in the air we breathe and on the counters where we make food. Making my own cleaners lets me know exactly what is in them, keeps the toxic load in our home down, and the house still smells fresh and clean. If you want more ideas for easy swaps around your home, check out my Make a Switch page.
A quick safety tip: never mix vinegar with bleach or with hydrogen peroxide in the same bottle, and keep all cleaners and essential oils out of reach of little ones. The EPA Safer Choice program is also a great place to find safer store-bought cleaners when you do not have time to make your own.
