You might be well aware of the various cooking uses of white vinegar. Do you know that it can also be an effective house cleaning product? Vinegar is natural, non-toxic and cheap product that’s tough on dirt, bacteria and mildew. In this article, we will learn how we can use vinegar for household cleaning.
Kitchen
You can use vinegar to clean almost all surfaces in your kitchen. Simply spray diluted vinegar on kitchen counter tops, stove tops, and other appliances and then wipe away using a soft cloth or a paper towel.
- Refrigerator: Vinegar can be a good alternative to toxic chemicals to clean your refrigerator. Make a mixture of 50-50 water-vinegar and wipe up the spills.
- Microwave: Take a glass bowl with vinegar and water in equal proportions. Microwave it for two three minutes until it boils and then clean the buildup easily.
- Plastic containers: Apply vinegar to plastic jars and containers and wash as usual to remove hard stains.
Bathroom
Like in kitchen, you can use vinegar to clean many surfaces in your bathroom.
- Toilet bowl: Spray vinegar on the toilet bowl (both inside and outside) and scrub away the stains using a toilet brush. For tough urine stains and odor, let vinegar sit overnight. Sprinkle baking soda and scrub the toilet next morning.
- Shower: Boil vinegar and use it to wipe down the shower walls. Keep wiping the walls for every ten minutes for some thirty minutes. Then take a sponge, dampen it in vinegar, sprinkle some baking soda and scrub. It will clean all germs, molds and soap scum.
Bedroom
You can remove odors, dust mites and mildew from your mattress using vinegar. Prepare a mixture of vinegar, tea tree oil and some rubbing alcohol and spray it on your mattress.
Laundry
Soften fabrics: You can use vinegar as a cost-effective fabric softener. While cleaning your clothes, add a cup of vinegar to final wash to make your clothes soft.
Remove stains from clothes: Vinegar can help you remove hard stains such as grass stains from your clothes. Apply diluted vinegar solution (two-thirds cup water and one-third cup water) to the stain and rub. Blot again and again till you have removed the stain as much as possible. Then wash the cloth as usual.
Living & Dining Rooms
Glass windows: You can save money on glass cleaning chemicals by using vinegar. Spray on glass windows a 50-50 vinegar-water solution and then scrub with newspaper. You can use the same to keep glass tables and glass cabinet doors sparkling.
- Wood furniture: Take a cup of olive oil and add ¼ cup of vinegar to clean and condition wood furniture.
- Floors: Clean and shine your no-wax flooring. Add a cup of vinegar to a gallon of water and use the mixture to clean the floors. You can use the same to clean wood and laminated floors.
- Remove stains from carpet: Prepare a mixture of vinegar (1 tsp), liquid dishwashing soap (1tsp) and warm water (1cup). Spray this mixture over the stain and allow it to soak into carpet for some two-three minutes and then blot the stain using a sponge.
