1. Home

30, Jun 2022
Domestic Cleaning With Eco-Friendly Products

If you want to use more green and safer products for your domestic cleaning or you are not sure about the content of the detergents you buy, keep on reading. We have selected a list of ingredients and materials, especially for this purpose. They are widely spread and available in every home.


Use Essential Oils for Cleaning


One of the things that makes essential oils perfect for your cleaning sessions is the fact that they are natural degreasers. They also have antibacterial properties. Most of them are effective in protecting against mould, bacteria and viruses. Here is some information on the most suitable types of essential oils for domestic cleaning.


Tea Tree Oil, for example, is suitable for the kitchen and bathroom. You can add it to the laundry detergent or in the dishwasher. Be careful with the quantity of essential oil you add to the washing machine. Too much of it can damage the rubber seals and plastic parts of the appliance.


Eucalyptus Oil is effective in killing dust mites in blankets and other materials. It is recommended to use it in the winter by adding it to your laundry detergent.


The fresh and enticing aroma of the Sweet Orange Oil makes it perfect for refreshing and cleaning.


Lavender Oil is known for its gentle scent and is widely used in clothes hangers for years. It repels moths and you can use it in the drier or in the drawers to spread its unique aroma around. If you add lavender oil to the water in which you wash the fruits, this will also produce a pleasant flavour.


Beech Oil is also very suitable for cleaning and has a very fresh smell. Add it to the water you use for floor mopping or in the bathroom or kitchen as you please.


Lemon Oil is another natural cleaning product, which is ideal for rustic furniture. Mix lemon oil with a bit of olive oil and use this aromatic substance to wipe surfaces with a clean towel. This will make your pieces of furniture shine.


Homemade Recipes with Essential Oils for Domestic Cleaning


You can use these and other essential oils as a part of the ingredients of your home cleaning products. Add 15 drops of any essential oil to 80 ml of distilled water. This solution is perfect for your ironing water. To make your own clothes drawer freshener add 1 drop of lavender oil on a cotton cloth and leave it in the drawer. The fresh smell of lavender will relax your mind as well as banish moths and other insects. To clean baby diapers and use them multiple times you can make baby diaper disinfectant. Add 5 drops of tea tree oil to the laundry detergent and it is ready.


To make a laundry cleaner mix 2-3 drops of patchouli oil with the washing detergent you normally use. This will chase off pests and unwanted moths. Another thing you can do is use eucalyptus oil in the laundry detergent or directly into the washing machine. This kills dust mites. Apply a small quantity of essential oil to the washing machine as it can damage it.  You can easily make your rubbish bin freshener. Simply put 2-4 drops of lemon essential oil on the garbage bin bottom. This will make the smell coming from it less unpleasant and harsh.


Here is a recipe for an easy DIY dishwashing domestic cleaning detergent. For making it you need the following ingredients:

  • 1-2 plant-based soaps such as Castilian or olive soap;
  • ½ sodium carbonate;
  • ¼ lemon acid;
  • ½  baking soda;
  • 2 drops of patchouli oil;


Blend all these ingredients until fine dust is formed. Use the same way as any store-bought cleaning dishwashing detergent.


Another recipe this time for vacuum cleaner freshener requires these products:

  • cotton;
  • 5 drops of essential lemon oil;
  • vacuum cleaner bag;


Simply soak the piece of cotton you have with drops of essential oil and put it in the vacuum cleaner bag. As long as the effect of the lemon oil lasts you will rejoice in the aromatic and natural carpet deodoriser. You will sense it every time you vacuum your carpets.


Isopropyl Alcohol for Cleaning


Isopropyl alcohol is also known as rubbing alcohol. It is most commonly the 60-70% alcohol solution applied in domestic cleaning. This substance is effective and practical in many ways but keep in mind that it is poisonous. It should not be inhaled or swallowed. Also, you should keep it away from children and read the labels very carefully.


Here is how you can include rubbing alcohol in your domestic cleaning and household chores:

  • Remove permanent marker doodles – to get rid of permanent marker trail, dampen a cloth with a small quantity of alcohol and soak it. Wait until the trail becomes liquid and then you can wipe it clean;

  • Remove ink stains – isopropyl alcohol can save your inked clothes, draperies and furniture. Soak the stains for a few hours with a small amount of the substance. Then, you can wash them as you would normally. Wash the item according to its indications on the label;

  • Keep your windows shiny in the winter – to save your window glasses from frosting, wash them with the following cleaning solution. One litre of water dissolved in half a glass of rubbing alcohol apply to a window squeegee. After washing, polish the glasses with a dry clean towel;

  • Spray that repels fruit flies – to get rid of these annoying insects in the kitchen, make your spray. Just pour isopropyl alcohol in a fine spray bottle and use it as an insecticide. Sprinkle with it in the kitchen, but do not do so on animals, food or people. This insecticide may not be as effective as commercial ones, but at least it is less harmful. The flies will die and you will only have to sweep them;


The presented above recipes and ingredients are great for domestic cleaning and refreshing. Besides them, you can also use baking soda and vinegar. These are the main ingredients in plenty of homemade recipes. They are the most common products with universal usage on all kinds of surfaces for various situations.


Keep in mind that vinegar is not effective in the removal of oily substances from utensils. It is not suitable for stains from eggs. Vinegar is also not recommended for marble surfaces. Its acid properties will damage this material’s porous structure. Remember never to mix bleach and vinegar as this creates a dangerous aerosol. So go on and try the presented above recipes and ideas for your home cleaning. This way you will leave less trail of harmful substances. They are cheap, effective and very pleasant for the senses.

11, Feb 2022
My All-Time Favourite Super Spring Cleaning Tips

Spring cleaning is when we have a big session of deep cleaning. It’s a chance to tackle all those jobs that you are going to get around to doing one of these days. It’s where you go beyond the regular housework that most of us do (or at least should do) with the vacuum cleaner, the loo brush and the duster.

Spring cleaning (aka deep cleaning) doesn’t have to wait until a certain time of year. Any time of year can be a good time to get stuck into these household chores. Some of us who live in rental properties or who have to relocate a lot for job reasons tend to save up the heavy-duty cleaning for the moving out clean. That’s OK, but if you are in a home for more than two years, you’re going to need to give things a good going-over even if you aren’t moving out.

Oddly enough, autumn is often a good time of year for “spring cleaning”. The colder weather is starting to drive us indoors, so while we’re in there, why not clean? Darker days and wet weather also mean that we don’t have to spend a sunny day off indoors on the cleaning, as often happens in springtime. Nature itself is going through a process of getting rid of the old (leaves and the like) ready for a fresh start in springtime.

You can do your own spring cleaning, enlist the help of a friend (don’t forget to return the favour) or you can call on some expert professional help (more on that below).


Spring Cleaning Basics


Make a Checklist

Preparing a Checklist for the Spring Clean is Important

Make a list of what you want to achieve. Are you spring cleaning just for the sake of spring cleaning (and a lot of people find a certain therapeutic value in accomplishing jobs around the home)? Or are there some actual things that you know you need to do and have been putting off for a while? No matter what sort of cleaner you are, it’s good to write down a list of things you want to do so that you can give some direction to your urge to spring clean your home.


Get the Right Tools for the Job

Make sure that you have the tools you need. There’s nothing more annoying – and more likely to derail your good intentions – than running out of the cleaning products you need or having tools that just don’t do the job properly. In fact, the first task on your list of things to do when you clean your home could be to make an inventory of what you’ve got and what you still need to get.


Prioritise

The unexpected always happens – there’ll be that phone call from a friend having an emergency in the middle of the time that you’ve set aside for domestic cleaning work. Or you’ll come down with a bad cold. Or you might get free tickets to something you’ve wanted to go and see or do! It’s important to think about what jobs you want to achieve most of all. Do these ones first and get them out of the way.


Target Areas

Pay Attention to those Parts of the House You Don't Normally Clean Regularly

Make sure you don’t spend your dedicated spring cleaning time doing regular chores. Look for the things that you’ve forgotten to clean or haven’t been able to clean during your regular housekeeping (more on this below). Target the areas where you would not normally have the time or the tools to do. Normally these require a bit of preparation outside the scope of your weekly domestic clean.


Spring Cleaning With Expert Help

Some tasks that need to be done annually should really be left to a trained expert. Carpet cleaning is one of these: there’s more to cleaning rugs and carpets than you think, and you run the risk of things going horribly wrong if you don’t know what you’re doing. Similarly, upholstery cleaning requires specialised tools as well as techniques – things the typical London householder probably doesn’t have handy.

You may also like to enlist the help of an extra pair of hands for your spring cleaning – a maid or cleaning lady, for example. How you get the cleaning lady to help is up to you. You may assign some of the deep cleaning jobs to her (or him – there are plenty of professional “cleaning lads”), especially if you don’t know how to do certain jobs. Or you might get him/her to do the regular work so that you can concentrate on the more out-of-the-ordinary tasks.


Things You’ve Probably Forgotten To Clean

Spring cleaning is a good chance to tackle some of those home cleaning jobs that we tend to overlook. Things like the following:


Doormats

The whole point of a doormat is to collect dirt and debris from the bottom of shoes that are about to go into the house. Clean your doormat any way you fancy: hosing it down, beating it with a tennis racket, vacuuming, shaking… or all of the above!


Look Up

Ceiling fixtures such as fans and light shades often collect dust on the top where you can’t see it. You’ll be shocked when you see how much dust (and worse) that collects in these places. While you’re at it, don’t forget to dust the tops of doors (this has the added bonus of helping them open and close more easily).


Behind big things

Vacuum and Clean Behind the Bedroom Bed

During spring cleaning, it’s time to pull the big stuff (sofas, refrigerators) out of the way so that you can get stuck in behind and underneath them. If you are getting your carpets professionally cleaned, it’s necessary to remove the furniture before the pro comes to call so all of your carpets can get a good sprucing up. Don’t forget to pay attention to the back of whatever you’ve pulled out (especially the refrigerator) and give it a good dusting or going-over with the vacuum cleaner.

Pop on the polish

Hard surfaces can do with a regular polish to protect them and to make them look good. Dust and spills also have a harder time sticking to a shiny, smooth surface. You can polish floors the old-fashioned way by hand (it makes a great workout); borrow, hire or buy a polishing machine; or call in a professional floor cleaner.