Make Your Own Household Cleaners

A great way to help save the environment and your wallet is to make your own household cleaners. Here are some great recipes to get you started:

Recipe for cleaning stainless steel appliances:
http://frugalliving.about.com/od/cleaningtipsandrecipes/qt/Stainless_Steel.htm

Recipe for dishwasher detergent:
http://frugalliving.about.com/od/cleaningtipsandrecipes/qt/Dish_Detergent.htm

Recipe for Dishwasher Rinse, note that this method is also good for cleaning out your dishwasher and extending the life of the appliance, which in turn saves you money:
http://frugalliving.about.com/od/householdsavings/qt/Rinse_Agent.htm

Recipe for oven cleaner:
http://housekeeping.about.com/od/kitchen/qt/bksd_oven.htm
Did you know that you can also use a combination of baking soda, boiling water and vinegar to unclog drains? And that you can use baking soda as a natural water absorbent on carpet?

This site is absolutely amazing and full of ideas with everything from homemade mold killer to carpet cleaner:
http://www.eartheasy.com/live_nontoxic_solutions.htm

The recipe on http://www.eartheasy.com/ of 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup baking soda is a cheap and natural all purpose cleaner. At about $2 for a box of baking soda and a bottle of vinegar you could make several batches, at the least 6 times the amount you would get from one store bought bottle of all purpose cleaner which typically runs in the $4 range. Or check out these websites for several other uses for vinegar (http://www.angelfire.com/cantina/homemaking/vinegar.html) and baking soda (http://www.thefarm.org/charities/i4at/lib2/60soda.htm).

Comments

Add Up the Savings With Online Coupons

Do you have a printer? Then don’t let these deals pass you by! Check out the following websites for the best coupons. Remember though the three rules of using a coupon: 1. Work around other deals – Check your local circulars, see where you will get the best bang for your buck with this coupon 2. Usage – Will you use this product and is it really cost efficient to use this product with the coupon over a cheaper version? Be sure to price shop, along with examining how much you get for the cost. For example. There are 2 boxes of cereal, one at 30 ounces for $1.50 and one for 50 ounces for $2. Buying the one for $2 is the best bang for your buck because you get just under double for only 50 cents more. 3. Check the fine print - Expiration dates and quantity, can it be used with other promotions, etc. Keeping these tips in mind, enjoy the savings to come from these sites: http://www.smartsource.com/ http://www.coupons.com/ http://www.save.com/ Also, if you ever do any online shopping alw

Update

It's been a long time since I last wrote, luckily I have very few readers to apologize to ;) So what's new... well the garden is looking great, I just discovered that butternut squash produce very beautiful large yellow flowers. The ducks are just about full size now and that is just in time for the start of my new hobby of furniture restoration. A friend introduced me the the most inspiring site for this; http://betterafter.blogspot.com/. This site showcases furniture, decorations, and rooms that have all been redone and brought back to life. Why do I love this so much? Because it's green, it's cost effective and it's domestically savy! *Photos to come of my "better after" items. My two cents about furniture restoration; Sprucing up something you already own, free furniture, cheap furniture from a yard sale is a great way to recycle and also keep you from buying an unsturdy piece of furniture from a large corporation store which will inevitably break. Thi

I'm going to be a new mom...

...to two adorable ducklings which will arive next week! Why ducks? Besides the fact that they are adorable and happen to make great pets, they are a natural pesticide as they are natural foragers, limit the amount of unwanted pests such as mosquitos and ticks and make excellent egg layers. Resulting in 100-300 eggs per year. Here's what Urbanhomestead.com has to say about the differences between chicken and duck eggs; "In our baking experience here on the urban homestead we find that by using duck eggs our baked goods turn out very moist and fluffy (winning lots of great compliments like “what’s in these brownies?”). Duck eggs also have more albumen (the protein in the white) than chicken eggs, which gives them more structure when cooked. For this reason, many people prefer duck eggs for baking: the extra protein creates additional loft in cakes. Never eaten duck eggs? Duck eggs taste pretty much the same as chicken eggs. The eggs and yolks are larger and they have a richer

Domestic Savvy

Search This Blog