Cleaning With Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar in a glass decanter with apples.

A frugal and effective natural cleaner is vinegar. It can be used to disinfect surfaces, soften and brighten laundry, deodorize and much more. This is a guide about cleaning with vinegar.

Solutions: Cleaning With Vinegar

Read and rate the best solutions below by giving them a "thumbs up".

Use Vinegar for Cleaning

Vinegar is a cheap and easy cleaning solution. Vinegar is naturally antibacterial. In my kitchen, I use one part vinegar to one part water to clean the counters and sink, and to disinfect. I use the same solution to clean my bathroom, except I use full strength vinegar on the toilet seat and bowl. I let it stand for a few minutes before I scrub the bowl and flush. On my floors, I use the same 1-1 solution, with a few drops of dish soap; I use this to clean both my laminate kitchen floor, my wooden living room floor, and my tile bathroom floor.

If you want a "clean" smell, add a few drops of lemon juice or a fragrance extract. Not only is it cheap, but it is safe for kids and pets. I began using this when I had my son, knowing that he would soon be crawling all over the floor.

As a warning, do not mix with bleach or ammonia; this can create dangerous fumes.

Just leave a window cracked to help filter out the vinegar smell.

Source: my depression-era grandmother

By MamaSarah from Lansing, MI

0SharePrintFollow2 Feedbacks

Removing Mold from Non-Bleachable Surfaces

Of course, we all know that bleach does a great job of getting rid of mold from any surface, but if you don't want that surface discolored (like carpeting, decking etc.), use vinegar. This will take the mold out without any discoloration!

By Beverly C. from Hanover Twp., PA

0SharePrintFollow1 Feedback

Reuse Pump Bottles with Vinegar

(format_html)I keep my large Germ X bottles or even the small ones. I fill one of the large ones with dish soap and keep it by the sink. I have another one I fill with white vinegar.

The white vinegar has many uses. It will do the following for you:

Shine the sink
Get soap residue off dishes
Disinfect dishes that the kids may have let the dog lick off of
Freshen the sponge or dish cloth
Freshen the drain
Makes drinking glasses shiny
Wash drinking glasses with vinegar around the rim to disinfect or clean
Is good to soak in when a bowl or pan needs to be soaked
Cleans the counters and disinfects them
Shines pans when they need to be cleaned
Pump some vinegar on the floor and wipe up to clean the kitchen floor

White Vinegar has an indefinite shelf life and does not have to be refrigerated.

If you are disinfecting with vinegar, let it sit on the counter for ten minutes to kill germs and bacteria. The same applies for cleaning baby items in vinegar, such as toys, etc.

0SharePrintFollowPost Feedback

Clean Your House with Vinegar

I have stopped buying expensive and fume cleaning products and have gone to vinegar for everything. It is the oldest, safest and most effective cleaning product there is.

I read labels and just about all cleaning products contain vinegar, especially for glass cleaning and general cleaning. Works like a charm and very thrifty.

By Irene M.

0SharePrintFollowPost Feedback

Use Vinegar and Newspaper for Cleaning Windows

Use vinegar and newspaper to clean those windows and mirrors. It does such an excellent, streak-free job! Vinegar also works for mopping floors, helping to eliminate that pesky separate-cleaner-for-each-job buildup in the chemicals cabinet!

By Davidicdancer from Spokane, WA

0SharePrintFollowPost Feedback

5 Vinegar Cleaning Tips

1. Clean your dentures with Heinz white vinegar by soaking them overnight and rinsing in the morning.

2. You can make your own furniture cleaner by mixing 1 part vinegar to 3 parts lemon oil.

3. Paint brushes can be cleaned by simmering in vinegar and washed with hot soapy water.

4. Brighten your wash by adding 1/2 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle.

5. To clean your microwave, boil 1/4 cup of vinegar and 1 cup of water. Leave in microwave till food is softened enough to just wipe out.

By sewingmamma

0SharePrintFollowPost Feedback

Use Vinegar for Cleaning Purposes

Many hospitals are now using white vinegar to clean and disinfect everything. With cut backs, it has become more economical. With germs (all over the world), that have become immune to cleaning solutions and antibiotics, vinegar has become the number one choice. Vinegar has a perfect PH balance, being neither acid nor alkaline. Germs operate outside this perfect balance and perish when their environment PH is changed.

I keep a spray bottle of 2/3 white vinegar to 1/3 distilled water in my kitchen and bathroom. Before I put away the cutting or chopping board, I spray the surface. After rinsing off chicken in the sink, I swoosh some soap around on the surface with my hands (also soaping up my hands), rinse it and then spray vinegar on it. I use this spray on every surface in the kitchen and bathroom. I put some in the toilet water a few minutes before I clean the toilet, as it neutralizes the water, killing germs. Wiping down door knobs and light fixtures will help prevent the spread of germs as well.

I also use only natural cleaners which have vinegar in them. It is very handy to spray and wipe down cutting knives before putting them away. Wiping down surfaces in the children's and baby's room not only deodorizes, but will help cut down the spread of germs. Spray and wipe children's lunch boxes or anything they bring home from school.

If you do not like the smell, add a few drops of peppermint oil. Want to add to the germ killing solution, add some rosemary, clove, or lavender oil. These will also leave a nice scent lingering in the room. Gardeners who do use pesticides, will plant lavender in and around plants and trees. Bugs and germs do not like lavender. Lavender, like garlic, wards off many unwanted pests and germs.

This can create a more healthy environment for your entire family and our environment.

By Trisha from West Vancouver, BC

0SharePrintFollow9 Feedbacks

In Praise of Vinegar

Vinegar! White or apple cider are both wonderful cleaning products. If you have a smoke smell (like I recently did when my son started a fire on my range), I got out the white vinegar and scrubbed the bad odor and the smoke away. If you have a smoker in the house, it is also useful. Add it to your laundry detergent for curtains that sparkle. Wipe down walls and windows with it. It's antibacterial so you can use it in your medical appliances if you have any. It will change the ph for incontinent adults who are ill. Just mix about four parts water to one part vinegar and spray it on.

It will kill garbage odors and pet urine odor. Spritz it on straight.

The uses are nearly endless. If you have a baby, put it in the last rinse of baby clothes to remove all the left over soap. Wonderful stuff!

By Laurel from Rathdrum, ID

0SharePrintFollow9 Feedbacks

Use White Vinegar to Clean Scissors

White vinegar will not ruin the blades of scissors or rust the metal like water and soap will. Use a cloth soaked in white vinegar to clean scissors instead of water.

By Robyn

0SharePrintFollowPost Feedback

Vinegar for a Non-Slip Bathtub

After a nasty fall in my bath tub, I became extra careful to not have it happen again. My first idea was to always just throw a facecloth in the tub to stand on. My latest and very effective method that keeps me safe as well as my family is to spray my vinegar/water cleaning solution on the bottom of the tub. Cream soaps and hair conditioners make our marble tub extra slippery. By keeping the spray bottle on the tub ledge, I can spray as needed and ensure other family member's safety by spraying between everyone's showers. This is also anti fungal so you can even spray your feet and armpits and rinse. I also spray my facecloth now as suggested by another Thrifty Fun user.

By Joyce Robertson

0SharePrintFollowPost Feedback

Share Your Feedback: Once you try any of the above solutions, be sure to come back and give a "thumbs up" to the solution that worked the best for you. Do you have a better solution? Click "Share a Solution" above!

Questions

Here are questions related to Cleaning With Vinegar.

Use Vinegar as a Natural Odor Eliminator

I am looking for a recipe for vinegar and water air spray.

By Connie from Winston-Salem, NC

SharePrintFollow1 Feedback

Most Recent Answer

By Aldancer03/04/2010

I agree with Debbie52. I used it often in my home and when the kids & hubby are sick, and coughing up! Bring it to a boil and let it simmer slowly at your stove top. At first, you will smell heavy vinegar then it will go away! Good Luck!

Cleaning with Vinegar

What is the cleaning mixture for vinegar and water?

By Les from Vancouver, Canada

SharePrintFollow7 Feedbacks

Most Recent Answer

By Vicka04/02/2011

Dab a little vinegar on chapped lips several times during the day. I know this sounds awful, but it works great. That is, if you don't need to kiss anyone right away.

Avoid getting on your teeth as it is not good for tooth enamel

Uses of Vinegar for Cleaning

I would like a list of various uses of vinegar in cleaning around the home. Also are there grades of vinegar to be used in the cleaning process?

John

SharePrintFollow11 Feedbacks

Most Recent Answer

By c t03/05/2009

There is a really good book, "Vinegar", by Vickie Lansky that is good, I got it from amazon & it was cheap! If you use it on your scalp or for your hair, use white vinegar. A mix of 10% is good. Apple cider leaves a little residue, cause it comes from apples. Not a big deal, but I can feel it on my skin, so I use the white for anything on my skin. It's great for itchy skin or rashes.

Cleaning with Vinegar

What scent can I add to vinegar base solution to make it smell better?

By Ginger from Whistler BC

SharePrintFollow2 Feedbacks

Most Recent Answer

By Carol in PA06/25/2012

Vinegar has no odor after it is used for cleaning purposes. That's what is so good about it. It removes bad odors and leaves things smelling fresh and clean.

Using Vinegar for Cleaning

How do I not have the smell of vinegar when using it for the home cleaning remedies?

By Claudia

SharePrintFollow1 Feedback