This DIY cleaner will leave your counters spotless.
The scoop
Alyssa Barber (@newlifestyleabb) shared her DIY all-purpose cleaner recipe, and you only need a handful of ingredients found at home.
@newlifestyleabb 🍋✨ DIY All Purpose Cleaner on a Budget: - Add leftover citrus peels of your choice to a jar or container (I used lemons.) - Optionally add other scented ingredients (I used rosemary and vanilla.) - Fill the jar with white distilled vinegar. - Seal and let sit in a cool, dark place for 2-7 days, shaking daily. - Strain into a spray bottle and use! 🤝 #diy #diycleaningproducts #allpurposecleaner #sustainability #sustainableliving #sustainablehome #ecofriendly #ecofriendlycleaning #diycleaning ♬ Looking for a Place - The Spyres
"You shouldn't buy this store-bought cleaner because this one you can make at home is cheaper, smells better, and works just as good," she says.
Alyssa combines citrus scraps, rosemary, and a drop of vanilla extract with distilled vinegar in a jar. Feel free to get creative with the recipe with what you have at home. You can use any citrus scraps, like oranges, lemons, or grapefruit. Other spices or herbs, like cinnamon, mint, and bay leaves, can make great additions as well.
Fill the jar with enough vinegar that the scraps are completely covered. Then, Alyssa says you just "seal it and shake it every day for two to seven days."
Afterward, strain the liquid into your container of choice — like a spray bottle — and compost the food scraps.
As a few commenters mentioned, avoid using vinegar on granite countertops, as it can damage the surface.
How it's helping
Not only are store-bought cleaners expensive, but "many cleaning supplies or household products can irritate the eyes or throat, or cause headaches and other health problems," according to the American Lung Association.
Natural cleaning uses safe and environmentally friendly ingredients commonly found around the home, like baking soda, vinegar, and lemon.
Whether you're removing stubborn stains from your linen or scrubbing grime from your air fryer, there are natural cleaning products that are cheaper, safer, and more sustainable.
Not only is natural cleaning better for your health, but it's better for the planet, too. By making your own cleaning solutions at home, you're preventing single-use plastic bottles and packaging from entering landfills, where they'll remain for hundreds of years. Tru Earth reported that "as many as 2.5 billion plastic cleaning bottles end up in landfills yearly."
What everyone's saying
Commenters were keen to try this counter-cleaning concoction.
"Yeah! You can use pine needles too. Thank you for your awesome content," one user said.
"Definitely trying this!" another said.
"And it's probably better for our health," a third chimed in.
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