The many ways Bi Carb and Vinegar can clean your home!

Bi Carb and Vinegar have been used for cleaning for millennia so its not surprising there are many ways they can be used to clean our homes - below are some of our favourites! Let us know if you have any!

Surface Cleaner: click for recipe

Stubborn stains / cooked on food on non-stick cookware/roasting tins: try a bi carb paste - sprinkle bi carb over affected area and mix with a small amount of water to create a paste, leave for 10 mins or longer and then rinse.

Supercharge your dish washing: add a few tablespoons of vinegar to wash water to cut through grease.

Oven cleaner: mix bi carb and water to make a thick paste, apply paste to inside of oven, door and grills and leave overnight. Wipe clean with damp cloth. Once bi carb removed, clean inside of oven with hot soapy water and dry.

Induction, gas or ceramic hob cleaner: Wipe hob with clean damp cloth, sprinkle over bicarb and then with a warm wet cloth mix bicarb in circular movements until a paste. Leave paste for 30 mins/overnight and then use warm soapy water and cloth to remove paste. For final polish spray with white vinegar, massage in with damp cloth and then wipe off. To keep clean spray with vinegar once cool after use. Wipe and buff dry with dry cloth.

Deodorise, sanitise and treat wooden boards and spoons: to deodorise soak in white vinegar for an hour, then rinse in warm soapy water. Sanitise by rubbing lemon juice and salt all over and then rinse in warm soapy water and allow to air dry. Once dry you can treat by massaging coconut oil into the wood, leave 15mins and then polish with dry cloth.

Smelly jars: make a bicarb paste and work all around the inside of the jar. Leave for 15mins, rinse and leave to dry.

Removing sticky labels / glue from jars: click for recipe

Glass Cleaner: click for recipe

Clean vases and decanters: place 2 tbsp bicarb, 6 tbsp warm water and 2 tbsp uncooked rice into vase, give it a shake and a swirl around, leave for 15 mins, another shake and swirl before discarding water mix, then flush with warm water.

Shine up dull glassware: submerge or spray glass with white vinegar and leave for 30mins. Rinse, dry and polish. If small scratches on glass buff with a small amount of coconut oil.

Windshield Cleaner: Give your car windshields a good wash with white vinegar and rinse with water, windshield wipers can be rubbed down with bi carb and water for a thorough clean.

Blocked showerhead: put equal parts of vinegar and water in a large pan and bring to boil, simmer and place showerhead into pan for 5-7 mins.

Bathtub grime: remove with vinegar either straight or diluted, do not use on porcelain enamel, if enamel surface a bi carb scrub is best to use, mix bi carb with water to make paste, coat area and wipe clean.

Grout stains and mildew: scrub with straight vinegar and wipe clean, can also try bi carb scrub, mix bi carb with water to make paste, coat area, leave and rinse and wipe clean.

Cleaning up pet urine on hard floors: mix equal measures water and vinegar and soak area with solution and wipe clean.

Cleaning up pet urine on carpet: first absorb urine with newspaper and then spray or sprinkle on generous amounts of vinegar, can be used straight or diluted and best to spot test area first as can affect darker colours, absorb solution with newspaper to dry.

Carpet freshener: use bi carb either straight or can mix 1 cup bi carb with 2 tbsp cornstarch/arrowroot, sprinkle on carpet, leave for 15 mins and then vacuum.

Floor Cleaner: Mix together 200ml white vinegar, 50ml washing up liquid, optional 30 drops essential oil. To mop floor take 2 tbsp of mixture to bucket and mix with warm water and mop! If using on wooden floors, take 2 tbsp of mixture and put in spray bottle with 100ml water, spray onto floor then mop with a dry or damp mop, no need to rinse.

Air/Shoe Deodoriser: click for recipe

To clean and help remove some pesticides from fruits and vegetables: click for info and instructions

Clean your Birkenstocks!

Info from: Fix it, clean it and make it last, FC&A Publishing and Nancy Birtwhistle Clean & Green.

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