Another great cleaning product.....hydrogen peroxide

I have been sharing a few of my cleaning tips. Check them out here and here.

I have recently discovered a great new cleaning product.....Hydrogen peroxide. Yes it is usually used to clean wounds but it makes a great cleaning product too! It is a great disinfectant.





Here is how I have been using hydrogen peroxide around the house.
- cleaning countertops and the bathroom sink
- cleaning mirrors....I cannot believe how streak free and clean it gets the mirrors!
- spraying down the toilet an wiping it clean...again it makes it sparkle!
- stain removal in the laundry...works similarly to oxygen bleach

Why do I love using hydrogen peroxide in my everyday cleaning?
- its inexpensive! As opposed to all the cleaners in the cleaning aisle that can be very expensive!
- it is scent-free and doesn't leave any strong scents or fumes
- it is safe to use around children and pets (did you know hydrogen peroxide breaks down into hydrogen and water an leaves no residues behind like commercial cleaning solutions)....why didn't I know this when my kids were babies?

I added a sprayer to my bottle. Please note that it needs to stay in its dark bottle...exposure to light causes it to break down.

Other uses of hydrogen peroxide in your cleaning....
- works great on all types of stains and is particularly good to remove blood stains
- tub and tile cleaning. It works great on mold and mildew in the bath and shower.
- disinfecting tooth brushes. Soak bristles in peroxide and then rinse well with water after.

Why don't you try it out in your cleaning regime?




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Spring cleaning tips....get that oven sparkling clean!

The oven.

One of the LAST things in my kitchen that I want to clean. Luckily, my oven has a self-cleaning feature. It beats the days of scrubbing the oven with those icky smelly chemicals but it's still a bit of a challenge. And it still smells so I have to be able to have the windows open when I do clean the oven.

The racks in my oven are not to be left in the oven during the self cleaning feature. So once they are removed they still need scrubbing and scrubbing to remove all of the grime on them.

I have found a little trick that helps to clean them without all that scrubbing. Various cleaning sites have mentioned this method so I thought I would give it a little whirl.

Here it is:

Line the bathtub with an old towel and place oven racks inside (the towel prevents the racks scratching the tub).

Fill bath with enough hot water (in my experience the hotter the better) to cover the racks.

Sprinkle the racks with powdered dishwasher detergent. Yes that's right, dishwasher detergent.

Now just walk away and let them soak. Easy!

I usually let them soak around 20 minutes or so and then I take a rag or sponge and wipe them off. The grease seems to just "melt" off the racks leaving them nice and shiny.

Rinse, let dry and put them back in your clean oven.

Hope this helps make cleaning the oven a little easier. Let me know how it works for you!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Spring cleaning with vinegar.

Spring has sprung! Today the sun is shining and the snow from the storm the other day is melting....yeah!

Today I have decided to start with a bit of spring cleaning. Light fixtures and the windows inside my kitchen, dining room and living room are what I am tackling today.

My regular cleaning regimen involves a microfiber cloth or two and my spray bottle filled with a 50/50 solution of vinegar/water. I started using this to clean with when my kids were babies as I didn't want to use a cleaner that leaves residue that could harm them.

Vinegar works so well to clean anything from my countertops to my appliances to windows. So today I used it on the windows and to polish the metal on my light fixtures. The glass shades were removed and washed in warm soapy water and left to air dry. The curtains were machine washed and hung to dry. I vacuumed the blinds on the windows as well.

I cannot say enough how much I love to use vinegar to clean. Yes it does smell a bit at first but it dissipates soon after. My littlest always says, mom what's that smell? Are you cleaning?

Some other ways I use vinegar in my everyday cleaning:

- Put it in the rinse cycle in the washing machine to get rid of smells. Works great for towels. I use this all the time and it works!

- To deodorize a room leave a cup of vinegar out overnight and it absorbs odors.

Do you use vinegar in your cleaning regimen? Feel free to post your tips here too!
Happy cleaning!