Cleaning is often something that leaves us feeling less than excited. The idea of having to roll back your sleeves to scrub, vacuum, and mop will have you thinking of any way possible to put your chores off as long as you can. On top of being time-consuming and draining, cleaning can wind up being quite expensive.
Cleaning products aren't cheap, especially those that are natural or hard to come by. When you're living on a tight budget, you can't afford to spend an arm and a leg for cleaning products. That being said, you can't have a dirty home, either.
So what can you do? Well, you can start by looking through this list of ten budget-friendly household cleaners. By sticking to this list, you'll be able to save yourself more than a few pennies and keep your home sparkling clean. Make sure to add all of these products to your shopping list!
10 Budget-Friendly Household Cleaners
These are everyday household cleaning products to keep in your arsenal.
Ammonia
- Cleans carpets, upholstery, ovens, fireplace doors, windows, porcelain fixtures, crystal, jewelry, and white shoes
- Removes tarnish and stains
- Fights mildew
- Strips floor wax
Baking Soda
- Cleans baby bottles, thermoses, cutting boards, appliances, sponges and towels, coffeemaker, teapots, cooking ware, and fixtures
- Clear clogged drains
- Deodorize garbage cans
- Boost dishwashing liquid or make your own
- Remove stains
- Shine jewelry, stainless steel, chrome, and marble
- Wash wallpaper and remove crayon
- Remove musty odors
Borax
- Clear a clogged drain
- Remove stains
- Clean windows and mirrors
- Remove mildew from fabrics
- Sanitize your garbage disposal
- Eliminate urine odor
Fabric Softener Sheets
- Lift burned-on food
- Freshen drawers
- Remove soap scum
- Repel dust from TV screen
- Freshen hampers and waste baskets
- Buff chrome
- Keep dust off blinds
- Renew stuffed toys
Lemons
- Get rid of tough stains on marble
- Polish metals
- Clean the microwave
- Deodorize cutting boards, fridge, and garbage disposal
Rubbing Alcohol
- Clean fixtures, Venetian blinds, windows, and phones
- Remove hair spray from mirrors
- Prevent ring around the collar
- Remove ink stains
Salt
- Clean vases, discolored glass, flowerpots, artificial flowers, percolators, refrigerators, woks, and wicker
- Give brooms a longer life
- Ease fireplace or flour cleanup
- Make metal polish
- Remove wine and grease from carpet, water marks from wood, and lipstick from glasses
- Restore a sponge
- Freshen the garbage disposal
- Remove baked-on food
- Soak up oven spills
- Remove stains from pans and clean cast iron
Toothpaste
- Clean piano keys and sinks
- Polish metal and jewelry
- Deodorize baby bottles
- Remove ink or lipstick from fabric, crayons from walls, and water marks from furniture
Vinegar
- Clean blinds, bricks, tile, paneling, carpets, piano keys, computers, appliances, and cutting boards
- Clean china, crystal, glassware, coffeemakers, and cookware
- Banish kitchen grease
- Deodorize drains and closets
- Polish metal
- Erase ballpoint pen marks
- Remove water rings and wax from furniture
- Revitalize leather
- Clean fixtures
- Purge bugs
WD-40
- Remove carpet stains and floor scuffs
- Remove tea and tomato stains
- Clean toilet bowls
- Condition leather furniture
- Clean a chalkboard
- Remove marker and crayon from walls
In Conclusion
By keeping these ten products on hand for your cleaning, you'll be able to save quite a bit of money. Many of these items have plenty of other uses aside from those listed, so they're worth keeping around for so many reasons. Plus, you likely already have several of them on hand.
So, the next time you begin to stress about how high your monthly expenses are, remember that there are ways to cut costs without cutting effectiveness. This list is a great example of that; be sure to keep it bookmarked so you can always return to it. It's a good idea to keep it handy in case you forget what each item can be used for!
If you do have some extra cash on hand, check out some of the best cleaners you can buy.
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