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Eco-friendly cleaning hacks

Those of you who have been reading my posts or following me for a while now, would know that I am attempting to endure a natural living, use of eco-friendly stuff and  minimising wastage. 

I have just begun, which means I am at almost "zero" currently. It is a change in lifestyle of not one person, but whole family and hence may take over months and years and along with time it requires lots of patience and perseverance.

Being Diwali around, I am dedicating this post to a few tried and tested eco-friendly cleaning hacks for two most important areas of your house.

What you will require-


Some spray bottles
Rags/flannel cloths/sponges
Lots of white Vinegar
Lots of baking soda
Lime
Salt


Kitchen Cleaning

For cleaning drains - Put one cup of baking soda in the drain and gradually pour one cup of white vinegar over it, it will clean the drain.

If the drain is clogged use your regular plunger first and then follow the above steps.

To clean the sink- sprinkle baking soda and with a cloth/sponge soaked in vinegar, wipe sink surface.

To clean the taps and other fixtures, use a cloth dampened with vinegar and wipe the fixtures. You could use a mix of baking soda and water, apply this paste to the fixtures and scrub them clean.

I also use tooth-paste (the white ones) to clean fixtures, they shine like new.

Drinking glasses and baby dishes could be sanitised and cleaned by dipping for few minutes in vinegar and water solution. Baking soda could also be used to have your crystalware shining like new, just sprinkle some baking soda over crystalware and use a toothbrush to rub gently.

For ovens and microwaves, to loosen the grime use a large oven/microwave safe bowl, fill it with 400ml water and 100ml vinegar. Run  the microwave on full power for 2-4 minutes. Let it remain closed for the steam to settle and work. Open the microwave, remove the bowl carefully and clean the oven with a damp cloth.

Easy hack for your silverware is to wrap your silver article in an aluminium foil and dip it in boiling water, add baking soda and voilaaa the article comes out shining.. no scrubbing can give you this result.

For cleaning fridge-  Sprinkle baking soda and salt and use a damp cloth or sponge to clean the surfaces. You could also use the following solution to clean interior and exterior walls of the fridge -  2 tableapoon of baking soda and 1 litre luke warm water, use a cloth dipped in this solution and wipe the walls and surfaces. For stubborn stains use baking soda directly.

Bathroom Cleaning
Spray a mix of water and vinegar on the walls/tiles , let it sit for 10-15 minutes and wipe with a cloth. This will clean and help you get rid of mildew.

For chrome fixtures you could use toothpaste or a mix of vinegar and baking soda.

For floor i used to use bleach, but now with a little baby I try to avoid it. You could use vinegar and hot water to clean the bathroom floor and for grouts bleach can be used with a toothbrush. Alternatively you could use lemon to clean the grouts.

Happy cleaning, wish you all a very happy Diwali.

Will try to cover other areas in my next post..  hopefully before the next Diwali!


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