Child-Safe Cleaning Supplies: Make Your Own

Kids will do almost anything to get out of helping with housework [1].  The next time your teen complains that those cleaning chemicals are hazardous to her health, have your own back-talk ready – tell her your household cleaning supplies have just gone green and child-safe. 

By using your own natural household cleaners, you can enroll everyone in the family in chores, and never have to worry about toxins.  Here are some quick and easy recipes for child-safe cleaning solutions:

Glass Cleaner.  Fill a spray bottle with a quart of water.  Add a tablespoon of white vinegar. 

Floor and Tile Cleaner.  Use the same ingredients as glass cleaner (above), but pump up the volume: one gallon of hot water to a quarter of a cup of white vinegar.

Disinfectant.  Clean counters, floors, cabinets and tiles with a formula of one cup of borax in one gallon of hot water.

Mildew Remover.  Brew up a strong thyme tea.  Alternatively, use equal parts white vinegar and salt.

Sink & Toilet Cleaner.  Create a paste using baking soda or borax, and a little squeeze of lemon juice.  Create a more abrasive cleaner using baking soda or borax alone. 

Toilet Bowl Cleaner.  Drop in a few vitamin C capsules or denture cleaning tablets and let them sit overnight.

Carpet Freshener & Cleaner:  Deodorize carpet by sprinkling cornstarch or baking soda and vacuuming up.  Alternatively, mix up two parts cornstarch and one part borax, sprinkle it on the carpet, let it sit for an hour, then vacuum.

Carpet Stains.  Rub borax onto the dampened area, let dry, then vacuum.  Alternatively, blot with vinegar and soapy water until stain is lifted.

Furniture Polish.  Mix half a cup of lemon juice to one cup of olive oil.

Brass Cleaner.  Mix equal parts flour and salt into a small amount of vinegar.

With a few basic ingredients and the right recipes, you can send your kids to work around the house [2]safely and completely guilt-free with child-safe cleaning supplies.