Well this past weekend involved some experimentation for John and I so it's now time for me to pass our findings on to you dear readers.
A number of our friends have been proclaiming the amazing cleaning powers of white vinegar. We hadn't started using it yet because we still had all of our old cleaning products which are taking up space under our sinks. However, since switching to doing all of our cleaning with rags "mopping" with harsh chemicals is less appealing since our faces are about a foot above the ground.
I made one bowl of 1:3 vinegar water mixture and it cleaned the bathroom mirror and sink, toilet, bathroom floor and kitchen floor all of which were pretty nasty. All I can say is that I'm converted. Not only did it not make my head hurt from the chemical smells, it cleaned really well. I was especially impressed that it got up the sticky gunk left behind from the slip prevention stuff on the bottom of our bathroom rug. It also cleaned the mirror well without leaving streaks behind.
I can't say how it would have worked on the kitchen counters and stove since John usually cleans that with dish water. I'll ask him to give it a try next time and will report our findings. Now I'm just stuck with what to do with all of my unused cleaning supplies. Ugh, I wish I could make my pre-change junk disappear.
On the gardening front we have been battling various pests including bugs, raccoons and the neighbor's cats. To keep the critters from biting off our tasty babies at the roots we made a mixture of vinegar, chili powder and biodegradable dish soap which was sprayed on the plants. To keep the cats from pooping in my freshly dug bed I made a 2-3 foot fence of branches (pictures available soon) that had been trimmed from various trees and bushes in our yard and then ran a length of twine at cat face height to discourage just pushing through.
Since most of the grazing and pooping goes on during the day while we are at work I will provide updates as to whether these measures work or not.
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4 comments:
I dont know how Seattle handles this, but Austin has a Household Waste facility where you can drop off unfinished cleaning supplies and then needy people can come pick them up. We're going to do that as soon as I buy a spray bottle or some other container to keep my vinegar solution in. Maybe there's someplace you can donate them?
Also, I just mixed up my first batch of vinegar cleaning solution using the 1:3 formula. Several websites I found also suggested using lavender or lemon oil to lessen the vinegar smell. I didnt have either so I used peppermint and now my walls smell minty fresh. J's one objection to vinegar cleaning was the smell. Problem solved.
The vinegar/water/peppermint solution was tried on kitchen counters & stove yesterday and worked so much better than store bought cleaners. The grease just melted away.
http://www.landofvos.com/articles/wingtips/safepest.html
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