10 DIY Frugal Cleaners | Pretty Handy Girl

On a quest to save money while cleaning your home? Do you want to use less chemicals when you clean? This is a compilation of 10 DIY Frugal Cleaners that I use in my home.  You can easily make them with common household ingredients. Soon your home will be clean and your wallet fat!

Super Frugal Laundry Detergent

DIY Laundry Detergent | Pretty Handy Girl

Frugal House Cleaners Detergent Ingredients:

  • 1/4 bar of Fels Naptha soap
  • 2 Tablespoons Borax powder
  • 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (not baking soda)
  • 2 empty laundry detergent bottles or 1 – 2.5 gallon water jug

Frugal House Cleaners Detergent  Instructions:

  • Grate the 1/4 Fels Naptha Bar using a cheese grater.
  • Put the Fels Naptha shreds and 1 cup of water into a pot and melt over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Continue stirring until all the soap has dissolved. Pour 2 1/2 quarts (10 cups) of water into a large container or bucket and add the cooked soap mixture.
  • Add 2 tbsp. of Borax and 1/4 c. of the washing soda and stir.
  • Add 2 1/2 quarts more water and stir.
  • Cover the mixture and let it set overnight.
  • The next morning, your soap will have thickened and gelled considerably. Stir it up. Add the mixture to your empty container(s) filling only half way full. Fill the rest of the container with water.
  • Shake the bottles to mix before use. Use 1/4 cup per load.

 

Inexpensive Fabric Softener Sheets

diy_fabric_softener_sheet_sponges

  • 1  bottle of Liquid Fabric Softener
  • 1 bucket
  • 4   sponges (cut in half to make 8)

Pour liquid fabric softener into bucket. Fill empty softener container with water and add it to the bucket. Repeat to give you a 2:1 mixture of water to fabric softener. Drop sponges into the mixture. Grab a sponge and wring out the excess liquid. Add it to the dryer with your wet clothes.

(Straight cheap fabric softener also makes a great wallpaper remover!)

 

Miracle Stain Remover

frugal house cleaners

  • 1 scoop of Oxi-Clean
  • 1 scoop of Liquid Clorox 2
  • 1 scoop of Cascade powder dishwashing detergent (or another powered brand.)

Fill your basin with warm water then add the oxi-clean, clorox 2 and dish detergent. Give it a swirl and mix until the powders dissolve and bubbles form. Place the stained garment into the mixture, being sure the stain is submerged. Let soak for about 2 hours.

For tougher stains, let it soak overnight. Remove the clothing to behold the miracle! Normally I will throw the garment into the wash, but you could simply rinse and dry it. This formula is also safe for colors as well!

 

Drain Cleaner

boiling_water_drain_cleaner

  • Hot Water
  • Salt
  • Vinegar
  • Baking Soda

For light drain cleaning, mix 1/2 cup salt in 1 gallon water, heat (but not to a boil) and pour down the drain.

For stronger cleaning, pour about 1/2 cup baking soda down the drain, then 1/2 cup vinegar. The resulting chemical reaction can break fatty acids down into soap and glycerine, allowing the clog to wash down the drain. After 15 minutes, pour in very hot water to clear residue.

Caution: only use this method with metal plumbing. Plastic pipes can melt if excess boiling water is used. Also, do not use this method after trying a commercial drain opener as the vinegar can react with the drain opener to create dangerous fumes.

 

Sink Cleanser and Hard Water Stain Remover

Scrub Away Hard Water Stains | Pretty Handy Girl

  • Baking soda
  • Vinegar

Make a paste with baking soda and water. Dip an old tooth brush into the paste and scrub your sink with the paste. Pour straight vinegar into a separate container. Dip toothbrush into the vinegar and go back over the backing soda paste. The fizzing chemical reaction of the backing soda and vinegar will aid in removing hard water stains. Repeat if necessary. For tougher stains, grab this power tool!

 

Stainless Steel Sink Shine

baby_oil_shine_stainless_steel

  • Baby oil
  • Paper towels

Squirt a small amount of baby oil in a clean stainless steel sink. Spread it around and wipe with a paper towel until shiny.

 

Mold remover

10 DIY Frugal Cleaners | Pretty Handy Girl

  • 1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide (3%)
  • 1 cup water

Mix in a spray bottle. Spray on mold and wait at 1 hour. Rinse clean.

 

Magic Soap Scum Dissolver

miracle_soap_scum_remover

  • 1 cup vinegar
  • 1 cup blue dawn dish detergent

Microwave vinegar until hot! Mix with blue dawn dish detergent in a spray bottle. Spray it on your toughest soap scum. Then wipe it off with ease!

 

Window Washing (Exterior and Interior)

window_washing_mixture

  • 2 gallons of warm water
  • 1/2 cup vinegar
  • 2 tsp liquid dish detergent

Tools: Sponge/Squeegee, Sponge, Dry lint free rag

Mix ingredients in a bucket. Dip the sponge/squeegee into the mixture and scrub the windows. Use the squeegee to remove all liquid from the windows. Wipe clean with a dry rag.

 

Carpet Stain Remover

10 DIY Frugal Cleaners | Pretty Handy Girl

  • vinegar
  • water
  • corn starch
  • salt
  • borax

Mix equal parts white vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Spray directly on stain, let sit for several minutes, and clean with a brush or sponge using warm soapy water.

For fresh grease spots, sprinkle corn starch onto spot and wait 15 – 30 minutes before vacuuming.

For a heavy duty carpet cleaner, mix 1/4 cup each of salt, borax and vinegar. Rub paste into carpet and leave for a few hours. Vacuum up the mixture.

I hope you found some of these home cleaners helpful. Please share if you have any great recipes for cleaners in the comments below.

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DIY House Cleaners

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl
Endurance BioBarrier Review

I’m going to warn you now, this is not a pretty post. But, this product review of Endurance Cleaner Prep and Endurance BioBarrier will most likely be one of your favorite posts if you deal with continual mold & mildew growth (especially in a small coffin-like shower from the 1970’s.)

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

You may remember how much I love our master bathroom shower:

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

That ugly harvest gold tile shower is the ugliest spot in our home. And, its attractive color is not helped by the mold growth that returns like clockwork every three weeks. I have tried everything to control its regrowth. What I’ve tried is using bleach, and leaving the shower door open all day. I even replaced the caulk in this shower. But, every three weeks that mold peeks out from the cracks and crevices.

This bathroom is slated to be demolished at some point, but until then it needs constant cleaning. That is until a few months ago when I tried Endurance BioBarrier Mold Prevention Spray (non-toxic and low-odor.)

Endurance sent me a the Cleaner Prep and Biobarrier to try out. You may remember that I tried it after cleaning our dirty and moldy storm windows.

Easy Clean Your Storm Windows with Steam | Pretty Handy Girl

I didn’t want to blog about the products until I had tried them for more than a few months. I’m happy to report that for four months, I didn’t need to clean our shower! Normally after three weeks the mold and mildew would have been happily growing in the corners of my shower.

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

On February 5th, 2015 I set about cleaning the shower with high hopes but big doubts.

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

As directed, I sprayed the Endurance BioBarrier Cleaner Prep in the shower. I let it sit for 15 minutes (1-5 minutes for normal cleaning. 15 minutes for tougher jobs.)

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

To clean off the mildew and mold, I used a scrub brush. Then rinsed all the surfaces with water.

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

After the shower is completely cleaned with the Cleaner Prep, spray the Endurance BioBarrier Anti-Mold protection spray to create a thin film on all surfaces.

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

Wipe up any puddled spray after a few minutes.

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

The shower was clean and devoid of any mold or mildew. Nothing miraculous yet. I can achieve the same results with bleach cleaner.

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

But, here’s where the similarities end. After four months (not three weeks) was the first time I began to see some mildew and mold regrowth. Read more

Black + Decker Flex Lithium Vacuum | Pretty Handy Girl

Black + Decker Flex Lithium Vacuum | Pretty Handy Girl

Black+Decker sent me their BLACK+DECKER MAX Lithium Flex Vacuum to test. I’ve been holding this review in my back archives for a while. I never like to publish a review until I’ve given a product a thorough testing and make sure it will hold up for the long haul. I’ve been using my Black+Decker MAX Lithium Flex 20V vacuum for a lot of my projects. You may have spotted it when I refinished the paint on my dryer. Or to clean up sawdust out of the grooves on my farmhouse table build. In fact, I grab for this little vacuum anytime I’ve made a little mess or spilled some powdered drink mix, etc.

Black + Decker Flex Lithium Vacuum | Pretty Handy Girl

But, last week I accidentally spilled a package of almonds in the tiny crevice between the seats in my car. I can’t even get my hand in this space, so I ran in to grab the big vacuum cleaner but stopped when I was in front of the Black+Decker Max Lithium Flex. I hate hauling out the big canister vacuum because it’s so heavy, but could a little vac handle nuts?

nuts-in-car-crevice

I honestly doubted it would be able to get all those almonds up. After all, I’d had poor luck in the past with small dust sucking devices.  Read more

Easy Clean Your Storm Windows with Steam | Pretty Handy Girl

Easy Clean Your Storm Windows with Steam | Pretty Handy Girl

Winter is tough on everyone, but it’s especially tough on your home.  The temperature difference between the outside and inside your home can leave a thick layer of mildew on your windows. Aluminum storm windows are especially prone to this condition. Before you open the windows and let in the warm breeze of Spring, you’ll want to quickly and easily clean mildew off your windows.

Easy Clean Your Storm Windows with Steam | Pretty Handy Girl

This is not one of my favorite cleaning tasks. In the past I used bleach and ended up smelling bleach all day long and probably doing damage to my nose (and brain.) This year I have a new cleaning BFF. The HomeRight Steam Machine Plus is my go to tool for cleaning almost anything! Just like when I cleaned the boys’ stinky bathroom, this little steam cleaner did not disappoint.

Easy Clean Your Storm Windows with Steam | Pretty Handy Girl

To clean the windows, release the hand held HomeRight Steam Machine Plus from the upright mop. Read more

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl
How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding

I love our antique heart pine floors! They are beautifully distressed. The round pegs and square nails securing them in place add loads of character. However, the square nails sit flush with the surface preventing us from ever being able to refinish them with a sander. The nails would tear up the sandpaper in no time. But, that’s no problem because I know a way to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding!

 

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

From time to time, our floors start to look dull…

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

…and the scratches are more noticeable. This is when I know it’s time to refinish them.

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

The first time I refinished our floors, it was several years ago when we were painting the office and dining room. I decided to try to refinish the floors because the rooms were already devoid of furniture. Several neighbors had recommended Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner and Bona® Hardwood Floor Polish. I was skeptical, but the results were beautiful floors that had luster, but still showed their beautiful age.

Before and After Finishing Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

The Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner did a fabulous job of cleaning the floor without damaging them. And, the Bona® Hardwood Floor Polish provided a strong finish without any waxy build up. The high gloss protective layer adds some shine, but isn’t overly shiny. The polish also fills micro-scratches, evening out the appearance of the floor.

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

Fast forward to this past week when Bona asked me to write a sponsored post for them, I jumped for joy because I already use and love the Bona® Hardwood Floor Products! (Here’s my full disclosure: Yes, this is a sponsored post. No, I was not told what to write. And yes, I probably would have blogged about my experiences using Bona® Hardwood Floor Products at some point anyway. Win-win.)

I highly recommend trying the combo of the Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner and the Bona® Hardwood Floor Polish before spending huge amounts of money to have your floors refinished. (Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner & Polish will not work on floors that have an oil or wax coating. Test in an inconspicuous area to be sure it will work for your floors.)

Here’s how to Refinish Your Wood Floors without Sanding:

Materials:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

Instructions for Cleaning the Wood Floors:

Remove all rugs and furniture from the room. If you have heavy furniture pieces that are never moved, you can leave them in place.

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

Vacuum or sweep the floors to remove all dirt and debris.

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding | Pretty Handy Girl

Assemble your Bona® Hardwood Floor Spray Mop as shown here: Read more