7 Natural Cleaning Recipes for Your Floors
When you get an unexpected visitor, what do you clean first? I run to the bathroom and check the floors. Clean floors make your whole house feel cleaner, but it can be difficult to find the best cleaning solution for different types of floors. Whether you have vinyl, carpet or hardwood, you can clean it safely, effectively and organically. And you can rest easy knowing you'll save money in the process. How about a clean?
1. Citrus carpet freshener
This is one of my favorite homemade cleaning solutions. It keeps my carpets smelling fresh no matter how busy my house gets!
- 2 cups baking soda
- 10 drops lemon essential oil
- 10 drops orange or grapefruit essential oil
Variations:
Unscented—omit essential oils.
Lemon and clove—substitute 10 drops clove for the orange or grapefruit essential oil.
To make: add baking soda to a glass jar or container and scent with essential oils. Stir to combine.
To use: sprinkle on carpet or rug. Let sit for 15 minutes and vacuum thoroughly.
To store: keep in a cool, dark place indefinitely.
Money-saving tip
This homemade carpet freshener costs pennies to make (much cheaper than commercial versions!), mixes up in a minute, and keeps indefinitely.
2. Odor absorber
If you have an odor in your carpet and you can’t get rid of it, you don’t want to mask it with another scent. Just grab that box of baking soda—it’s the ultimate natural odor absorber.
Baking soda
To make: no mixing required, just sprinkle!
To use: simply sprinkle baking soda on the carpet or rug and let it sit for at least 24 hours. Cover the spot so a pet or small child doesn’t disturb the baking soda. Vacuum up residue and repeat if necessary.
To store: keep baking soda on hand for all of your odor-absorbing needs. Keeps indefinitely.
Money-saving tip
Baking soda’s baking qualities have a shelf life, but you can still use the baking soda for cleaning and neutralizing odors. Instead of tossing an “expired” box of baking soda, repurpose it for your carpet care.
3. Peppermint laminate floor cleaner
Streaks abound when you use commercial floor cleaners. This concoction will not only clean your floors, it will leave them streak-free and smelling great.
- 5 ounces water
- 5 ounces distilled white vinegar
- 5 ounces rubbing alcohol
- 10 drops peppermint essential oil
To make: mix liquid and pour in a container with a spray top, or pour mixture in a refillable spray mop container.
To use: dampen a microfiber mop applicator or pad with water; spray solution on floor and wipe clean. Apply in one direction and rinse microfiber floor pad frequently to avoid streaks.
To store: store in a sealed, airtight container for up to 1 week.
4. Citrus tile floor cleaner
Tile can get grungy in a hurry. Here’s a great recipe that will cut the grime and leave your floors clean—no rinsing required.
- 1⁄4 cup borax
- 1 gallon hot water
- 5 drops lemon essential oil
- 5 drops orange essential oil
Variations:
Unscented—omit the essential oils.
Extra cleaning—if your floors are extra dirty, add 1 or 2 drops of castile or dish soap to the solution. Rinsing should still not be necessary.
To make: mix borax, water, and essential oil in your mopping bucket. Stir to dissolve.
To use: mop floors as usual. Rinsing is not usually necessary.
To store: this is a one-time-use product; no storage necessary.
Helpful hint
If your floors are extra dirty, have a bucket of clean water alongside your cleaning solution. Rinse in the plain water bucket instead of the cleaning bucket—this will ensure clean water is on your floors and it should eliminate streaking.
5. Lemon and mint vinyl floor cleaner—spray
Vinyl floors dirty and sticky? This spray dries quickly, kills germs, and will brighten up those vinyl floors pronto!
- 5 ounces water, distilled or boiled and cooled
- 5 ounces distilled white vinegar
- 5 ounces rubbing alcohol
- 3 drops lemon essential oil
- 2 drops peppermint essential oil
Variations:
Unscented—omit the essential oils.
Lemon and clove—substitute clove essential oil for the peppermint.
To make: add ingredients to a spray bottle and shake to combine.
To use: spray on vinyl floor and mop with a wet mop or wet microfiber padded mop; continue until floor is clean.
To store: store in a cool, dark place for up to 1 month.
Time-saving tip
Keep this spray bottle handy to spot-clean your vinyl floors in between your weekly floor washing.
6. Carpet disinfectant and cleaner
If you have a particular icky carpet spot (stomach bug going around the house?) That needs to be disinfected, try this solution. I prefer vodka because there’s virtually no smell and it seems to absorb any odors a little better.
Vodka or rubbing alcohol
To make: pour vodka or rubbing alcohol on the stain or spot.
To use: blot stain or spill (never rub a stain, it will only set it) with clean white cloths or paper towels. Repeat as necessary.
To store: vodka and alcohol will last indefinitely.
7. Floor wipes—dry
Disposable floor sweepers are great for trapping dust, fur, hair, and dirt. If you want to try to make your own, look no further than the automotive aisle for your microfiber cloths. You’ll find a big pack of microfiber cloths that you can repurpose for just about any cleaning task around the home. I love them for floor wipes because they tend to be a little larger than the standard size so they work really well over your floor mop head.
1 package of microfiber cleaning cloths—at least 12" × 16"
Variation:
Scented—put a drop of essential oil on the wipe before placing on the sweeper for instant scented floor wipes. Lavender, lemon, orange? Any scent that gets you in the floor-sweeping mood.
To make: fit microfiber cloths over floor sweeper—pinch fabric into place.
To use: once cloth is secured in floor sweeper, simply push over your floor, picking up any dirt. Launder used rags with the rest of your cleaning rags.
To store: store indefinitely.
Helpful hint
Flip the cloth over and use the other side before laundering. First shake any dirt or dust out in the garbage or outside if necessary.