My All-Purpose Green Spray Cleaner

My blog title suggests that I write about "Green Living" and I realized that while I try to live that way, I haven't dedicated much any of my blog to it at all.

I realized one reason for this is that one of my biggest "Green" philosophies is that
less is MORE
for a clean, non-toxic lifestyle.

I simply do not use many products!

One of my favorite "green" products is my all-purpose cleaner. 
I make it myself in a spray bottle.  It really shouldn't be call "All-Purpose" but rather
"Most-Purpose" as it should NOT be used on natural stone.

DON'T use this on marble, travertine, limestone, etc. 

You might get away with it on sealed granite, but I don't make any promises!

The reason being it contains vinegar which, in time, will etch your natural stone (eat away at it). 

So here ya go:

My ALL MOST PURPOSE green, non-toxic, food surface-safe cleaner.

Mix in a spray bottle:

1 cup distilled water

1 cup cheap white vinegar 

 2 TBS Rubbing Alcohol

1/8 tsp liquid Castille Soap

 Essential oils (optional)

Notes:

Vinegar: Kills most mold, bacteria and germs

Alcohol: cuts through dirt and grime (grease) and also disinfects...additionally it helps the product to dry quickly, resulting in less streaking

Castille Soap: Removes build-up of other cleaning products and just generally a great cleaner (but if you use too much, you'll need to rinse the surface with water, which is fine but I love a spray and wipe cleaner for most uses)

If you don't mind rinsing the surface with plain water, you can add more Castille Soap and also Baking Soda. Baking Soda is an excellent scrubbing product for really icky things, but does need to be rinsed or you're left with a white residue. It's NON-TOXIC of course, but not too attractive!

*Pure Castille Soap is mostly olive oil, pretty much the least toxic soap you can buy.  You can clean anything with this (laundry, dishes, your body/hair/teeth). I buy Dr. Brommer's on line by the gallon.

Do you have a favorite green cleaner, either homemade or purchased?  Please leave a comment with it! I'm always looking for ideas.

*This is a spray and wipe cleaner, no rinsing necessary.

*Sometimes I just use filtered water.

*Costco sells two 1-gal bottles of white vinegar for around $4.

*The final product has a pretty strong vinegar smell and to some is not pleasant...though it dissipates quickly. You can add essential oils to both improve the scent and also provide additional cleaning benefits. This time I used peppermint (it's strong properties do a great job of masking unpleasant smells and it's also a natural pest repellent) and tea tree oil (antifungal, antibacterial and germicidal) You can use anywhere from a few drops or 30-40 depending on how much the vinegar scent bothers you.