Make Green Household Cleaners

• Step 1 Make silver polish or dip

  If you’ve ever gotten dizzy breathing the fumes while polishing Grandma’s silver, try one of these two easy recipes for silver polish:

  Polish. Rub toothpaste into the silver with a damp rag. Rinse and dry with a soft cloth.

  Dip. Line a bucket with aluminum foil and put the silverware in it. Pour in enough boiling water to cover the silverware and add 1 cup baking soda and a dash of table salt. Wait several minutes and then remove the silverware, rinse and dry with a soft cloth.

• Step 2 Polish fixtures with vodka

  A common ingredient in mixed drinks, vodka also is a surprisingly effective bathroom cleaner. Use it on mirrors or to clean glass, chrome or porcelain bathroom fixtures. Wet a soft rag with vodka, rub on bathroom fixtures and then let air dry.

• Step 3 Clean windows with club soda and lemon juice

  This easy-to-use combination of two common household items removes grease and keeps windows shining. Fill a spray bottle with club soda and add a teaspoon of lemon juice. Spray on windows and wipe dry with a lint-free microfiber cloth.

• Step 4 Freshen carpets with corn starch

  Why buy perfumed carpet deodorizers, when corn starch does the job for a fraction of the price? Sprinkle carpet with a light layer of corn starch. Let sit for 30 minutes and then vacuum. Change the cleaner bag afterwards, because powdery materials clog the bag and could make the vacuum overheat.

• Step 5 Use vinegar as an all-purpose cleaner

  The weak acid in vinegar works wonders on everything from wood floors to mineral buildup on your showerhead. Try these combinations to get the most out of this versatile cleaner:

  Remove buildup from a showerhead. Remove the showerhead and soak it in a half cup of warm vinegar for one hour. Rinse the showerhead and reattach.

  Wash wood floors. Mop the floor with a mixture of 1 gallon warm water and 1/4 cup white vinegar. Rinse with clean water.

  Polish wood floors. Mix equal parts white vinegar and vegetable oil in a bucket or spray bottle. Rub into wood and then buff with a soft cloth.

• Step 6 Replace oven cleaners with baking soda

  Oven cleaners can burn skin and eyes, pollute the air and if inhaled, are dangerous to your internal organs. It’s just as effective to clean your oven with baking soda as it is with chemicals, if you follow these steps:

  1. Spray water in the inside walls, floor and ceiling of a cold oven.

  2. Dust the moistened surfaces with a layer of baking soda.

  3. Spray more water over the baking soda to make it cling to the surface.

  4. Leave on overnight.

  5. Thoroughly wipe the oven surfaces clean with a damp sponge.

• Step 7 Kill mold and mildew with tea tree oil

  You can buy tea tree oil at most natural food stores. It’s expensive, but you only need a few teaspoons to get the benefit of this powerful cleaner. Its strong smell fades, and its cleaning power keeps mold from growing back for longer than harsher mold-removers.

  1. Open the window in the room.

  2. Fill a spray bottle with 1 teaspoon tea tree oil for each 1 cup of water.

  3. Spray the mixture on mold or mildew.

  4. Let sit for one hour and wipe with a damp rag.

• Step 8 Remove odors and stains with lemon juice

  Like vinegar, lemon juice is a versatile household cleaner:

  • Rinse your hands with lemon juice to remove stubborn odors like onion and garlic (but not if you have open cuts on your hands).
  • Add it to the rinse cycle when you do laundry to whiten whites.
  • Remove stubborn stains or smells from plastic containers by rubbing lemon juice into stain and letting it dry in the sun. Wash and dry the container.

• Step 9 Clean copper with ketchup

  Ketchup is not just for hamburgers anymore. Use it — or hot sauce — to make copper pots shine.

  1. Use a soft cloth to coat the pot or other item with a thin layer of ketchup.

  2. Let sit for an hour.

  3. Rub with a soft cloth to remove the ketchup.

  4. Rinse and dry.

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