Recipes for homemade cleaning products

AUTOMATIC DISHWASHER RINSE
If you have noticed that your dishes coming out of the dishwasher have come out with a cloudy film, place a bowl with 1 cup white vinegar on the bottom rack of your dishwasher & run a full cycle. This will also eliminate odours if run once a month.

LIQUID DETERGENT LIFTER
To make your dishwashing detergent last longer, add 3 Tblsp of white vinegar to your detergent bottle & mix well. You will notice that you will not need as much detergent. This will also make the detergent milder on your hands while your dishes will be cleaner & glass shinier.

SHINING COUNTER TOPS
For your formica & laminate counter tops, clean with a cloth soaked in full strength white vinegar to make them really shiny.

SPONGE SAVER
To save your sponges from getting smelly hence making them last longer before you out them in the bin, pour 1L of clean water into your kitchen sink with 1/4 cup of white vinegar & add your sponges. Leave to soak overnight, drain & rinse the sponges. Now they are ready to use again.

WHITEN CLOTHES
Add 2 cups of white vinegar to the rinse water to brighten white laundry items. NB: Only use distilled, FULL strength white vinegar.

AIR DEODORISER
To get rid of musty & stale smells from a room, just pour full strength white vinegar in 1 or 2 bowls & place them around the room. As an alternative, you can spray vinegar around the room as a natural air freshener.

BLOCKED DRAINS?
To unblock your drains, first, turn on your hot tap & let it run until the water gets as hot as it can then turn off. immediately pour 1/2 cup of baking soda down the drain & let it settle for 1 -2 mins. Then pour 1 cup of full strength white vinegar down the drain. When this foams up, turn on your hot water tap on full blast & run for 30 secs - 1 min. Then flush for 1 min with cold water. For best results, repeat process again.

BRIGHTEN YOUR CARPETS & RUGS
To make them look like new again, use 1 cup white vinegar to 4L of water & brush the mixture onto your carpet or rug with a clean, new broom.

CARPET STAIN REMOVAL
This is for non-oily stains. mix 1tsp liquid dish or laundry detergent & 1tsp distilled white vinegar in 1/2L warm water. Apply to the stain with a clean old towel & rub gently. Rinse with another clean towel & blot dry. Repeat if necessary until stain is gone. For best results do this as soon as stain is discovered.

MAKE JEWELLRY GLISTEN
Place your rings, bracelets, neck chains & brooches in hot vinegar with a little bking soda. The solution may foam up but don't worry as this is a reaction it has with the metal. Soak the jewellry for 10 mins. When you remove jewellry, rinse in water & lightly scrub with a toothbrush to get into the crevices. Rinse again & wipe dry. NB: Do NOT immerse pearls, soft stones or glued pieces as soulution may damage the items.

MAKE YOUR WINDOWS SPARKLE
To have streak-free, sparlkly windows, spray them with undiluted white or apple cider vinegar from a spray bottle. Dry & polish with a soft, clean cloth.

WEED KILLER
To kill weeds, simply fill a spray bottle with indiluted whiter vinegar & spray them. If there is any new growth, repeat the proceed. This works especially well with broad leaf weeds.