Vinegar: (Almost) the Only Cleaner You'll Ever Need
Cleaning with vinegar is powerful, natural--and cheap!
by Noël-Marie Taylor
by Noël-Marie Taylor
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ost cleaning products fall into one of two categories: toxic or expensive. While both types will clean almost anything (or at least, anything within their limited range of capabilities), there's a third option. It's inexpensive and not at all poisonous to humans. It's multi-purpose as well--one container will take care of laundry, kitchen cleaning, even bugs and weeds. This "miracle cleaner" is vinegar.
Vinegar is a weak form of acetic acid that forms through the fermentation of sugars or starches. It is completely edible, and cannot harm your stomach. And luckily for us, many things can be cleaned using it.
The uses of vinegar are nearly endless. In addition to cleaning, it is an excellent item for cooking and for home science experiments (remember the vinegar-and-baking soda volcanoes from grade school?). The health benefits are many as well.
In this article, we are focusing on the uses of vinegar as a cleaner. For information on some of its other uses, see the links at the end of the article. Note: plain white vinegar is the best for the following uses; cider and other vinegars may have unwanted side effects. Vinegar is used in 100% concentration unless otherwise specified.
Your Vinegar Spray Bottles
In addition to your regular bottle of vinegar, a really useful item is a spray bottle. Ideally, you want two--one with pure vinegar, the other with a half vinegar, half water combination. Having vinegar in a dispenser of this type makes its use much simpler in many cases.
All Around the House
1. To remove stickers that have been used to "decorate" furniture and other surfaces, moisten with vinegar. Let sit for at least ten minutes, then remove.
2. For persistent room odors, place a bowl of vinegar in the room overnight.
3. For spills on carpet, use a sponge or cloth to soak up as much liquid as possible. Then spray with a mixture of half vinegar, half water. Let stand for about two minutes, then blot with towel or sponge. Repeat as needed.
4. For more persistent stains, use a mixture of 1 teaspoon vinegar, 1 teaspoon liquid dish soap, and 1 cup warm water. Proceed as suggested above. When finished cleaning, dry using a hairdryer set on low.
5. To clean windows, spray with half vinegar, half water. Wipe clean with either newspapers or cloth.
6. To clean silver, pewter, copper, or brass, dissolve 1 teaspoon salt in one cup vinegar. Add flour to create a paste (1/4 cup or more). Apply the paste to the metal item, and let stand for at least fifteen minutes. Rinse with warm water and polish with a soft cloth.
7. No-wax floors can be cleaned with a solution of 1 cup vinegar per gallon of water for a shinier surface.
8. To clean wood paneling, use a mixture of 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup vinegar, and 2 cups warm water. Apply to paneling with a soft cloth. Dry with a clean cloth.
In the Bathroom
9. To remove corrosion or chemical build-up from showerheads, soak in vinegar overnight.
10. Remove stains from the toilet bowl by spraying with vinegar and spraying.
11. To remove soap build-up from faucets, clean with a mixture of 1 part salt to four parts vinegar.
12. Spray shower walls and shower curtain with vinegar to help prevent mildew.
In the Kitchen
13. To keep ants away, spray vinegar along doorways, windowsills, countertops - anywhere that ants are likely to appear. If you find an ant trail (path that ants use repeatedly), clean it with vinegar.
14. To remove odors from the sink or garbage disposal, pour in a cup or more vinegar. Do not rinse out again for at least an hour.
15. For a clogged drain, first pour in 1/2 cup baking soda. Then add an equal amount of vinegar. When the mixture finishes bubbling, rinse with warm water. (Note: some garbage disposals do not react well to this cleaning method; check with the manufacturer first.)
16. Wipe your hands with vinegar after chopping. It will remove strong scents like onion and garlic, as well as stains from fruit juices.
17. To clean wooden cutting boards, wipe with vinegar.
18. Remove strong odors. Rinse jars with a half and half mixture of vinegar and water to remove garlic or other strong odors. Boil water with several spoons of vinegar to remove the smell of burnt food from your kitchen.
19. Vinegar is an excellent cleaner for all kitchen surfaces - counters, refrigerators, stovetops.
20. To clean your microwave oven, put a microwave-safe bowl of 1/2 cup vinegar and 1 cup water in the oven, and cook long enough to boil. In addition to removing any lingering odors, this will loosen any baked-on food from the microwave's walls.
21. To remove coffee or tea stains from china, clean with a mixture of vinegar and salt.
![[vinegar graphic]](/misc/images/vinegar.gif)
In the Laundry
22. To keep colors from running in the wash, soak in vinegar before washing.
23. To decrease lint on clothing, add 1/2 cup vinegar to the rinse cycle.
24. Many persistent stains can be removed with vinegar: coffee, chocolate, ketchup, jam, cola, wine. Gently rub stain with vinegar, then wash.
25. To make your "brights brighter", add 1/2 cup vinegar to the rinse cycle.
26. For fresher cloth diapers, add one cup distilled vinegar to the rinse cycle. This will break down uric acid and remove both lingering stains and scents.
27. To remove scorch marks from an iron, rub with a mixture of vinegar and salt.
28. To remove soap residue from the washing machine, run an empty (no laundry) cycle with one cup vinegar added.
29. To remove the smell of smoke from clothing, add a cup of vinegar to a tub of hot water. Let clothing hang in the same room for several hours.
Pet Care
30. To keep cats off windowsills or other surfaces, spray with vinegar. This will also keep them from scratching upholstery (spray an unnoticeable area of the fabric first to make sure the vinegar doesn't cause a stain).
31. To keep dogs from scratching their ears, clean with a soft cloth dipped in diluted vinegar.
32. If your dog should have a run-in with a skunk, vinegar will take care of the smell better than even tomato juice. Using vinegar diluted 50% with water, rub the dog's fur. Rinse with warm water. Repeat as needed.
Noël-Marie Taylor is a freelance writer located in Columbia, Maryland. Her work has appeared in many magazines, including PC Magazine and The Mother Is Me. A stay-at-home mom to two children, she is also the designer of several cross-stitch kits for children.
Related items:
- Cleaning with Baking Soda: A companion article here on TNH
- 101 Uses for Peroxide
![[BOOK]](/misc/images/book.gif)
- Clean and Green: The Complete Guide to Non-Toxic and Environmentally Safe Housekeeping
- Fifty Uses for Vinegar
![[REMOTE]](/misc/images/remote.gif)
- Many Uses for Vinegar
- CENYC: Detox Your Home
- Environmentally Friendly Cleaners
- The Five Basics of Nontoxic Cleaning
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Burnt food
My skillets, pots, and pans are notorious for getting food stuck on them, and many times I've burnt food in them (I'm newly domesticated...). One of the ways I clean up is by putting vinegar, warm water, and a small squirt of dish soap in, letting it sit for a few minutes, and then boiling it for a few minutes while stirring.
Also, to clean my sponges, I soak them in water with vinegar and lemon juice, then microwave them for about 1 1/2-2 min (KEEP WET! or they will ignite.).
Natural Preservative for Flax Hair Gel ?
I'm allergic to perfumes and fragrances even found in 100% natural hair gel. I've come across a great recipe by simply boiling flax seed in water, but it must stay in the fridge to keep it from spoiling.
I'm looking for a natural preservative that would allow me take my gel with me when I travel. I have read that essential oils will do the trick, but have no idea of what kind to try. Can any one help me? Please email me at kennysacht@cableone.net
To Preserve Your Hair Gel
Try grapefruit seed extract. It's a powerful preservative. You can also try adding some vitamin E. Vitamin E is also a natural preservative. Hope this helps
cleaning wood
If you clean wood floors with cooking oil and vinegar or polish wood with cooking oil and lemon juice. Is it flammable because of wiring or anything? Or is it safe?
Vinegar is an acid
Vinegar does not cut grease, and therefore does not remove germs/ soil the way soaps and detergents do. Most dirt is slightly acidic, while most soaps (even all natural) are alkaline, which is why they work. This is illustrated pretty easily if you have ever made salad dressing. Vinegar cannot dissolve or mix with oils. Most germs are removed (without sanitizing with harsh chemicals) through the breaking apart of dirt/ soils which allows them to be washed away by a cleaning cloth or sponge. This can only happen through an alkaline soap, not an acid. This process removes 99% of bacteria. If you wash everything with Vinegar, you remove NO bacteria. It is not a disinfectant, or surfactant.
All these natural cleaning sites and articles seem to have been written with zero understanding of basic chemistry. The most gentle and all natural cleansers are simply less alkaline-- but still alkaline-- so they are not so harsh-- but require a bit more elbow grease.
Vinegar is great for breaking down hard water deposits-- such as those on metals, in toilet boils (most toilet bowl cleaners are acids, which is why they should never be mixed with bleach). But it wont disinfect your toilet, or remove any lingering soils-- this can only be done by a soap. It works to unclog drains only when mixed with baking soda because of the fizzing action, not any grease cutting properties.
It is effective at removing the smell of bleach when added to wash in the rinse cycle (when no bleach is in machine). It helps remove other smells (but also has its own strong smell) but not as good as enzyme cleaners.
It is great for cleaning soap scum and calcium deposits which are salts that break down in acid. Often windows have water deposits and therefore vinegar is often used for cleaning windows. But ammonia is what cuts grease/ soil, as it is an alkaline, so it is much more effective on windows and for other dirt/ grease cutting jobs. It doesnt streak like soap, so that is why it works best on windows. If you dont want to use ammonia, use a surfactant window cleaner (mild soap like 7th gen or other all natural glass/ surface cleaner) and follow with vinegar to remove soap residue.
Vinegar is good for removing ring around the collar and other sweat stains, because those stains persist due to the fact that our sweat contains minerals and salts-- from our body and from deodorants and hair products. Vinegar is great for dissolving minerals and salts, so it works on these stains (or to prevent them as a pre-wash treatment).
But it doesnt cut grease or "wash" or dissolve dirt or sanitize. If you want a cheap non-harsh "green" sanitizer, try hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol. Disinfectants or sanitizers like these are mostly unnecessary if soap can be used to dissolve and allow 99% of dirt/ bacteria to be washed away in rinsing/ wiping.
Also, any acid full strength is toxic-- vinegar included. Getting full strength vinegar in your eyes or on your skin can be very bad. Ingesting quantities of it is also not good. Most of the vinegar we eat in food is diluted, or consumed with other foods. So it is not as dangerous as bleach, but having it around full strength requires the same safety measures-- keeping it labeled and out of reach of kids.
Germicide?
Its grease-cutting/dirt-removing properties aside, vinegar is supposed to kill "bad" germs.
My bathroom/kitchen sinks used to smell a bit in the morning, because of moisture remaining from the night before. Since I've been spraying them with vinegar before I go to bed, there's been no smell at all.
Dogs
I live in Thailand and ride a bicycle. Dogs here are a problem as there are many that chase you while riding. I carry a spray bottle of vinegar and when chased by dogs I give them a spray of vinegar, it stops them in there tracks and it's the usually the last time they chase you.
Vinegar is Awesome!
I have been a profesional cleaner for many years & can offer one piece of advice...
if you dont have vinegar,a tooth brush & cotton wool in your kit, you deserve what you get! P.S. My speciality is cleaning up after parties & doing exit cleans for real estate agencies.
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