Household Cleaners

[Janice]

What one household cleaner can you NOT live without.

Me... Spray and Wash

John gets so dirty outside, I have to have it.

[southerngale]

I find that Shout works better than Spray and Wash, at least for me.

I have to have Lysol Disinfectant All-Purpose Cleaner and Lysol Disinfectant Aerosol. Sorry, can't just pick one! I use them both daily.

[O Town]

Yep Shout for me too, with 3 kids I find it works better that spray n wash as well.
Windex I use daily for all sorts of things, like counter tops to kill the germs, use it for the glass tables, stove, microwave.....pretty much everything I clean daily. And since I still hand wash my dishes I could not live without my Dawn dish washing liquid, the only one I will use.

[jusforsean]

o.k. I have 2 Borax and white vinegar both disinfect great from toiletbowls to counters to laundry and floors!!

[Janice]

Hey, I have always just picked up Spray and Wash. I will pick up a Shout next time, thanks.

Another thing I do is, because I have big granite counters and 2 glass top tables, with all my cats, duh. I put Mr. Clean or another cleaner full strength in a spray bottle. I go around and spray and wipe off the counters. Easy and don't use as much and the spray smell good. The spray works great for the bathroom too. I use my Windex for windows and glass tho.

My cats are spoiled, walk on everything. It is their house too.

[Janice]

I have never used Borax. What is it for?

[Miss Mary]

Ajax dishwashing detergent. It's great for crystal, glasses, even glass shower doors! My mom found a hand held cleaning brush, with a small reservoir to hold cleaner. I would just pour straight Ajax in it and clean the shower doors (after wetting them first). Ajax just cut right thru the soap scum.

That's probably my favorite brand name one. The rest are all a mix of generic cleaners.

And all in one scent - lemon. I hate mixing scents and try to find ones that are unscented first.

Mary

[Janice]

I buy the candle liquid scents in little bottles. I put some in a spray bottle with water and go around the house spraying. It is cheaper than regular scent sprays and lasts longer.
I like vanilla best.

[Miss Mary]

Janice - that's a good idea. At least you stick with one scent. My now ex-SIL had deordorizer plug ins in practically every outlet, in a 2 story home. All different scents. So many, all waffling together b/c their 35+ year old home had received water damage in the past 5 years (crawl space had incorrectly installed downspouts that were corrected). It was dried out but the musty finished basement smell lingered. And we discovered after she moved out, she didn't clean very well. We suspected that's why she had all those plug ins! We assisted her husband who is disabled in cleaning the home well after she cleared out and we had even more scents going that day - Windex, Bathroom cleaner, carpet cleaner, Murphy's oil soap to mop with, Pledge furniture cleaner, etc. I had the job of cleaning one room's carpet and had been bending over, smelling all of these 20+ scents, what a cocktail they made. Anyway, I had an instant migraine set in and I was a major mess!

Anytime I see anything scented - laundry detergent, cleaners, etc. - I just about gag.

My husband and I both joked that our ex-SIL would be the first in line for that scented wall paint, that lasts for 12 months. Oh yeah, she would.

She has hang up scented air fresheners in her car and when we watch their little girl, she smells like one.

Me? I just prefer opening a window and using one scent, either lemon or orange. And making sure 50% of our products come in unscented. I'm kinda odd that way!

And oh get this, the ex SIL gets killer migraines!!! You don't know how many times I've wanted to tell her to pitch the plugs ins and open a window.

Sorry for that rant....
Mary

[Janice]

No kidding. She needs to get outside and breathe some air. She will die there inside with all that... Yes, my spray scent is cheap. I would be broke buying all those things. One thing too, I used to love scented candles all around. They burn out too fast for the money. I may put one in the guest bedroom when company comes.

[Yankeegirl]

My all time fav thing is 409 spray.. I use that on everything!!! I also like Clorox Clean up and the ever powerful febreeze.... I also like to use Yankee Candles.. I have so many of them... They are quite addicting.. Kind of expensive, but definately worth every penny.. I think I have tried like 50% of them... They are great, nothing beats a Yankee Candle...

[Janice]

Yes, when I buy a nice candle, I love Yankee. Also, I saw Febreeze advertised, and I might give it a try.

[abajan]

One of the most versitile cleaners you're likely to come across is white vinegar. (Many people use it in salads and so forth but it should really never be ingested. Apple cyder vinegar is the one to use for food.)

Chlorine bleach (Clorox etc.) is excellent for illiminating practically any odor but don't mix it with other cleaners as there is a very real danger of a chemical reaction releasing chlorine gas which can be deadly!

[Cookiely]

Do away with a lot of expensive smelly cleaners with the new Magic Erasers.

[jusforsean]

Borax is an old fasioned cleaner/laundry booster. It comes in a box called 20 mule team borax in the laundry isle. Its uses are endless. I clean houses as well and it is great on toilets, floors, wiping everything down, and its great for bugs as well look it up online and you will find a million uses . White vinegar is amazing also, keep in a spray bottle to wipe counters do mirrors and glass, great in laundry rinse as well if you look it up youll learn that although it is not marketed as such it kills 99.9 percent of germs and bacteria and is dirt cheap as well. I use all of these types of cleaners because I suffer with allergies and asthma plus i cant stand the toxic dump that the others create in my home for my kids Its a personal choice but if you try some natural things youll be amazed i was!

[Janice]

Thanks, I will pick up some Borax and give it a try. I use a lot of Windex too with all my glass windows and sliding doors.

[angelwing]

1/2 cup white vinegar, 1/2 cup baking soda to 2 gallons of water...great for cleaning furniture & walls! Just started using this this past weekend, you would not believe the nicotine that came off! (and I thought I had already denicotined everything when the old man was released from the hospital, boy was I wrong!)

[Janice]

Yes, nicotine sticks to everything. I found that out when I washed down my walls and cupboards.

[feederband]

Works

[TexasStooge]

Oxy-Clean.