There are a lot of ways to clean your home without sacrificing a huge amount of money for expensive chemicals. Also, some liquids or powders that are used for cleaning spaces around the house may be quite harsh for the sensitive family members. For instance, you purchase a very strong bleach to clean the tiles of your bathroom walls – it may give you the right shine that it can give and it is definitely much more sanitised than before but its scent may be too strong for some and could probably cause allergic reactions.

So here are the top 3 of the best natural ingredients that you can find in your kitchen just laying around – aside from its affordability, these are also easily accessible in the nearest market in your community.

1. BAKING SODA

Baking soda may be considered as the queen of all natural cleaning ingredients as it is vastly known for its versatility.

Baking soda may be used to remove foul odours from your refrigerator as it acts as a deodorant to fight off foul stench and another substitute for this job is coal as it does the job just as good. It is normal for a household to always have food in their fridge – from fresh fruits to leftover steak to newly bought salmon – you name it.

But one of the downsides in having a fridge bursting with various kinds of food is that the odour may be quite uneasy to the nose. Which is why keeping a cup of baking soda inside the refrigerator can be of great help.

It may be used to freshen plates, pans, bowls, knives and other utensils from dirt that is very hard to wash off with just dishwashing soap and water. By wiping the murky area with a sponge that has been scattered with baking soda, you can definitely have the safest container to eat your food!

Baking soda makes such an effective cleaning agent because of its mild alkali which makes hard to remove stains liquefy easily in water after effective removal, unlike ordinary dishwashing soaps that are too “soft” on stains because it lacks in abrasiveness.

There are a lot of ways to use baking soda when it comes to keeping the house at its best condition. So why splurge on expensive cleaning devices when a single ingredient may do everything in a snap better than any well-advertised apparatuses? Unlike those, baking soda never disappoints as it only surprises with its performance!

This may also be used to freshen up sponges, deodorise soft and comfortable places around the house or your rugs, erase hard to remove crayon marks on the walls, de-clog the drains in your bathroom and kitchen. Also, baking soda revives dirty old shoes, toys and jewellery!

2. VINEGAR

Everyone has at least a sachet if not a bottle of vinegar in their homes, right? Vinegar is a very common ingredient used to give various dishes an extra taste – no one would like to miss that sour kick! As crazy as it may sound, vinegar may also be used as the dip for spring rolls and probably Mexican chicharrones.

Aside from its high reputation due to its rich and unique flavour, vinegar is now popular amongst skincare junkies because of its special ability to restore the pH balance of the skin. Meaning, it can treat skin imperfections such as pimples and dry patches that came from skin sensitivity and pollution. Remember NOT to use any kind of vinegar on your skin in a diluted form as it may damage and burn the skin.

Anyway, let’s focus on vinegar as a cleaning gizmo, shall we?

To start off, let’s start with a bit of science: Vinegar contains acetic acid which has a very high dissolving property.

And of course, stains around the house are better off dissolved and gone which makes vinegar one of the most ideal natural ingredient to be used in your homes.

Considering that the right kind of vinegar is used to clean, that dirty corner will surely be spotless in no time! Vinegar is often used to dissolve sticky and filthy accumulations such as glue left from the back of removed sticker and brines from hard water. It is very, VERY effective when it comes to stain removal because of its acidity.

It can definitely get rid of wine stains from clothes, sweat stains under the arms and even urine on the carpet! Not only does it clean but vinegar can also deodorise and keep bad odours from sticking on the object. It can also be used to give wooden floors, wooden furniture, glass mirrors and windows a blinding shine!

Although, certain precautions must still be observed when using vinegar in cleaning the house because vinegar that is too concentrated can leave a permanent stain on delicate fabrics and wooden surfaces and also, be careful not to use this on granite or marble.

3. LEMON

To end the list of the best natural cleaning ingredients, we have here the famous yellow citrus fruit: the lemon! Lemons are high in citric acid which means that they have antibacterial properties. And just like the baking soda, lemons are quite popular as well amongst women who love natural and homemade skin care masks as it balances the skin’s pH balance.

Anyway, a single piece of lemon can take you a LONG way! You can take half of it and some rock salt and use this combo to clean discoloured brass, antiques, microwave ovens, heavily stained cutting boards and as well as barbecue grills! You may also put the lemon juice in a spray bottle and use it to clean countertops and deodorise most of the parts of the house. Lemons are also effective in removing rust stains from cotton and polyester.

Lemons are very, very useful when it comes to cleaning the house as it does many wonders. It will amaze you at how better it is than your normal dishwashing liquid soaps. Say goodbye to your normal cleaning tools because when life gives you lemons, it will change your cleaning game.

After such a tiring day of housework chores, you can sit back, relax and enjoy a glass of cold lemonade.

There are a lot of other natural ingredients out there that you may use to deodorise and clean the dirty places in your house. You may find it surprising how effective baking soda, vinegar and lemons are just like the chemicals that you buy in the groceries. The only difference is that these are 100% safe to the health of everyone around the house – proven and tested by a lot of homeowners!