Vinegar Cleaning – 10 Ways To Clean Your House

Vinegar Cleaning! The answer to all your cleaning needs! As a common condiment in the kitchen, vinegar is something not just used to make food taste better but has been used as a household cleaning agent by homemakers. But not all home owners know which proper surfaces at home best react to vinegar as a cleaning agent. Not all surfaces, dirt and stain react well with vinegar.

Vinegar technically is a liquid that consists of about acetic acid, other chemicals and water. It is a sour tasting liquid which can be a cider, wine, beer or used as a condiment. The etymology came from a French origin which is vin (wine) and aigre (sour). It has been used for the longest time as a flavor for food, medicine and a corrosive agent. Alchemists played with it in the Middle Ages to create lead acetate.

Vinegar is made out of different diluted alcohol products. Worldwide, the most common product which is turned into vinegar are from grapes, alcohol like wine, beer and rice. Distilled vinegars are made from beech.  It is made from fermenting ethanol. Bacteria are used to ferment ethanol and break it down into byproducts.

Vinegar: The Miracle Cleaning Agent

But in some cases vinegar is a miracle sauce that can be used practically all around the house, not just to flavor food. To be more specific, here are the best 10 ways that you can use vinegar around your house:

  1. Carpet Stain Remover – Carpets are hard to clean. You have to have the right formula. In this case, you have to mix liquid detergent, distilled vinegar and lukewarm water. This will remove non-oily stains. Apply to stained area with a soft brush and rub gently. Tip: do this as soon as you notice the stain.
  2. For Windows and Walls – mix warm water and distilled vinegar. Apply to window and dry with a soft cloth. It will make the windows gleam again. For walls, woodworks and blinds, a combination of ammonia, vinegar, baking soda and water can do miracles. Wipe the solution over the walls with a sponge. Rinse with tap water. This will remove dirt and grimes easily. The solution will not dull the paint or leave marks.
  3. Different types of floors – It can also be used on floors which do not need waxing. Be cautious in using vinegar on hardwood floors though.
  4. Garbage Disposal Cleaner – Vinegar can do miracles to garbage disposals by making it clean and odorless. You can create vinegar cubes. Once you have vinegar cubes, run it through the disposal and flush it with cold water for about a minute. Voila! Clean and odorless garbage disposal.
  5. Microwave – For the microwave, coil ¼ cup of white distilled vinegar mixed with 1 cup water in the microwave. The splattered food inside the oven will be loosen and it will deodorize the microwave as well.
  6. Refrigerators – You can wash the inside of a refrigerator with a mixture of water and vinegar. It can also remove refrigerator smells. Let a cup of apple cider vinegar sit in a refrigerator for 2 days and any smell will be gone.
  7. As a Brass Polish – It can help brass, pewter and copper bring back their shine. You have to dissolve salt in vinegar and let it stand for 15 minutes. After letting it sit for a while, rinse the brass with warm water then polish.
  8. Cutting Board Disinfectant – For disinfection, use the full strength of the vinegar by wiping it on the cutting board. It can also deodorize the board. Rinse thoroughly after. In the kitchen, you can also deodorize the drain by pouring a cup of vinegar down the drain once a week. Let it stand for half an hour then flush with water.
  9. Stainless Steel Appliances – Stainless steel appliances will have streaks and vinegar can easily remove them. Applying vinegar with a soft cloth on areas with the most streak will do the trick. Keep on doing this until the streaks are gone.
  10. Bathroom Cleaner – You can practically use vinegar all over the bathroom. As a bathtub film cleaner, you can clean it by wiping it with white distilled vinegar. Rinse with clean water afterwards. Shower doors can be cleaned by using a sponge on the doors. This will remove all soap residue on the shower door. Toilet bowls can also be cleaned by brushing it vigorously with a scrub and vinegar. To deodorize, let 3 cups of vinegar sit for about ½ hour, then flush. Showerheads can have corrosion through time. You can soak showerheads and faucets in vinegar overnight to remove the corrosion.

AND A WHOLE LOT MORE!!! There are more uses of vinegar around the house like killing grass on the sidewalk and your driveways. You can kill unwanted weeds with vinegar. It can neutralize garden lime, keep flowers fresher for a longer period of time. It can fight pests found in your pets.

Be Mindful of the Water and Vinegar Ratio. Follow instructions as to how much of vinegar should be used.

Things That You Shouldn’t Clean With Vinegar

Although you can practically use vinegar all over the house and outside the house, you should avoid some surfaces which are not good with vinegar.

  1. Hardwood Floor – There is still a debate as to the use of vinegar in cleaning hardwood floors as it may destroy the finishing or the coating. If you are to use it on hardwood floor though make sure that you do not use full strength as it will certainly destroy your floor.
  2. Stubborn Stains – Now, certain stubborn stains will not go away with vinegar. If they don’t, then there is no need to force the issue with vinegar. You can use store bought cleaning solution to help you with those stains.
  3. Egg Stain – Egg doesn’t go well with vinegar. The acidity will make it more difficult for you to clean egg stains.
  4. Granite and Marble Surfaces – the acidity of the vinegar will etch the natural stone.
  5. Stone Floor Tiles – Again, the acidity of the vinegar is not kind on stone countertops.

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