Cleaning Without Chemicals

After the holiday season your property will most likely need a thorough clean to bring it back to good condition. With many expensive cleaning items on the market or the choice of a professional cleaning service, this job could be expensive. On the other hand, if you are one of those groups of people who'd want to do it themselves, here is an alternative for you. Natural or homemade products offer a choice of benefits, including hardly any health risks, lower costs, and yet another opportunity to go green. The largest worries are germ control and cleansing effectiveness, which can be accomplished without toxic chemicals. Here are a few ways on how to clean up without chemicals (or, at least to reduce their use in your home). Julie Kinnear, Toronto MLS expert famous for her green approach, will share few tips with you!

First Job: Microwave

Don't just fixate on the outside of your appliances, food debris gets left inside the microwave causing nasty smells and a hard to clean surface. Slice lemons and oranges and deposit them in a dish of water before placing them inside the microwave - a tip from hygiene experts from Britain. Cook on full power for about 5 minutes before wiping clean with a soft cloth or sponge and you will notice how easy the debris wipes away due to the steam made. (The oranges absorb the grease while the lemon eliminates odours) Water from a damp cloth will give off steam if the dish and citrus fruit method can't be done - a note for safety: always use a damp cloth as dry cloth could cause a fire. The item of cloth needs to be left in the microwave for a few minutes for the greatest result.

How to Wash your Fridge

To get rid of food spillage and other blemishes in your fridge, simply use soapy water including very little soap). Using an old toothbrush with some of your everyday toothpaste, clean in the corners and those little spaces that are hard to get to. Turn off your freezer if that needs cleaning out and place a bowl of hot water inside, this creates heat which helps the ice thaw. Once the ice has melted use some lemon water to clean and freshen the inside of your freezer.

Cleaning the Top of your Kitchen Cooker Thoroughly

Owning glass-ceramic or induction cookers means you need to pay particular attention to your cleaning methods due to the fact these products can be grazed easily. Day to day cleaning of your cooker, by wiping of any spills and marks to stop build up of stubborn marks should be an important part of cleaning your cooker. Nevertheless, if there are any food spillages or you can't get rid of the greasy film, use a mixture of baking soda and water and a plastic scrub brush to lightly scrub the top clean.

Scrubbing the Oven

I bet like most people you don't enjoy scrubbing your oven. If you aren't fortunate enough to own a self-cleaning one, the task is not fun. With quite a few ways and means of completing the job, it can be quite effortless. One of the simplest mixes that you can make up at home that really does the job is: Mix 5 tbsp of baking soda, 3 drops of liquid soap, and 4 tbsp of white vinegar into a heavy paste. Using a sponge to scour, apply the mix to the surfaces of your oven. Then, just wipe the whole oven clean, rinse it out thoroughly, and let it dry. Half a cup of ammonia left in a closed oven overnight is another accepted cleaning method. Dispose of the ammonia in the morning and sponge the surfaces down with a wet cloth to see the outcome of your work.