Cleaning your bathroom is probably one of your least favorite chores, especially if you think you have to rely on harsh chemical cleaners to get the job done. Toss out those old cleaners and do yourself a favor. These all-natural, completely healthy cleaning options will make cleaning your bathroom a lot more pleasant. They won’t guarantee that the men in your house put the toilet seat down, but with these cleaners, you can guarantee that you won’t be exposing yourself and your family to toxic chemicals.
All-natural tub cleaner
If you have a spray bottle and some everyday household items, you could whip up a spray cleaner that tackles even the dirtiest, grimiest tubs. Combine 1 ⅔ cup of baking soda with ½ cup liquid castile soap and ½ cup of distilled water in a spray bottle. Add 2 tablespoons of vinegar, replace the lid, and shake well. If you want a fresh scent, add 10-15 drops of essential oils like tea tree or lavender before you shake it.
Spray your solution on your tub, shower, and tiles. It should cut through the grime to make for an easier cleanup. Of course, if you’re in a hurry and don’t mind the smell of vinegar, you can sprinkle baking soda on the surface of the tub and spritz the vinegar on for a quick, but thorough, scrubbing.
If you have a drop in tub with a stone surround you should not use this particular cleaner on the stone. While perfectly safe for an enamel tub, the vinegar and essential oils can slowly do damage to stones like granite and marble. Try this stone safe alternative from Architypes instead.
Grout cleaner sans ‘the bad stuff’
If you’ve ever read the label on most commercial grout cleaners, you probably had a headache afterwards. And that’s before you’ve even opened the bottle and smelled the fumes! Skip the bleach and harsh chemicals and use harmless substances like baking soda, vinegar, salt, and water to bring your grout back to its full glory.
Baking soda–Simply sprinkle the baking soda onto the grout and work in using a damp brush. If the grout is vertical, make a paste of baking soda and water or even baking soda and white vinegar to clean those hard to reach places.
Vinegar–Spray a mixture of one part white vinegar to one part distilled water directly onto your tiles and grout. Let it sit for several minutes, then scrub with a sponge and rinse.
Salt and water–Salt kills simple microorganisms, like the ones that grow on your grout and cause discoloration. This works best on flat surfaces, but you can try it on your walls, too. Just dampen the area you want to clean, then sprinkle any coarse salt, like Epsom salts, onto the area. Rub the salt into the grout, then leave it overnight. When you clean the salt up the next day, the stains should be gone.
Natural tile cleaner
Tiles can get grungy over time, especially if they’re in the shower or on the backsplash of your sink. All that moisture can lead to some icky buildup, but you can wash that ick right off with the right ingredients.
The castile soap and water cleaner you used on your tub can also work wonders on your tiles. If your bathtub area is tiled, just use the multipurpose cleaner on both areas. That will save you lugging around twice the cleaning supplies!
If your bathroom floor is ceramic tile, you have several great options. For stains, try using fresh lemon juice and baking soda. Just sprinkle baking soda on the stained tile, then add the lemon juice and scrub gently. Lemon juice is a great stain fighter and it makes the whole room smell fresh, too.
Borax is a naturally occurring mineral that is useful for far more than just making slime (though if you have kids, that’s probably what they use it for). It can clean your tiles while disinfecting and deodorizing them. It can irritate your skin if it comes into prolonged contact, so you might want to wear gloves for this one. Just sprinkle it onto the area you need to clean, then scrub with a damp sponge until your tiles are clean.
If you want to use borax to sanitize your entire floor, mix ½ cup of borax into 2 gallons of hot water. Mop the floor with the solution–there’s no need to rinse it away when you finish. Borax is very versatile and you can use it to clean all sorts of areas around the home.
Natural cleaning solutions aren’t difficult to use. In fact, they’re almost easier to use than regular commercial cleaning solutions. Once you try these natural cleaning options, you may never use harsh chemicals to clean again.
