Live Cheap :: Clean & Cheap Cleaning Products

I'm sure this is old news to most of you, but cleaning products you buy in the store are expensive! A bottle for windows, a bottle for counters, a bottle for grease, another for bathrooms...it's insane!

Beside the cost, I hate the chemicals. Call me a cynic, but I don't trust the big corporations to have mine or my family's health as their priority. And if you can't spray something in your mouth, why would you clean your counters with it? You know, your counters...where you cook your food?!

I also get the "icks" thinking about it on my skin and needing to wash my hands every time I wipe the counters down.

So, what do I use?

White Distilled Vinegar, of course! Between that and eraser pads (like the Magic Eraser, but I go generic), I can clean my kitchen without the mystery chemicals in the commercial products.

I don't add fragrance, like some suggest, to curtail the odor of the vinegar. To be honest, it doesn't bother me and it fades away so fast, there's no need.

I occasionally add a few drops of tea tree oil for it's extra punch of bacterial killing power, but since I'm currently out...I've just been using diluted vinegar.


How to make Vinegar cleaner

You will need:

• Distilled White Vinegar (I recommend getting it at Costco...less than $5 for the huge bottle. I actually think it's a bit over $3)
• A spray bottle
• Water

Directions:

1. Over the sink or using a funnel, fill your spray bottle halfway with vinegar
2. Fill the rest of the bottle with water. You'll want a 1:1 ratio of vinegar to water.

How to use it:

1. Spray your counter with the vinegar mixture
2. Wipe!

*For tough spots, start with the eraser pad and use the vinegar mixture for wiping up.

See how simple this is? If the smell is something you can't tolerate, experiment with essential oils (you can find them at your local health food store). Lavender Oil, Tea Tree Oil, Orange Oil, Lemon Oil...all great additions!

Where to use it:

• Counters
• Bathrooms
• Windows (streak free and works the best!)
• more uses here

Vinegar is really a miracle cleaning product, and the price tag can't be beat! You can make a mix of oil and vinegar for furniture polish. Mix with baking soda for deodorizing or to freshen up your disposal or drains.

But, like all things, I was motivated mostly by money. I love that I can spend $3-$5 and have a clean house for months!

Let me know your favorite uses for vinegar. I also want to know if you try it for the first time! You won't regret it!

Live Cheap :: Don't Buy Paper Towels

I have spent the last few years trying to reduce the spending in my home. I hated blowing so much money on sundries (def: Miscellaneous small items, usually of no large value and too numerous to mention separately).
I especially scoffed at the huge price tag on paper goods. Firstly, we all know that from an environmental standpoint, paper products are all bad. Even the recycled stuff isn't ideal. Secondly, I plain old hate waste. Popping off a paper towel for every time I washed my hands or to clean a small spill...it hurt me...I HATE it!
So a few years ago, I decided to stop buying them and figure out how to live without them. I do buy paper napkins for meals (for now...I'll be transitioning to cloth napkins as soon as I learn to sew properly.).

Bar Mops via Target

So, what do I use?

• Bar mops - for my counters [$3.99 for 6 at Target]
• Rags - for furniture and bathrooms [made from old t-shirts or towels or purchase at the dollar store]
• Flour Sack Towels - for kitchen tasks and hand drying [about the same as bar mops in price]

I keep an old trash can in my closet (by the hamper) and I toss the soiled ones in there. When I run out, I wash the load on hot with borax or bleach for tough stains. 

Not buying paper towels can save you conservatively around $150 a year depending on the size of your family. Having that extra $10-15 extra every month adds up. And the hassle of doing a load of laundry about once a week...not a big deal at all! You are doing laundry anyway!

Live Cheap will feature things I do in my own home to cut back on my monthly budget.  Look forward to tips on your keeping the cost of  running your house in check while wasting less, using less chemicals and doing a bang up job of keeping your house clean and well maintained...on the cheap.