Farm Dreaming

testing homemade cleaners

02:00, Tuesday, May 20, 2008 .. Link

Thanks, Cindy!

Tried cleaning out washing machine rinse cup (it was gross, but I cleaned it out) and also noticed that the vinegar and baking soda combination was breaking up the built-up gunk in the set-tubs (yay!). All without the harsh chemicals and smells of regular cleansers.

Reduced amount of Tide powder used to about 1/2 - poured in some baking soda - poured in some Borax (had some heavily soiled towels and a bath mat) - put 1/2 cup vinegar in rinse cup.

Just went down to check on laundry - so far, so good. No suds in set tub. Laundry smells clean. Tossed it in the dryer "as is" (it's raining all day, can't hang outside, won't dry fast enough inside) and will see what happens.

I can't waste an entire box of Tide laundry detergent (my husband would flip) - but I can use less of it and, in the meantime, try alternatives to see what works best. I have read a lot about Fels-Naptha soap, and I want to try it at some point. But I'm learning a lot about the uses of lemon juice, baking soda, vinegar and Borax as cleaning agents, so I plan to make them a mainstay in my home and cut down/eliminate chemicals and detergents whenever possible.

I also read of a recipe for dishwasher detergent using baking soda and Borax, so I plan to try that soon while I still have regular dishwasher detergent on hand, "just in case."

Wish I could get rid of this persistent cold and sore throat that I have, but I think it's the goofy weather -- April was very warm and dry, and May has been very cool and wet. Every time I think it's safe to put away the winter clothes and freshen up the spring clothes - we hit "rainy windy" season again. Don't know if it's that global warming business or maybe our climate is just changing its weather patterns. Tylenol helps a little, but not much. Hot tea, soup, oatmeal .... I haven't done the salt water gargle yet, but I probably will soon. I have kosher salt here, but not sea salt.

Tomorrow I will return to the store to return the $7.69 "natural cleanser" and fabric softener sheets I had bought, and I'll probably get more vinegar and Borax while I'm there (didn't realize that my husband used most of the Borax already). And to the farmers market as previously (I think) mentioned ...

Oh, wish I could take a nap ... but have to pick up dd1 from school soon ... dd2 is napping .... I've been finishing two forms for the print shop and waiting to hear back on two articles.

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