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Created on: December 20, 2011 Last Updated: December 25, 2011
The best all purpose cleaners are the cleaners that do the job inexpensively, and are of course the cleaners that can be utilized almost anywhere. That's obviously why they are called all purpose cleaners. And of course, the best all purpose cleaners are the ones that do the most thorough job without a lot of hard work.
Bleach
One of the best all purpose cleaners that you can buy for a small amount of money, compared to many well known brands is bleach. Bleach can be used just about anywhere in your house, including in the laundry, without causing you a lot of effort. Just pour a cup or two of bleach into a gallon bucket of warm water, and you have a cleaning mixture ready to use. Washing an entire home can happen by using a clean white rag, and a clean mop, with your sloshing bucket of warm bleach water. Cut the industrial smell of bleach down to size by buying a gallon container of scented bleach.
You can scrub almost every counter top, surface, floor, kitchen appliance, and bathroom fixtures causing them to become very clean and germ-free, after using bleach. Just make certain you don't slosh the bleach onto your clothing, because it will permanently stain all clothing that isn't white. Utilize bleach to brighten up white clothing. Add about a cup of bleach per wash load, after the water has filled the laundry machine, as to not stain the clothing. A cup full of bleach will also clean and sanitize a dishwasher. Run the bleach through an unloaded dish cycle, making your dishwasher cleaner.
A word of warning besides,not pouring bleach into a waterless clothes washing machine, is to not use bleach on wood floors, or furniture. Bleach will take the finish off, and may stain wood furniture!
White vinegar
White vinegar is one of the cheapest and best all purpose cleaners not on the cleaning shelves. You will find white vinegar in the grocery store, or food aisles of those big box stores. White vinegar may smell awful, but it cleans, and brightens up an entire house. Use white vinegar to clean the bathroom, kitchen, mirrors, appliances, etc. But, remember to make certain you wipe away the residue of white vinegar, because the entire house will smell of vinegar for days until it evaporates.
Pour a cup or two of white vinegar into a warm bucket of water, or use white vinegar by pouring it onto the dirty surface, or place a small amount onto a sponge or rag. White vinegar makes almost every household surface, super shiny. Place a small amount of vinegar into a spray bottle with a small amount of water and spritz those mirrors, stained walls, and dingy windows becoming seriously clean surfaces.
Baking soda
Another great, inexpensive all purpose cleaner is baking soda. Besides using baking soda in cookie recipes, baking soda helps to unclog drains, can be used as a gross tasting toothpaste, and it helps to clean household surfaces such as sinks. Baking soda also deodorizes many household items such as the refrigerator, a cat's litter box, and can be shaken into the carpet lifting disgusting smells right out.
In fact, combining baking soda and white vinegar and pouring about a boiling cupful down a clogged drain, helps to unclog that drain.
There you have it, the best all purpose cleaners. They're easy to use, relatively inexpensive, and when used carefully will create a beautiful home to live comfortably in.
Learn more about this author, Kate Johns.
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