10+ DIY Natural Cleaners and Disinfectants

If you’ve made it to cleantok, you know the recent trend is more is more when it comes to household cleaning products. You see video after video, of creators layering cleaning product on top of cleaning product creating a colorful concoction of cleaners and ignoring the potential of any chemical interaction.

My general rule in life is: to each their own. Whatever works for them is non of my business. But, then I got to thinking, there must people like me who are a bit (let’s say) skeptical of this cleaning method and are on the hunt for something more simplistic and natural.

I have a wonderful year-old pup who, to my dismay, loves who loves to lick every surface he comes across. Therefore, its important that whatever products I use are pet friendly and non-toxic. When I initially set out to look for these products in-store, nothing was cutting it. So, I did the research and started making my own DIY natural cleaners. They are not only safe for Lambchop but also are budget friendly.

Scroll on to get my favorite natural homemade cleaning recipes.

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DIY Natural Cleaner Pantry Essentials

Before we start with the recipes, we have to stock up on all the cleaning essentials. One of the best things about these all-natural cleaning recipes is you most likely have the ingredients in your pantry. Natural homemade cleaners are not only super easy to make, they’re also low cost and therefore more accessible.

DIY Natural Household Cleaners

All-Purpose Cleaner

Tackle dust and dirt with this easy all-purpose cleaner you can make in just minutes with ingredients from your pantry. The borax is great for those messes with a little extra grease and grim.

What You’ll Need:

• 2 tps. Borax
• 1/4 tsp. liquid Castile soap
• 16 oz. spray bottle
• Hot water

Mix all ingredients without water in spray bottle

Disinfectant

Here is a pet-friendly disinfectant that will clear away bacteria and viruses from fabrics and durable surfaces.

What You’ll Need:

• Hydrogen peroxide

Apply, wait 5 minutes, and then wipe away. Spot clean as needed or transfer temporarily into a spray bottle for easier cleaning. Remember: Hydrogen peroxide is stored in an opaque bottle to prevent degradation due to exposure to light.

Glass Cleaner

This simple glass cleaner is perfect for windows, mirrors, lamps, and more leaving you with a streak-free finish for just pennies!

What You’ll Need:

• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• Hot water
• 16 oz. spray bottle

Mix all ingredients with hot water in spray bottle.

DIY Floor Cleaners

It’s important to apply the right cleaner to your flooring. Here are a few non-toxic recipes for hardwoods, tile, laminate, and vinyl flooring.

Hardwood Floor Cleaner

Hardwood floors should come into contact with as little water as possible. That’s why the dry mopping method is preferred by many. Spraying the cleaner limits water exposure and the chances of your floors warping.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 tsp. liquid Castile soap
• Hot water
• 16 oz. spray bottle

Mix Castile soap with hot water in spray bottle. Vacuum or sweep floors, pray solution generously, and mop up using a microfiber mop.

Tile Floor Cleaner

What You’ll Need:

• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• Hot water

Mix white vinegar with hot water and use with your favorite mop and bucket set.

Laminate Floor Cleaner

What You’ll Need:

• 3/4 cup white vinegar
• 3/4 cup rubbing alcohol
• Hot water

Mix white vinegar and rubbing alcohol with hot water and use with your favorite mop and bucket set.

Vinyl Floor Cleaner

What You’ll Need:

• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 3 tbsp borax
• Hot water

Mix white vinegar and borax with hot water and use with your favorite mop and bucket set.

DIY Laundry

All Purpose Stain Remover

This is my go-to everyday stain remover. This will work great a wide variety of stains from tomato sauces, to mustards, soy sauces, chocolate sauces and more!

What You’ll Need:

• 1 tbsp. Castile soap
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1 cups hot water
• 16 oz spray bottle

Mix all ingredients in spray bottle and spray directly on stain. Remember: always keep the stain wet and DO NOT put the garment in the dryer until the stain is lifted. Once heat is applied the stain will set and be there forever. It might take a few wash cycles for the stain to lift, be patient and trust the process!

DIY Kitchen Cleaners

All-Purpose Vinegar Spray

When it comes to cleaning up around the kitchen, this is my number one cleaning recipe. I keep a bottle by the sink and just spray as I go. It works perfect as a stainless steal cleaner, inside my fridge, on the countertops, and even to spot clean my cabinets.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 cup white vinegar
• 2 cup water
• 16 oz. spray bottle

Mix white vinegar and water in spray bottle and wipe surface with cloth until dry. If using on stainless steel, use a microfiber cloth and wipe with the grain.

Drain Cleaner

Remember those volcanoes experiments back in elementary school science class? Well, this is kinda like that.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 cup salt
• 1 cup baking soda
• 1 cup white vinegar
• Boiling water

Mix salt and baking soda and pour down clogged drain. Slowly pour in the white vinegar and let sit for 1-2 minutes. Carefully pour in boiling water to clear clog. Repeat as necessary or until you need to call an actual professional.

DIY Natural Bathroom Cleaners

Toilet Bowl Cleaner

My toilets were the last area that I swapped over to the homemade cleaner method. I was a little nervous about making sure it was truly clean and disinfected. But, after a little research this is what has worked best for me.

What You’ll Need:

• Liquid Castile soap
• 1/2 cup baking soda

Add liquid Castile soap liberally under the rim of the toilet bowl and sprinkle baking soda around the bowl. Scrub and flush. To disinfect, spray vinegar and let set 30 to 45 minutes before wiping or flushing away.

Shower Cleaner

This cleaner is perfect of tiled showers and tubs.

What You’ll Need:

• 1/2 cup borax
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 1 tsp. liquid Castile sopa
• 2 cups hot water

Mix all ingredients in a bucket with hot water. Take note of the material of your shower/tub and avoid abrasive sponges if you have an easily damaged material.

DIY Dog Toy Cleaner

I don’t know about you, but my dog’s chew toys get pretty gross after about a week. I’ve been using this natural homemade dog toy cleaner for about a year now. I haven’t noticed any discontoration or other damage to the toys.

• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1 gallon hot water

In a large bucket, mix white vinegar and hot water. Soak dog toys for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Rinse and wash with soap and water. Air dry, Turing every so often to ensure no mater is stuck inside the toys.

While we are on the topic of dogs, a great natural bite deterrent for teething puppies is 1 part apple cider or white white vinegar to 2 parts water. I tend to use white vinegar. Make sure you have the puppy taste the vinegar first (hopefully they will hate it) and then mist over spots they are fixated on. It works like a charm and it’s a true win win. My dog stopped chewing and the vinegar solution keeps the furniture clean and dust free!

What makes Vinegar A Good Cleaner?

If you’ve made it this far, you know I’m a huge fan of using vinegar to clean around my house. But, you might not know what makes plain white vinegar such a powerful cleaning product or how it can stand up to the cleaning products that line the shelves at Target and Walmart.

Vinegar is an acid, about five percent acetic acid to be exact, which allows it o breakdown direct, oils, stains, and some bacterias. This property makes it a powerful cleaner, but it should be avoided when cleaning material such as natural stone, waxed wood, cast iron, and aluminum.

When using vinegar as a disinfectant, the set time is much longer than bleach (10 minutes), and you need about 30 minutes for maximum effectiveness. Nonetheless, its a great non-toxic and pet friendly alternative to using harsher chemical cleaners.

Some people might be wary of using vinegar because of the smell. If you don’t have animals, you could always add 10-15 drops of your favorite essential oils to mask the unwanted smell. Most essential oils a highly toxic to pets, so its best to keep them far away from surfaces they can come into contact with.

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I’ve picked up a lot of these recipes, tips, and tricks from so many different places along the way. One of my favorite books ever, and my biggest inspiration, is the Complete Book of Clean by Toni Hammersly. Her book was a jumping off point for my DIY natural cleaning journey and introduced me to the concept of harsh chemical alternatives.

Have you tried any of these natural cleaning products or recipes? What are your natural cleaning go-to products? Let me know in the comments!

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