10 Green Ways to Clean With Vinegar

Green cleaning does not have to be expensive to be effective. In fact, some items you already have around your home can be great green cleaners. One of those items is vinegar. Simple white vinegar works in many ways to help keep your home smelling and looking great. Here are some simple tips to clean green with vinegar:

1. Remove stinky smells and messes from your refrigerator and freezer with vinegar. Clean the fridge with vinegar and then rinse well. Add a box of baking soda to your fridge to keep smells out for longer.
2. Kill fruit flies with vinegar. Set out a shallow dish of vinegar with a drop or two of detergent or liquid soap. The flies will fly in and drown!
3. Discourage ants by spraying vinegar along window ledges, doorways and wherever they get in. Ants hate the smell of vinegar!
4. Remove stains from an aluminum pot by boiling a half water half vinegar solution for several minutes.
5. Polish brass, pewter, and copper with a solution of vinegar and ketchup or vinegar and salt. Use two times the ketchup to the vinegar or equal amounts of vinegar and salt. You can clean other metals by mixing cream of tartar with vinegar until it forms a paste.
6. Clean window blinds the easy way with vinegar. Slip on a pair of cotton gloves and dip your fingers in a solution of half vinegar and half warm water. Wipe across the blinds to remove dust and build up.
7. Clean the dishwasher once a month to prevent clogging, stink and build up. Add a cup of vinegar to the empty washer and let it run. Skip the drying and make sure it has a full rinse before loading it up again.
8. Make cleaning the microwave easy and fast with vinegar. Boil a cup of vinegar mixed with a cup of water in the microwave. Let it sit with the door shut for five minutes and then the stains should wipe away easily.
9. Deodorize and clean the in sink garbage disposal by making vinegar ice cubes. Freeze cubes of undiluted vinegar and then run them through the disposal. It will clean the blades and remove any lingering odors.
10. You can also unclog and deodorize drains. Simple pour a half a cup of baking soda down the drain followed by a cup of warm vinegar. Small clogs should go away fast and smells disappear.

Author Bio:

Elizabeth Reed is a freelance writer and a resident blogger at Liveinnanny.org. She particularly enjoys writing about parenting, childcare, health and wellness. In addition, she is an expert consultant on issues related to household management and kids.