Monday, February 18, 2008

Clean Green

I just received these tips on email from my sister-in-law and wanted to share them here with you!

Go GREEN when you Clean

Homemade Drain Cleaner

2 cups baking soda
2 cups salt, regular table, kosher or rock
½ cup cream of tartar

Combine and mix all of the ingredients in a covered container. Label and keep out of reach of children.

To Use:
Boil 2 cups of water on the stove. Pour ¼ cup of the cleaner mixture down the drain and follow immediately with half of the boiling water. Wait 30 minutes and repeat. Flush with cold water when second application is finished.

Suggested Use:
Use this drain cleaner once a week and you should find that your kitchen drain will remain clean and free flowing.



Unexplained but often successful cleaning tips:

The following are some tips that have been shared with us that have been known to work, but the why they work is a mystery.


To shine metal, use a cork from a bottle of red wine.
Ketchup will remove tarnish from copper.
Worcestershire sauce will shine brass.

Dry Carpet Cleaner
This mixture is meant to be used dry to refresh a carpet’s smell. When you sprinkle it on the carpet, it may look messy, but it does a great job.

2 cups baking soda
½ cup cornstarch
4-5 bay leaves, crumbled
1 tablespoon ground cloves

Mix all ingredients together and store in air-tight container with lid. Label and keep in a safe place, out of reach of children.

To use:
If possible, plan on leaving the mixture on your carpet overnight. Shake the container to mix, and then sprinkle liberally over the carpet to be cleaned. Close the doors to the room that that pets or children are dissuaded from the rug, and then vacuum thoroughly the next day.