We all have tubs and tiles in our home. And they can be a really challenge to clean- soap scum and hard water marks can be tough to deal with. But tub and tile cleaners that you can buy in the store are sometimes made with ingredients that I just don’t feel great about using. So I needed to find an alternative, and I did! This homemade tub and tile cleaner is easy to make, effective, green, and costs less than one dollar! Oh, and it’s safe for marble. You just can’t beat that.

I’m gonna tell you the truth now… Cleaning my tub is my absolute least favorite chore. I would actually prefer to clean the toilet over the tub! For some reason I just hate it. So naturally I want to spend as little time as possible cleaning it, which means I need an effective cleaner. And trust me, this week, I REALLY needed one- which was perfect timing for green cleaning month!

We took our dog Biscuit to the dog park for the first time this week. Now that it’s becoming spring, all the snow is melting, which means MUD! So Biscuit needed a major bath… clearly:

And after he got that major bath, the tub was full of major mud. We did our best to rinse it all out, but we were a little busy keeping the wet dog from shaking all over everything. So the tub was a mess.

It was the perfect time for me to make a new homemade tub and tile cleaner!

I like to explain why I use each ingredient in my recipes, and the thought process behind them. That way you know why it’s made the way it’s made!

Ingredients:

• Borax: dissolves dirt, kills and prevents mold and milder
• Vinegar: sanitizes and gets rid of dirt, balances the alkaline pH of the borax
• Rubbing alcohol: sanitizes and provides a streak-free shiny clean
• Essential oils: for scent, and depending on the oil can have other properties (I used orange in this recipe!)

All right, let’s get to the recipe!

I designed this recipe to be pH neutral, with a pH of 7. I tested it using pH test strips. Since you are using your own ingredients, I still recommend using pH strips if you are using this cleaner on a natural stone.

My tub is happy now, and so am I! If only I never had to clean it again… but if I do, I have the right tools in my arsenal!

Let me know how making your own tub and tile cleaner goes for you!

supplies used in this post

The post Homemade tub and tile cleaner appeared first on Pins and Procrastination.

• Butoxydiglycol: toxic for the reproductive system
• Alkyl C12-18 dimethylbenzyl ammonium chloride: Highly toxic to aquatic organisms, considered acutely toxic
• PEG Compounds: harmful to human nervous system and can harm development, potential carcinogen
• Artificial Fragrance: artificial fragrances can indicate up to 4000 ingredients, which can range from causing allergic reactions to being carcinogenic
• Isobutane: irritant to eyes and skin, may be toxic to human health

And that’s just a few of the many ingredients store bought cleaners contain.

The safest way to clean your bathroom is to know every ingredient you are using. When I use commercial cleaners to clean my bathroom, I have to step out and take breaks because the fumes make me feel dizzy and awful. When I use these cleaners, there is no problem. They smell like lemon and sometimes a hint of vinegar. And they work just as well if not better.

They are also really easy on your budget. The seven green cleaners in this three part series use only five different ingredients: borax, baking soda, liquid castile soap, white distilled vinegar, and lemon essential oil. And they all cost less than a dollar to make. You can’t beat that.

This image summarizes all the cleaning recipes I will go over. Scroll down for more details and photos of the cleaners in action. Let’s start with a Green Tub and Tile Cleaner A tub and tile cleaner is a staple for bathroom cleaning. What’s a bathroom without tub and tiles right? Our bathroom has a tile floor and the walls are tile half way up. So we need a lot of this stuff. The recipe is nice and simple:

• 1 2/3 cup baking soda
• 1/2 cup liquid castile soap
• 2 tbsp vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 10-15 drops lemon essential oil (optional)

The mixture is nice and thick and foamy. So it will need to be in a jar. I tried using a spray bottle because I was being hopeful, but it did not work. It’s too thick. The thickness is good though. The baking soda is just gritty enough to give it good scrubbing ability and the castile soap makes it foam nicely. You can see from this picture just how dirty our tub got. It’s pretty embarrassing. So focus on the cleaner instead. You can tell how thick and foamy it is. Great for scrubbing. And here is our clean tub after using this tub and tile cleaner! Awesome! And the floor. I’m also embarrassed to show this picture. The brown stain is from a honey face mask I tried out. I just felt like I should explain it. It was really drippy.  And check out that floor after! Love this tub and tile cleaner. And on to the next cleaner…

Continued on the next page

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