Money saving & cleaning tips

We have been living on one income since the end of 2005 except for 3 months this last summer after we closed our shop while Vince was looking for a new job. So I have become creative to keep our living expenses down. Here are some things we do.

Cleaning supplies - If you ever look in my cleaning cupboard you find only a few things in there. Ammonia, White Vinegar, baking soda, and dish soap. Here is what I use and make for cleaners

• Bath room for the sink, mirror and tub I use an all purpose cleaner I make using Ammonia and water 1 part ammonia 8 parts water. This is a great bacteria killer and awesome on mirrors no streaks. (DO NOT MIX WITH BLEACH!) If I have stubborn stuck on the sink or tub I sprinkle baking soda on it and scrub. I also sometimes sprinkle the baking soda all over the sink and tub and spray vinegar on it. It give you that "scrubbing bubbles" feeling. For the toilet I use a mixture my best friend showed me. All you do is just put in a bowl some baking soda and dish soap and make a paste and spread it on your toilet then I spray vinegar on it and dump some in the toilet, and let it sit for a little bit while I clean the sink and tub then I just scrub easy as pie and supper cheap!!

• Kitchen for all surfaces I either use the ammonia water mixture or I use a vinegar water mixture. They both work great. For the sink if I just need to wipe it our I just spray it with either one of those mixtures. For stubborn stuck on stuff I sprinkle baking soda with a little of salt and sray with vinegar water and scrub. As for my floors I use super hot water with vinegar it is amazing on all floors and it will not damage them! Streak free too :)

• Dusting I usually just dry dust with a micro fiber towel and it I need a little help I mist a little vinegar water on the towel. Works like a charm.

I also make my own laundry soap and fabric softener. This is a great money saver. For a family of 6 we was clothes a lot around here. These are pretty easy to make you just need about 45 min to make them. Okay the fabric softener takes about 30 sec and the soap may take you 45 min the first time because you will be nervous you are not doing it right but it will be okay. The first time I make it I was like this is never going to work but guess what it did!! So here we go.

• Fabric softener

1 container of any liquid fabric softener you like.
4 Inexpensive sponges
1 5 gallon bucket

Pour entire container of fabric softener in bucket. Fill empty fabric softener container with tap water twice (1 part softener to 2 parts water). Add sponges to the mixture. When ready to use wring out extra moisture in sponge (just don't let it be dripping) and just put it into your dryer while drying your clothes. Easy peazy!!

For me what I do is I have an small plastic container on my dryer I fill half with the mixture and put a few sponges in it so it is easier for me to get to. then I just refill that container when it empties.

• Laundry soap
  

4-5 cups- hot tap water
1 bar of Zote (or any other laundry bar)
1 cup of Arm & Hammer washing soda (this is different then baking soda)
1 cup of Borax
1- 5 gallon bucket

- grate the bar of soap
- fill 5 gallon bucket 1/2 full with hot tap water
- In a sauce pan add water and grated soap and heat over med high heat till soap is dissolved. Stir constantly.
- pour dissolved soap mixture into bucket
-at the borax and Arm & Hammer washing soda and stir till all dissolved
- fill the bucket the rest of the way with hot tap water and stir again.
-optional you can add about 25-30 drops of essential oils after it cools
- let sit for 24 hours before using it. It will gel.
- Stir and then fill a used clean laundry soap dispenser half full with the mixture then add tap water to fill it up. So this really means you get 10 gallons of soap!!!
- Yeilds 10 gallons
- for top load washers use 1 cup
- for front load washers use 1/4 of cup

Tips- for the bar soap you can use - Zote, Fels-Naptha, Sunlight, Kirks Hardwater Castile and Ivory bars. (If you use ivory use 2 bars)

When I make my next batch I will take pictures so you can see what it looks like :)