Reusing Candle Jars: Lemon All Purpose Cleaner

Reusing Candle Jars: Lemon All Purpose Cleaner

We're on a serious lemon kick this year. Eureka launched and suddenly everything is citrus and yellow! With all things lemon in our home, we've been using lemon in our water, our recipes, and now, in our cleaning supplies!

Distilled white vinegar on its own is a powerful cleaning tool. It disinfects and removes odors without harmful fumes or leaving a residue. We've been using vinegar for years as part of an all-purpose cleaning solution, but the smell is one of those things you never really get used to. Now, we've upgraded our vinegar with a zesty extra boost of cleaning power and a much better smell!

Vinegar is made of acetic acid which is a colorless organic compound that gives vinegar its unique smell and taste. There are many types of vinegar. Your favorite salad dressings, sauces, and probably even some of the cleaning product currently under your self all are probably made with vinegar. 

Cleaning supplies tend to take up a lot of space and create lots of waste. Plus, you have to deal with the toxic chemicals. Between the plastic waste and fumes, it's a loose loose. We've been working to clean up our cleaning supplies for a while now and we just started making our own everyday cleaning solutions.

If you're a first time lemon infuser, pull out that empty candle jar, some lemon peels, and distilled white vinegar. By now we're old hat at this and we now infused in the BIG jar, but if you're new to this start with something smaller like an old candle jar with a secure lid. 

Homemade lemon infused white vinegar

 

What you need: 

- A jar with a secure leak proof lid

- lots of lemon peels

- distilled white vinegar

Fill your jar with as many lemon peels as you can fit in comfortably. Then, fill the jar with white vinegar to the top completely covering the peels and seal tightly. Leave the jar out of the way and out of direct light for 10-14 days. The longer you leave it, the stronger the lemon will infuse into the vinegar. Remember, you'll want to fill your jar so the vinegar is over the peels. I had started to strain our vinegar when I remembered to take this picture!

When you feel confident that your vinegar is lemon-y enough, strain the vinegar to get out any bits of peels and store in a clean jar. For us, we use the infused vinegar as part of an all purpose cleaning solution. Vinegar is a great cleaner that cuts through dirt grime while disinfecting. The acidity from the lemons helps the cleaner cut through grease making it an ideal kitchen cleaner for some surfaces.  However, remember, vinegar is natural erosive and with the added acid of the lemon, it can be too harsh for some materials like wood, certain coated metals, or natural stones like granite, marble, or soapstone. Test carefully in a small area before going to town with vinegar all over your home.

Cleaning with Vinegar

The ratio of vinegar to water affects the strength and use of the cleaning solution.

All-Purpose: 1 part water to 1 part vinegar - 1:1 ratio. 

Glass Cleaner: 1 part water to 2 parts vinegar - 1:2 ratio

         For ease of use, add to an empty spray bottle and get to cleaning! 

 

Homemade lemon infused vinegar

With a few weeks's time and some unused lemon peels, you'll have a great-smelling powerful vinegar-based cleaner that cuts through ALL the grease and guck in the kitchen while still smelling lemony fresh. Plus, it's another thing you can make in an empty candle jar!

What's your favorite non-toxic cleaning brand or recipe? 


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