The cleaning aisle can make it seem like every surface and every mess requires a different product. It’s easy to end up with a cabinet full of specialty sprays, wipes, powders, and cleaners that cost more than you realize.
But you don’t need some of those products on your shopping list at all. With a few inexpensive household ingredients, you can make simple alternatives at home and stop repeatedly paying for overpriced cleaners.
Glass Cleaner
There’s little reason to keep paying for a separate bottle every time the glass cleaner runs out when the homemade version is so simple. Rubbing alcohol and vinegar make a quick cleaner for fingerprints, smudges, and everyday grime on compatible windows and mirrors.
Get the Formula: DIY Glass Cleaner
Grout Cleaner
Dirty grout often sends people searching for another specialty product, especially when ordinary floor cleaner doesn’t reach the discoloration between the tiles. This homemade scrub combines baking soda, Castile soap, and lemon essential oil for a more targeted approach.
Get the Formula: How to Make Homemade Grout Cleaner
Garbage Disposal Cleaner Tabs
Garbage disposal cleaning products are another highly specific purchase for a job you can handle at home. Homemade disposal tabs can be prepared ahead of time and kept under the sink so they’re ready when food residue and odors start making the kitchen sink less than fresh.
Get the Formula: Garbage Disposal Cleaner Tabs
Citrus All-Purpose Cleaner
Instead of buying another bottle of all-purpose cleaner, save citrus peels that would otherwise go into the trash or compost. Steep orange peels in vinegar to make an inexpensive cleaner for compatible household surfaces, giving those scraps one more useful job before they’re discarded.
Get the Formula: Orange Peel Vinegar Cleaner
Dishwasher Powder
If making individual dishwasher pods sounds like too much work, powdered detergent is an even simpler alternative. This recipe combines washing soda, baking soda, citric acid, and kosher salt, which you can mix in a batch and store until you need it.
Get the Formula: How to Make Dishwasher Powder at Home: An All-Natural Recipe
Oven Cleaner and Degreaser
Baked-on grease can make a specialty oven cleaner seem necessary, but you may be able to leave this product on the store shelf. A homemade version uses common household ingredients to loosen grease and cooked-on food, so you can scrub the oven clean without another specialty cleaner.
Related: Homemade Oven Cleaner and Degreaser
Dawn Powerwash Refill
Dawn Powerwash is convenient, but replacing the entire cleaning solution every time the bottle runs empty can become another recurring household expense. If you already have Dawn dish soap, rubbing alcohol, and water, you can mix a homemade refill and continue using the spray bottle you already own.
Related: How to Make a Dawn Powerwash Refill
Dishwasher Pods
Those convenient little dishwasher pods can disappear quickly in a household that runs the dishwasher every day. Instead of buying another container each time, you can make dishwasher pods in batches with a few basic ingredients and keep them ready for the next load.
Related: Homemade All-Natural Dishwasher Pods
Granite Countertop Cleaner
Granite is one surface where grabbing any homemade all-purpose cleaner isn’t a good idea, particularly acidic vinegar-based formulas. Instead of buying a specialty granite spray, this recipe uses Castile soap, rubbing alcohol, and essential oils to make a cleaner specifically intended for granite.
Get the Formula: DIY Granite Cleaner
Laundry Detergent
Laundry detergent is purchased so routinely that its cost can easily become something households simply accept. You can make a homemade powdered version in a larger batch and store it, eliminating another frequently replaced container from the shopping list.
Get the Formula: Homemade Laundry Detergent Recipe
