How to Make a Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner
Ready to consolidate your cleaning arsenal down from many bottles filled with toxic chemicals to just a couple of products made with natural ingredients? My DIY All-Purpose Cleaner can do just about all of the general cleaning in your household!
Homemade Cleaning Spray
Why Make DIY All-Purpose Cleaner?
Making your own cleaning supplies has several benefits.
#1 It saves money
You can save so much money by making your own homemade cleaners! Think about it…when you buy separate cleaning supplies that have to be replaced every so often (usually monthly) it can really add up.
Using water and a few other ingredients you probably have on hand, you can have months and months worth of cleaning products for the price of one bottle from the store (or even less)!
#2 It saves the planet
When you make your own cleaning supplies you are able to reuse the same container over and over again. This greatly reduces your plastic consumption as compared to buying a new plastic bottle that gets tossed and replaced consistently.
#3 It is non-toxic
Most homemade cleaning products are made with natural ingredients. My DIY All-Purpose Cleaner is free from harsh chemicals. It are non-toxic and could actually be ingested without harm.
**Ingesting essential oils can cause issues (depending on which ones you use) if they are consumed in a large amount so do be aware of that if your kiddos can access the cleaning supplies.
Whereas the active ingredients in most store bought cleaning supplies are highly toxic. Examples→ ammonia, ethylene glycol monobutyl acetate, sodium hypochlorite and/or trisodium phosphate.
Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner Recipe
This spray is truly all-purpose and that is one of the reasons that I LOVE it! I use it on my counters, kitchen table, kids’ toys, walls, windows, bathroom, and just about everywhere else in my house.
Another reason to love this cleaner is that it is kid-safe. My cleaning cabinet stays locked, but if my toddlers somehow find their way in I don’t have to worry because this spray (and my other cleaning products) are totally safe!
DIY All-Purpose Cleaner Spray Ingredients & Supplies:
- 3 cups water
- 1/2 cup Distilled White Vinegar
- 10-15 drops tea tree oil (read about the benefits of Tea Tree Oil here)
- 5-10 drops of another oil (I like to use lemon or peppermint) *optional
- 2-3 drops of dish liquid *optional
- Glass spray bottle or stainless steel spray bottle
**I also LOVE the spray bottles from Grove Co.
Homemade Cleaner Directions:
Step 1
Fill your spray bottle ¾ full of water (my bottle takes about 3 cups of water). Using warm (not hot) water is best to help the other ingredients mix thoroughly.
Step 2
Add 1/2 cup of Distilled White Vinegar to the water in the spray bottle. Distilled White Vinegar is used in almost every cleaning product that I make and I also use it as an alternative to bleach. It is a safe, natural, and very effective product that I recommend keeping in stock all the time.
Step 3
Now, you can add your essential oils. Drop in 10-15 drops of Tea Tree essential oil. Add additional oils to scent your homemade cleaning spray if you like.
I purchase all of my essential oils from Mountain Rose Herbs. Lemon, Peppermint, Orange, and Lavender oils are my favorite oils for scent and for additional cleaning properties.
Step 4
Add a couple drops of dish liquid for extra grease busting power. Orange Essential Oil is also great for cutting through grease. This is an optional ingredient, but I highly recommend it.
Step 5
Shake up the solution until it is mixed well and your Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner is ready to go!
You can use this solution on everything from your kitchen to the bathrooms, bedrooms, and appliances. Sometimes I even use it to spot mop my floors! This is seriously amazing stuff and I hope you love it as much as I do!
How to Use this DIY All-Purpose Cleaner
This homemade all-purpose cleaner can be used to clean all kinds of messes! It is a gentle formula that works great on tough messes and for quick cleanups.
I use it on almost all household surfaces like the kitchen counters, floors, and more!
Here are some tips for using this homemade cleaner in different areas of your home.
Kitchen Surfaces:
Use this all-purpose cleaner to wipe down kitchen appliances and countertops. Simply spray it on and wipe it off.
In order to take advantage of the antibacterial properties, it is best to let the spray sit for a couple of minutes before wiping.
If you are cleaning extra sticky messes, let the spray sit for 10 minutes or so to allow it to break down the sticky substances.
Floor Cleaner:
You can use this homemade all-purpose cleaner in a few different ways for your floors.
- Spray it on floors and then mop instead of pulling out a mop bucket.
- Add the cleaning solution to your spray mop and use it as normal.
- Increase the recipe and fill a mop bucket to use a regular mop.
- Spray the cleaner on scuff marks to spot clean.
Bathroom Surfaces:
Use this DIY all-purpose cleaner in the bathroom to clean the sink, cabinets, shelves, etc.
- To clean mirrors, add a little isopropyl alcohol to the solution.
- To clean the shower, add a little extra vinegar.
- For the toilet bowl, sprinkle some baking soda along the inside of the bowl, then pour in a cup of this cleaning solution. Allow it to sit for 10-25 minutes, then scrub and flush.
What are the Benefits of Essential Oils in Homemade Cleaners?
Many Essential Oils have been found to contain strong antibacterial, anti fungal, and antiviral properties.
Mountain Rose Herbs Essential Oils are used in my Homemade All-Purpose Spray Cleaner for those properties plus they have a great scent! Some oils are even used as effective bug repellants!
Tea Tree Essential Oil
According to this study from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), Tea Tree Essential Oil has proven to have anti fungal, antiviral, antiprotozoal, and antibacterial properties. With all the farm kids that live in my house, it is essential to use cleaners that really clean and Tea Tree Oil does just that.
Check out the Benefits of Tea Tree Essential Oil.
Lemon Essential Oil
My go to oil for scent is lemon because it makes my home smell so fresh & clean. Lemon essential oil is also known to have antibacterial and antifungal properties.
Read over this list of Top 12 Health Benefits of Lemon Essential Oil.
Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint essential oil is what I use in my DIY All-Purpose Cleaner around the holidays, but I also use this oil during the Spring & Summer when I notice spiders starting to invade our home. Spiders don’t like the smell of peppermint so I get a nice smelling home & spider repellant all in one!
Do you know all of Peppermint Oil’s Uses and Benefits?
Eucalyptus Essential Oil
Eucalyptus essential oil is an Antibacterial, Antifungal, Deodorizer, and a dust mite buster. I personally avoid this one because it is a trigger for migraines for me, but if you aren’t affected like I am, then I recommend this oil in cleaning and laundry just like Tea Tree Oil.
Check out these 20 Incredible Benefits of Eucalyptus Essential Oil!
Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender essential oil has Antibacterial & Antiviral properties that make it a nice addition to cleaning products. It’s smell is also pleasing & relaxing which is definitely a plus for a busy mama like yourself. Lavender Oil can also be used to repel bugs like pantry moths.
13 Surprising Benefits of Lavender Essential Oil
Oregano Essential Oil
Studies have shown that Oregano essential oil has pretty strong antimicrobial properties especially when combined with Thyme Essential Oil.
Antimicrobial Study of Oregano Essential Oil
Orange Essential Oil
Orange Essential Oil is a great grease buster and an antiseptic + it smells nice 🙂 I like using this one in my Homemade Cleaning Spray in the summer for a fresh sunny scent.
**The statements made about specific plants on this web site have not been evaluated by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease. Never use essential oils undiluted.
>>More Cleaning Supply Recipes<<
- How to Make Homemade Hand Sanitizer with Aloe Vera
- Homemade Dish Detergent Recipe
- How to Make Homemade Laundry Detergent Powder
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Great tips..pretty handy to make your very own antibacterial spray. I am sure our readers will love seeing this! Would love for you to link up with our Dishing It & Digging It link party every Sunday.
I have been looking for a new Sunday Link Party! I’ll check it out! Thanks!
So what ‘commercial product’ would this replace? Is it like Lysol spray or more like the all-purpose cleaner? I’m trying to make more of our own products and save money too. Thanks for the help!
I use it in place of my typical all-purpose spray like Simple Green. I do keep Lysol on hand right now for the toilets and clean ups if one of the kids has been sick. I use this on everything else where you would use an antibacterial cleaner.
Holy cow. If I had known it was that quick and easy to make my own? Sheesh! Thanks for sharing this with us at the DI & DI Link Party. I hope it brings you some new friends and great traffic!
So simple! I make almost all of my cleaning supplies and most (Except soap with lye) are this simple! Thanks for having me on the Link Party!
Do you know if this product would be safe for granite/quartz counter tops? Does adding the dish soap leave any streak or residue? Thanks!!
I only use about 2 drops of dish liquid and that leaves no streak at all. 🙂 I haven’t personally used it on granite or quartz, but this article states that vinegar can etch granite. The recipe given in the linked article basically replaces the vinegar in mine with alcohol for granite. 🙂
Great recipe! I love white vinegar – it has so many great uses. I will be trying this soon. Thanks!
Thanks, Cristina! I use it for everything in my house! Such a great product!
Awesome DIY! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing this recipe/tip I may try it today!!
Love essential Oils.
Hi, please can you tell me how you know this is antibacterial? Have you had it tested?
Hi Sally! Vinegar, Tea Tree Oil, and Dish Soap are known to have antibacterial properties. Having this recipe tested for a specific antibacterial percentage is a great idea, though, and I am looking into that now!
That is really great! Now I think that antibacterial spray is really easy to make with essential oils.
Great blog! I appreciate you sharing these tips! I will pin this.
Just a warning if you have pets then you will need an alternative for the tea tree oil.
Diluted tea tree oil, as used in this recipe, is safe to use around pets. You will need to be sure that the concentrated oil is kept out of the reach of your animals, though.
Would you spray it onto hands of little children, to help protect them from diseases?
It wouldn’t hurt them, but I wouldn’t recommend it… Washing children’s hands with soap and water is the best option for that.
Thanks for sharing such a valuable article. Keep up your good work!
Can this be used on windows?
Yes! It may not be 100% streak-free every time, but I use it without issue. You can also use 1 TBSP distilled white vinegar, 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol, and 1/2 cup water as a glass cleaner.