How To Keep Your Home Clean with Lemons, Vinegar and Bi-Carb Soda

Benches, stoves and chopping boards - Spray vinegar full strength onto benches and chopping boards to kill lingering bacteria and get rid of pungent odours.

Microwave - Fill a bowl with equal parts vinegar and water turn the microwave on high for 2 minutes. Wipe down to finish.

Drinking glasses - Pour a cup of vinegar in the bottom of the dishwasher. Turn the dishwasher on and be amazed by how much your glasses sparkle.

Showerhead - Fill a plastic bag with white vinegar and wrap it around the shower head. Let it soak overnight and wake up to a clean and gunk-free shower head.

Walls and shower curtains - Spray the walls and shower curtains with equal parts water and vinegar solution to remove and prevent the growth of mould and mildew plus remove water stains and soap scum.

Mirrors - Spray bathroom mirrors with equal parts vinegar and water, let it sit for a few minutes and wipe down with a microfiber cloth.

Clothes - Vinegar is a versatile product in the laundry. You can use it to treat stains, as a fabric softener and make clothes colours more vivid by breaking down detergent residue from clothes.

Washer - Pour a cup of vinegar into an empty washer and run normally. Rinse and wipe down to finish.

Glass - Like mirrors, the vinegar and water solution also works wonders on glass windows. Just spray, let it sit and wipe down with a microfiber cloth.

Hardwood - Pour in half a cup of white vinegar in a gallon of warm water for a great hardwood cleaner that removes wax build-up. And because of that, avoid using it on floors with a waxed finish.

Brass - Brass fixtures and candlesticks can be cleaned with vinegar. Simply rub or soak the pieces in vinegar to remove grime build-up.

Chopping boards and kitchen sink - With lemons, you don’t even need a sponge to clean cutting boards and kitchen sinks. Just cut a lemon in half, dab in a bowl of salt and scrub cutting boards and the kitchen sink to clean, freshen and disinfect them.

Microwave - Deodorise and clean the microwave by cutting up a lemon into thin slices and placing them in a bowl of water. Put that bowl in the microwave and run it on high for a couple of minutes to dissolve grease and food splatters. Wipe the interior of the microwave clean. This works equally well for regular ovens.

Refrigerator - Pongy smelling refrigerators just don’t seem like a good way to store food. Cure this by placing cotton balls soaked in lemon juice in the fridge to remove the odours.

Faucets - Water, stains and soap scums can be removed by rubbing the faucets with lemon juice. Let it sit overnight and rinse in the morning to have sparkling tapware.

Grout lines - Create a paste by mixing lemon juice with a teaspoon of cream of tartar. Brush the stained grout lines with a toothbrush then rinse to make them bright again.

Mirrors - Mix 2 tablespoons of lemon juice with a litre of water and spray on the mirror. Wipe clean with a microfiber cloth.

Clothes - Lemon is another handy item to have in the laundry room as it can help you remove stains and whiten clothes.

• As a natural bleach alternative - Add a cup of lemon juice to your load along with your usual detergent. Removes stains and make whites brighter. Best of all, unlike bleach, lemon juice is safe for coloured clothes too!

• Rust stains - Apply some lemon juice to the stain, sprinkle with cream of tartar and gently rub into the fabric. Let the solution sit then wash normally. 

• Mould and mildew remover - Mould and mildew remover - Create a paste of lemon and salt and coat the stain. Leave it under the sun to dry out and wash.