DIY Citrus Kitchen Cleaner

Good Morning!  I'm finishing up the blog series about my go-to homemade cleaners. So far I have shared what I use as a laminate floor cleaner, a window and glass cleaner, a furniture polish and an all purpose cleaner.  Today, I want to share what I use as a kitchen cleaner.

This cleaner calls for vinegar and citrus peels.  For the kitchen, I like to use a cleaner that can cut through grease and grime, which is why this cleaner is my choice for a homemade kitchen cleaner.  The vinegar is a natural cleaner and disinfectant, but the citrus acids naturally cut through grease and grime.  I tend to use the all purpose cleaner I shared on the blog yesterday for the counters and tables when I am cleaning up the multiple small messes that Mommy life brings, like bread crumbs or spilt milk.  When I'm cleaning up messes after cooking a family meal, that's when I tend to grab my citrus kitchen cleaner.

This cleaner is not limited to the kitchen.  It could also be an all purpose cleaner.  To make this cleaner, you will need the following :

• vinegar
• citrus peels
• herbs or spices (optional)
• air tight container (Mason jars work well)
• strainer
• water
• spray bottle

Here is how I make my kitchen cleaner:

1. place citrus peels in an air tight container
2. add any herbs or spices (optional)
3. pour vinegar into container
4. let soak for at least two weeks
5. strain the soaked liquid
6. pour liquid into spray bottle with equal parts water

I usually keep my jar on my kitchen window sill, so I don't forget about it.  For this particular batch on my window sill, I had leftover rosemary from a meal, so I threw it in with four orange peels and two grapefruit fruit peels that we reserved from last weeks' breakfast. When I am ready to make a new batch of cleaner, I use whatever I have on hand, but the following combinations compliment one another well.  In the colder months, I especially like the smell of the orange with cinnamon or cloves, and I really like the bright lemon with rosemary for spring cleaning!

• orange and cinnamon sticks
• lemon and rosemary
• grapefruit and mint
• lime and thyme

Overall, I think this is a great cleaner.  It doesn't have too strong of a vinegar smell, because the citrus smell overpowers the vinegar.  It's easy to make.  The hardest part about making the cleaner is the waiting.  It' cheap, because other than vinegar, you are using scraps of food that would have been thrown away.  Best of all, it's a safe natural cleaner that cuts grease and grime!