Learn how to make an all purpose DIY cleaner with essential oils. I also have a free eBook as well.
Table of Contents
- Toxic Cleaning Products
- Non-Toxic Cleaning Products
- Benefits of Essential Oils
- How to Store DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
- How to Use DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
- DIY All Purpose Cleaner Ingredients
- DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils Instructions
- Do you want to get started with using essential oils?
- Print the Recipe DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
- DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils Recipe
- Pin it for later
Don’t forget to sign up for my free Cleaning with Essential Oils Ebook! Grab it HERE.
Toxic Cleaning Products
Lately, my sister and I have been researching the ingredients in regular cleaning products, and their effects on the body. The findings are alarming, to say the least.
The average American is exposed to 500,000 chemicals every day.
Toxic cleaning products cause indoor air pollution, a problem which is only made worse in homes where the windows are never opened.
So we are literally spraying our house down with carcinogens, and then trapping them in so they have no where to go, but in our bodies.
Not exactly a situation I want to create in my home full of young children!
Non-Toxic Cleaning Products
For the past few years I have been content to clean my counters, bathroom, floors, and kitchen sink with Norwex microfiber cloths and good ol’ fashioned water.
I still love my Norwex cloths, but sometimes I want that clean smell, too.
And, about once every week, I need something a little more powerful.
Soap scum, grape juice counter-top stains, and burned food on the stove top all require a little too much elbow grease with microfiber alone.
This simple all-purpose spray with just 4 ingredients is non-toxic and effective for those difficult household messes.
Instead of filling my home with toxins, this cleaning product actually releases molecules into the air that are beneficial to the body!
Benefits of Essential Oils
Melaleuca is best known for its purifying properties. It is naturally antifungal and antimicrobial.
Lemon is a powerful cleansing and purifying agent.
It takes approximately 45 lemons to make one 15 mL bottle of lemon essential oil. That’s a whole lot of cleaning power in one little bottle!
Read more about the health benefits of lemon HERE.
According to this article by Dr. Axe, the U.S. Department of Agriculture conducted a study that found when lemon essential oil was added to foods, it protected the food from human pathogens, like E. coli and Salmonella.
You can see how the combination of these two essential oils are effective against tough stains and germs in the home.
How to Store DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
Essential oils are powerful enough to break down plastic, so it is best to store your homemade cleaning supplies in glass spray bottles.
I use these 16 ounce glass bottles from Amazon.
How to Use DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
Use this spray anywhere you would normally use an all purpose cleaner.
Kitchen counter tops, vanities, floors, the refrigerator, tables, and the kitchen sink are all great places to try out this spray.
DIY All Purpose Cleaner Ingredients
1/2 cup vinegar
1 1/2 cups warm water
15 drops melaleuca (a.k.a. tea tree) essential oil
15 drops lemon essential oil
DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils Instructions
Combine all the ingredients into your glass bottle with a funnel and give it a good shake.
See, I told you it was easy!
Do you want to get started with using essential oils?
Get my free essential oils class HERE.
Print the Recipe DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
DIY All Purpose Cleaner with Essential Oils
Equipment
- Funnel
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups warm water
- 15 drops melaleuca, a.k.a. tea tree essential oil
- 15 drops lemon essential oil
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients into your glass bottle with a funnel.
- Always shake well before using.
Notes
- Always use the best essential oils you can afford.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Pin it for later
Hi Lisa! How long do you keep this all purpose cleaner?
Thanks
Are essential oils harmful to pets? I have read some articles that say they are.
Please send free e book. Thank you!
Is the spray bottle glass or plastic? I don’t see the explanation. I just see that the mixture should be in a GLASS bottle. Thanks!
Hi there Lisa, I’ve been really wanting to use recipes like this but I’ve read a few times that once you introduce water to the recipe it will have bacteria that proliferate and make the mixture not suitable for storing longer than a week or two. My partner argues that tea tree oil is antimicrobial so it shouldn’t matter. I know I can use distilled water but I don’t want to have to worry about trying to keep everything sterile, etc. Can you help? Could I make up the mix without adding water, and just add the water to a small amount when I’m ready to use it?
I think it’s because although they are oils, they are still solvents and the commercial ones are just compatible with pvc. I saw an article once of a woman who kept lavender oil in a plastic container and it totally dissolved it, but i’ve put lavender oil on my skin neat many times and I didn’t melt like the wicked witch of the west LOL. I’ve also used lemon EO (diluted) and tea tree (also diluted) on my skin before in a diy body butter with no ill effects. and vinegar is great for your hair. Minus the tea tree which is poisonous if ingested I wouldn’t worry much if i accidentally took a sip of this. It would taste pretty revolting but I would go straight to the ER with a commercial cleaner cos I can’t even pronounce half the things in those. TBH if you’re worried about buying a glass bottle I just upcycle old glass drinks bottles. My dad loves whiskey and some of the bottles look great, and I just reuse an old spray nozzle from a commerical cleaner with it. I have a basket at home full of old bottles and spray heads i’ve saved that are interchangable.
Hello! You said the diy cleaner will eat thru a plastic bottle. That concerns me. Commercial cleaners all come in plastic bottles, with no issues of eating thru the plastic. I love essential oils, but is this recipe safe?
Thank you! Lisa
Will this bottle last a fairly long time? I know the essential oils are pricey and it seems like you use a lot of drops for the one bottle. Just wondering if it’s cost effective ☺️
I’m not sure if you’ve addressed this elsewhere Lisa, but would you mind sharing where you get your glass spray bottles? I have a frustrating relationship with spray bottles in general (they never seem to hold up). I love your blog and YouTube videos, so inspiring!!!
I get some from Amazon, but my favorites are from Grove Collaborative. https://www.farmhouseonboone.com/farmhouse-on-boone/toxin-free-cleaning-with-essential-oils/