Cleaning Hacks that Save you Money
Rising inflation equals rising prices and we all need a way to reduce our monthly spending, which is why you will love these cleaning hacks that will save you money.
25/10/2022
We have all experienced how rising inflation affects the price of groceries and related products. Overnight, prices shoot higher, and we find ourselves struggling to buy what we need for the same amount of money as we did earlier this year. This trend isn't going to go away, and we all need to look at how we can cut corners and reduce costs without having to sacrifice our lifestyle. In this article, we offer some eco-friendly, green, and more affordable ways to lower monthly cleaning product costs and still keep a home sparkling clean.
1 | Oven Cleaner
Cleaning an oven, stovetop or hob doesn't need to be a chore and shouldn't cost you a fortune in cleaning products. Oven cleaners are one of the most expensive and toxic products on the market. A simple and cost-effective solution for cleaning a greasy oven is to use bicarbonate of soda and white spirit vinegar. When combined, these two ingredients make for a powerful degreasing agent that will power through grease. The trick? Use this regularly to keep an oven clean and prevent burnt-on grease, suggests GreaseCycle. If you leave an oven too long between cleanings, the grease becomes stubborn and hard to remove, but regular cleaning will ensure that any grease will be easy to remove - without excess effort.
YOU WILL NEED:
Pack of bicarbonate of soda, 500g @ R40
White spirit vinegar, 5 litre @ R60
Spray bottle, 500ml @ R20
HERE'S HOW:
Make a thick paste using about half a cup of bicarbonate of soda and small amount of water. Apply the paste onto greasy areas in the oven, stovetop, or hob. Let the paste sit overnight before filling a bottle with white spirit vinegar and spraying this over the paste. Leave for around 30 minutes and then use a sponge scourer to gently rub over the top. Do not apply too much pressure on a glass hob as this may scratch the surface, but repeatedly spray with vinegar and rub to remove grease.
2 | Fabric Deodoriser
Nothing is friendlier to your home or your furniture than bicarbonate of soda. It can be used to refresh upholstered furniture, fitted carpets or rugs, or you can use it to refresh a mattress. Bicarbonate of soda also helps to remove odours, so keep this in mind if you have pets in the home. Regularly sprinkling textiles with bicarbonate of soda before a weekly vacuum will keep them fresh and odour-free.
YOU WILL NEED:
Pack of bicarbonate of soda, 500g @ R40
Soft brush - a natural bristle nail brush is ideal
Vacuum cleaner
HERE'S HOW:
Sprinkle bicarbonate of soda liberally over the fabric and lightly rub over this with a soft bristle brush to embed the soda into the fibres of the fabric. Leave this on, preferably overnight but at least for a couple of hours. Use a vacuum cleaner to clean the fabric. Repeat this every few months to refresh fabrics.
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3 | Revive Clothes
Many people prefer to replace clothing that becomes fluffy over time rather than go to the effort of removing pilling. Lint removers are great for removing lint, but they aren't great at removing pilling or fluff that builds up on knitted fabrics and yet there is a very easy and inexpensive way to do this and bring clothes back to life.
YOU WILL NEED:
Used, disposable razor
HERE'S HOW:
Don't throw out your used razor blades when you can use them for something else. Give the blades a clean with a small, stiff brush to clean out the gunk and then use this to remove pilling or fluff from clothing. The easiest way to do this is to place the item of clothing on a flat surface such as an ironing board and hold the fabric firm and flat. Go over this with the razor blade in one direction and see how easy it is to remove pilling. Clean the blade regularly as you work.
4 | Remove Sticky Grease
Window blinds, whether plastic or aluminium, have a habit of accumulating sticky grease when installed in a kitchen. Cleaning this off can be a mission and you usually have to do several wipes over to remove greasy residue. The best solution is to remove the blinds and soak them in a bathtub with cold water washing powder. The enzymes in the washing powder will remove the grease and leave the blinds clean. keeping them clean is another matter and we address this below.
YOU WILL NEED:
White spirit vinegar, 5 litre @ R60
Spray bottle, 500ml @ R20
Paper towels
HERE'S HOW:
Angle the blinds so that the slats are top edge facing forward. Fill a spray bottle with white spirit vinegar and lightly spray the whole blind from top to bottom. It's a good idea to have some newspaper below to blinds to catch any runoff or drips. Wipe down with paper towels until dry. You can do this on a monthly or every second month to keep sticky grease at bay and make it easy to dust the blinds with a feather duster in-between cleaning.
5 | Clean Taps and Fittings
Hardwater stains caused by soap and mineral deposits are common on taps and stainless steel fittings. This can be difficult to remove as it becomes hard. The best and easiest method of removing hardwater stains or mineral deposits is to break down the deposit and make them easier to remove and the acidity of vinegar is great for this while lemon juice will leave fittings sparkling clean.
YOU WILL NEED:
White spirit vinegar, 5 litre @ R60
Concentrated lemon juice, 500ml @ R40
Spray bottle, 500ml @ R20
Old toothbrush
Paper towels
HERE'S HOW:
Spray white spirit vinegar around areas on fittings or glass doors where soap scum or mineral deposits tend to collect. This is mostly at the bottom of doors or around joints in taps and fittings. The vinegar will help to soften the hard deposits and make it easier to remove. However, if the deposits have been there for a long time, you may need to spray and repeat until it is easy to remove them. Use an old toothbrush to rub over the deposits. For a larger area, you can also use a nail brush or scrubbing brush.
After removing the hard deposits, use a cloth lightly dampened with concentrated lemon juice to remove stains and bring stainless steel to a gleaming shine.
6 | Scrub Tubs and Sinks
Forget abrasive cleaners and change to an eco-friendly cleaning option that removes grime, grease and soap scum in bathtubs and sinks and will leave a bathroom hygienically clean and fresh.
YOU WILL NEED:
Pack of bicarbonate of soda, 500g @ R40
Concentrated lemon juice, 500ml @ R40
Soft cloth
HERE'S HOW:
Make a paste with lemon juice and bicarbonate of soda and use this with a soft cloth to wipe away grime and soap scud in a bathtub, sink or basin, and in a shower cubicle. You can also use this to wash down tiles on the wall and floor. Rinse with a clean cloth and leave your bathroom lemon-scented, fresh, and clean.
7 | Remove Pets Hair from Textiles
We love our pets to bits, but their hair can be a bit of a nightmare. It gets onto upholstered furniture, sticks to rugs, and loves getting deep into the fibres of carpeting. If you have a vacuum cleaner that is specifically designed for pet hair - no problem, but if you don't, here is an easy way to remove pet hair from any textile.
YOU WILL NEED:
Window squeegee, @ R100
Pack of bicarbonate of soda, 500g @ R40
Soft brush
HERE'S HOW:
Starting at one end of the carpet, rug or piece of furniture, move the squeegee towards you while pressing into the pile or fabric. Repeat this a couple of times so that the pet hair accumulates. As you build up pet hair, remove this and repeat until all the pet hair is gone. Sprinkle the fabric or carpet with bicarbonate of soda and leave for an hour or two to remove odours before vacuuming clean.
8 | Clean Pots and Pans
Burnt on food and grease is a mission to remove and usually takes a lot of scrubbing. Make it easier and softer on stainless steel or aluminium cookware and cast iron pots and pans with
YOU WILL NEED:
White spirit vinegar, 5 litre @ R60
Coarse salt, 1 kg @ R12
HERE'S HOW:
Depending on the type of pots and pans you have, use white spirit vinegar for stainless steel and aluminium and coarse salt for cast iron. Place the pan on the stove and add a small amount of water and vinegar. Let the pan heat up slowly to a boil and then switch off and let it cool before adding a tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda. Now it should be easy to remove the burnt-on food. For cast iron pots and pans, rub with coarse salt until clean and then rinse.