Citrus Cleaning Concentrate

A simple recipe to completely transform your cleaning routine.

Say goodbye to the days of lugging an armload of cleaners around the house, spraying every surface in your home with a cocktail of chemicals, spending outrageous amounts of money on area-specific cleaners and worrying about your little ones finding the toxic ‘cleaning cupboard’.

Creating this cleaning concentrate is super simple and totally doable for everyone. If you can find some citrus peels, white vinegar, and glass container with a lid, you can make this!

Why do I love this?

I love that this is a concentrate is so versatile. I have a go-to spray bottle that is diluted (about 1 part concentrate, 8 parts vinegar) for cleaning my counter tops, appliances, kitchen table, or anywhere else that might need a quick wipe down. If I need some extra power I can quickly mix up a stronger batch, or even use the concentrate on its own. Even the diluted version cleans up grease, grime, and sticky messes with a simple spray and wipe with a wet cloth. You won’t find a film or strong scent left behind, just a clean, toxin-free home.

The first step is collecting the citrus peels, you have 2 options for this. If you happen to have an abundance at one time you can fill your jar all at once. If you don’t, you can add some white vinegar to the jar and add your peels as you have them, making sure the peels are always covered by vinegar. These can come from peeling an orange, juicing a lemon, or whatever else you may be doing with citrus at that time. Try to avoid having a lot of pulp left on the peel. You are aiming to fill the jar half full of peels.

When you have reached the halfway point, top off the jar with white vinegar and seal it. Make a note on the jar of the date it was sealed. Now find a cool, dark home for your jar to spend the next 3-6 weeks.

When you are ready to use your cleaning concentrate, dig out your jar and strain it. Simply pour it through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth to filter out the large pieces and give it a good squeeze to make sure you get all of the cleaning goodness.

Store your concentrate in a glass jar in your cupboard and dilute for use as needed.

So why citrus and vinegar?

Is this going to clean and disinfect like my commercial cleaners claim to do?

The acid in white vinegar breaks down, dirt, oil, films, and even bacteria making it a great option for cleaning. The addition of citrus contributes a naturally occurring solvent called d-limonene. This is a powerful, natural degreaser and when it fuses with the acetic acid from the vinegar is an excellent disinfectant. This combination makes an amazing household cleaner that can be just as effective as one you’d find at the store.

Play around with different types of citrus to find a scent you love. You can also add pine needles or rosemary for extra antibacterial power.

Some of my favorite combinations are:
Orange
Lemon & Pine
Lemon & Lime
Grapefruit & Rosemary