Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Witchy Green Cleaning – Floor Wash



Welcome back to the final installment in the Witch Green Cleaning series. This week I’m going to tell you a little bit about the floor washes that I’ve made. There aren’t too many photo’s but the recipes are great!

Before you wash your floors be sure to either sweep or vacuum any dirt. dust (or in my case) dog hair. It is much easier to mop when you've got the bits and pieces swept up!

The first cleaner is a very simple recipe that I use on my tile and linoleum. It is easy to make and leaves the floor clean. One of the best things about it is that you don’t need to rinse afterwards!! I’ve seen this basic recipe on several sites. My favorite is www.amybayliss.com, she has lots of great DIY ideas for the home.

Basic Floor Wash – Tile & Linoleum
1 Gallon hot water (very hot)
1 cup vinegar
½ cup Borax
8-10 drops Essential Oil (For the kitchen I like to use lemon essential oil because it smells so fresh!)

Mix all ingredients in your bucket and mop as usual. As I mentioned above you do not need to rinse the floor when you use this mixture!



If I just need to get the dust or dirt off the wood floors then I use this simple recipe which comes from the book The Naturally Clean Home by Karyn Siegel-Maier. This book has over 100 recipes for cleaners for every area of you home!

Wood Floor Wash
1 ½ cups water
1 ½ cups vinegar (natural disinfectant)
20 drops peppermint essential oil ( Or lemon, Eucalyptus, Pine)

Mix all ingredients in a spray bottle. Shake well. Working on a small area at a time mist the floor and then wipe using a dry mop.Repeat as necessary to remove all the dust and dirt.

Finally here is the cleaner I use to make my wood floors shine.  

To Make the Wood Shine
1 cup olive oil
1 cup white vinegar

Mix both ingredients in a spray bottle. Shake well.

Working on a small section at a time, spray floor with oil/vinegar mix and wipe dry with clean soft cloth. I use old towels that I got at my local thrift store.  

Look for towels that are old and soft and preferably white or a light color. I bleach mine when I get them home and then tear them into 2 foot by 2 foot squares. These are just right for me to use to buff the floor with my foot. I also use them to dry all of my floors when I mop them. Once I finish mopping the entire floor(tile and linoleum - wood I dry as I go) I throw one of these towels on the floor and buff it with my foot until the floor is dry, getting a new dry towel as necessary. once done I toss all the wet towels in the wash so they are ready for the next time. 

When working with wood floors always work in small sections and dry the floor as you go. You do not want to leave liquid on a wood floor for any prolonged amount of time as it could damage the floor. Always test your homemade cleaners in an inconspicuous spot before using!

Now for the witchy add-ins:

General
Rosemary – Purification, Protection and Alertness (This is also great for entrance ways)
Eucalyptus – Removes negativity, promotes healing
Lemon – Increases energy (both physical and mental) and it really smells fresh and clean!
Pine- Removes negativity and has a fresh clean, earthy scent
Sweet Orange – Peace, serenity, good luck

Bathroom/Bedroom
Lavender – Peace and Tranquility
Peppermint – Sleep, Healing
Grapefruit – To increase energy – this scent is great to get you going in the morning!

That concludes the planned Witchy Green Cleaning series for this year though if I find another cleaner that I love I’ll definitely add more!

As always use caution when mixing items at home. If you are allergic to a particular item don’t use it! IF I can answer any questions send me an email.


Autumnwind

5 comments:

  1. I knew that vinegar was a good antiseptic, my mom was always spraying the counters with vinegar and water at home but I never thought of combining it with an essential oil to refresh the scent. Thanks for the idea!
    Sarah
    http://littlecloudofsanity.blogspot.ca

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    1. You are welcome! It really works. Mu guy hates the scent of vinegar but with the essential oils added tot he cleaners he can't smell it! Thanks for stopping by.

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  2. I love the meaning of the different scents! I want to try some around the home!

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    1. I love the research behind scents. It is so interesting to see how scent and aroma affect us.

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  3. I forgot to add the give away to this post!! That is how crazy busy it has been here. I'll be posting a give-away post this week. Now it will have to be something really special!

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