Five handy cleaning tips and tricks

Knowing which products are best for cleaning what can be tricky. This guide offers you some great cleaning tips and tricks, without having to run down the shops to find the latest expensive cleaning products. Grab those rubber gloves and get raiding those cupboards!

1. Baking soda
Baking soda is one of the home’s most handy cleaning products. Inexpensive, easily available, not particularly harmful and it can be used for a whole host of different problems. Baking soda can be used when cleaning delicate surfaces, to remove grease on pans or even to clean tea-stained china. And that’s to name but a few of the tricks baking soda has up its sleeve…

2. Vinegar
Vinegar is baking soda’s cleaning partner in crime. These two household items are the dream team! Vinegar can be used to remove limescale from kettles or glass (soak three parts hot water, one part brown vinegar), cleaning the bath, or even removing mildew from your fridge. Vinegar is also a great way to neutralize horrible pongs whilst you’re cleaning.

3. Lemon juice
Another great way to clean things that might not withstand other harsher cleaning chemicals. Got a stinky microwave? Stick a few slices of lemons in a bowl of water and microwave for about thirty seconds. Mmmm, smell that fresh lemony air! If you’re struggling to get the smell of garlic and onions out of your chopping board, rub half a lemon on it and rinse with water. If you’ve got laminate counter tops that you don’t want to get scratched, lemon juice on a cloth should do much less damage than a scourer.

4. Salt
Salt is great for soaking spillages and burnt on food. Sprinkle some salt over pan spills or oven drips while they are still wet and the salt will soak up the liquid, making it much easier to wipe away once it’s all cooled down a bit. Burnt on food on the bottom of pans needs a bit more time, but a few tablespoons of salt should still do the trick. Cover the bottom of the pot or pan in water and add about five tablespoons of salt. Leave it to soak overnight and put the water on to boil the next morning. The food should lift away.

5. Mix it all together
Combining these power four together in different ways can increase their cleaning powers even further. For example, a mixture of salt and vinegar can be used to clean copper, or create a natural floor cleaner using salt, liquid soap, and lemon juice. Voila.