Keeping vinegar, Castile soap, baking soda, and essential oils on hand will enable you to make just about every cleaner you need.

Simple Recipes to Clean the Whole House
Floors
My favorite floor cleaner is made by adding 2 to 4 tablespoons of Castile soap and 10 drops of lemon essential oil to a large container. Fill with 1 gallon of hot water and stir to mix. If the floor is greasy, add up to 1/8 cup of vinegar.

Walls
The above floor cleaner will work well on walls too. If you wish to disinfect walls (or door knobs, crib rails, and so on), mix equal parts vinegar and water. Add 5 to 10 drops of essential oil, per 16 oz of mixture, if desired.

Mirrors
Mirrors can be cleaned well with water and a microfiber cloth. If you are looking for more shine (and germ killing power), combine 1 ½ cups of water with ½ cup of vinegar in a spray bottle and shake to mix. Add 5 to 10 drops of orange or lemon essential oil for extra cleaning power and added fragrance.

Counter tops
I often keep leftover floor cleaner in a spray bottle and use it on the counter tops. It works very well.

If this is not available I will make some disinfecting spray with lavender and peppermint essential oil and water. Adding two tablespoons of Castile soap to this mix will help loosen dirt or grime if necessary.

Toilets
Pouring a little straight or scented vinegar into the toilet bowl is a great way to clean and deodorize. For regular toilet seat wipe downs, keep some vinegar in a spray bottle. (Because it’s non-toxic and safe to use, why not give kids the job of swishing and swiping each day!)

Sprinkling baking soda into the bowl and scrubbing with a sturdy toilet brush is another good way to keep the toilet clean and fresh.

Bath and shower
The best way to keep the shower clean is to regularly spray the walls with vinegar, this helps prevent soap and scum from building up. Using a squeegee to remove excess water (a few times each week) is also very effective, especially on glass doors.

For a thorough cleaning, it is easy to make your own soft soap cleaner with baking soda and Castile soap.

Source: http://www.keeperofthehome.org/2011/03/non-toxic-cleaners-you-can-make-at-home.html

* as a moisturizer
* to control frizzy hair
* as a digestion aid~ a spoonful a day seems to help keep constipation away
* in place of other oils {such as canola and vegetable} in cooking/baking
* to grease the pan {perfect for pancakes and waffles}
* frying {mmm, think coconut shrimp!}
* in place of shortening or even butter, if you happen to run out
* to promote healthy milk supply in nursing mothers

Read more: http://simpleorganic.net/the-wonders-of-coconut-oil/.

2. Drain “Un-Clogger”
Mix vinegar with baking soda and salt for an inexpensive, chemical-free way to clear a clogged drain.

3. Mattress Cleaner
Remove dirt and stains from your mattress by blotting with a clean cloth dipped in vinegar.

4. Fabric Softener

5. Rust Remover
Just pour a little vinegar on a suborn rusty screw and it should come right out.

6. Hand Cleaner
Simply pour a bit of vinegar over your hands if they smell like onions, garlic, or if they are stained from berries. Then wash with soap and water to remove the vinegar smell.

7. Weed Killer
Try heating some white vinegar until it’s hot, but not boiling. Then pour it on cracks in your driveway, sidewalks, or anywhere else you want to kill stray grass and weeds.

8. Kitchen Disinfectant
Just pour undiluted vinegar into a spray bottle and use on all your hard surface.

9. Hair “Shiner”
Restore the shine by following your normal shower routine with a vinegar rinse {1/2 cup vinegar and 1 quart water}. Just remember to rinse the vinegar out with plenty of water so the smell doesn’t linger!

10. Nail Strengthener

Read more: http://www.simpleorganizedliving.com/2011/01/24/ten-surprising-uses-for-vinegar/.

Instead of… Use…
Glass cleaner Vinegar and water with a microfiber cloth
Toilet bowl cleaner Baking soda sprinkled around inside the bowl
Tub & tile cleaner Vinegar and water, and baking soda as needed
Floor cleaner Vinegar and water

You can read more clean, natural, homemade and frugal cleaning tips from from http://green.yourway.net/baby-steps-for-going-green-in-the-bathroom/.

Vinegar
The most frugal and versatile non-toxic cleaner. It is a safe and natural disinfectant that, mixed in a 1/1 ratio with water, can clean everything from floor to ceiling in pretty much any room, including mirrors and window. You should not, however use vinegar on porous natural surfaces like marble or granite.

It’s great at cutting grease. Iit’s especially good at cleaning up bathroom stainless steel fixtures and making them shiny. The vinegar and water mixture is also works as a stain remover on carpets and rugs!

Vinegar is also a great replacement for fabric softener in you laundry.

Baking Soda
Use Baking Soda to clean toilets, Just a few shakes around the bowl and a good scrubbing with a toilet brush

Hydrogen Peroxide
Great for cleaning areas that you want to be disinfected.

The mix of hydrogen peroxide and water also is great at removing certain types of stains on clothing. Dark stains, like blood, blueberries or other berries, or juice, come out easily when you spray them before putting the clothing in the wash.

Read more: http://www.keeperofthehome.org/2010/08/back-to-the-basics-frugal-non-toxic-green-cleaning.html/.

1. The Caddy: Any plastic or metal sectioned caddy will do, just make sure metal edges are finished to avoid rusting – no sense needing to clean-up after the clean-up supplies.

2. Rags: Avoid disposable wipes and sponges by keeping old washcloths or towels or even buying new cheap multipacks of cotton clothes. Cotton won’t scratch and is long-wearing.

3. Rubber Gloves: Any icky tasks become bearable with a protective layer in place.

4. Scrub Brushes: A flat, traditional brush, a smaller rounded brush (for tub and sink corners as well as smaller spaces) and an old toothbrush. A toilet brush can be kept at each toilet.

5. Powdered Cleanser: While there are many non-toxic choices, mine are baking soda (very mild yet effective) or Bon Ami. Bon Ami is made from feldspar, limestone, baking soda and plant-based cleansers – a highly effect, gently cleanser.

6. All Purpose Cleaner: Choose a non-toxic cleaner that can cut through grease and grim. I love original Simple Green in a 50% dilution. Kiss grime goodbye!

7. Liquid Dish Soap: Dishwashing liquid is one of the most versatile cleaners in most houses. You may not keep it in the caddy, but if you store the caddy under the kitchen sink, this essential will be close at hand when you start the cleaning rounds.

8. White Vinegar: White vinegar is as effective at killing bacteria as Clorox, is 100% non-toxic and cuts through hard water stains to shine fixtures, glass and mirrors like nothing else. Keep it straight in a spray bottle. Note: This acid can eat away at many kinds of natural stone and should never be used on marble.

Source: http://www.organizingyourway.net/.

You can find the rest of the tips at http://simplemom.net/tips-to-go-green-at-home/.

• If you spill something dark, pour salt on it to absorb moisture from the spill.
• Apply white vinegar or lemon juice directly to stains.
• Soak whites in a solution of water and lemon juice.
• Wash whites with washing soda, similar to baking soda but with a lower pH.
• After washing, hang whites to dry in the sun. Sunlight naturally bleaches without setting stains the way a dryer does.

{source: http://www.re-nest.com/}

1. Streakless windows:
Simply wash with a mixture of equal parts of white distilled vinegar and warm water. Dry with a soft cloth. This solution will make your windows gleam and will not leave the usual film or streaks on the glass.

2. Clean the microwave:
Boil a solution of 1/4 cup of white distilled vinegar and 1 cup of water in the microwave. Will loosen splattered on food and deodorize.

3. Clean the refrigerator:
Wash with a solution of equal parts water and white distilled vinegar.

4. Clean and disinfect wood cutting boards:
Wipe with full strength white distilled vinegar.

5. Bathtub film:
Bathtub film can be removed by wiping with white distilled vinegar and then with soda. Rinse clean with water.

6. Toilet bowl cleaner:
Stubborn stains can be removed from the toilet by spraying them with white distilled vinegar and brushing vigorously. The bowl may be deodorized by adding 3 cups of white distilled vinegar. Allow it to remain for a half hour, then flush.

7. Kill weeds:
Spray white distilled vinegar full strength on tops of weeds. Reapply on any new growth until plants have starved.

8. Keep Flowers Longer
Keep flowers fresh longer. Add 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 tablespoons white vinegar in a 1-quart vase of water. Trim stems and change water every five days.

9. Cleaner for Gold Jewelry (Winner of June 2007 Vinegar Online Use Contest)
Use one cup apple cider vinegar. Submerge solid gold jewelry item in vinegar for 15 minutes. Remove and dry with cloth.

10. Freshen baby clothes:
The addition of 1 cup of white distilled vinegar to each load of baby clothes during the rinse cycle will naturally break down uric acid and soapy residue leaving the clothes soft and fresh.

11. Clothes washing magic:
Clothes will rinse better if 1 cup of white distilled vinegar is added to the last rinse water. The acid in vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics, but strong enough to dissolve the alkalies in soaps and detergents.

12. Keeping colors fast:
To hold colors in fabrics, which tend to run, soak them for a few minutes in white distilled vinegar before washing.

13. Fruit and vegetable wash:
Add 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar to 1 pint water and use to wash fresh fruits and vegetables, then rinse thoroughly. Research has shown that vinegar helps kill bacteria on fruits and vegetables.

14. Get rid of cooking smells:
Let simmer a small pot of vinegar and water solution.

See more uses of vinegar at The Vinegar Institute.

1. Use as a on-toxic, natural scouring powder (use like Soft Scrub or Comet, but you don’t need gloves!)
2. Create a ‘foam gun’ by mixing vinegar and baking soda in a soda bottle (DO NOT put the lid on!); aim it at a friend for full effect.
3. To make your own baking powder, stir and sift together 2 parts of Cream of Tartar to 1 part baking soda and 1 part cornstarch.
4. Makes a last-resort fire extinguisher, great for grease fires (to which you should NEVER add water), also.
5. Add 1/4 cup when re-washing a load of stinky laundry that sat in the washer too long.
6. Soda absorbs kitty-litter stinkiness. Cover the bottom of the litter box with a layer of baking soda then add kitty litter on top.
7. Wash out thermoses, sippy cups, and other closed containers with soda and water to get rid of stale odors.
8. Clean your coffee maker by running it through its cycle with a solution of 1 part baking soda to 4 parts water.
9. Polish your silver with a bit of soda on a damp rag.
10. Rub a solution of baking soda and water on your windshield to keep it from fogging up.
11. To remove strong smells from your hands wash with baking soda and water, then rinse.
12. Add 2 Tbsp. of baking soda to baby’s bath water to help relieve diaper rash irritations.
13. Make a paste of baking soda and a little water and apply directly to insect bites, rashes and poison ivy to relieve discomfort.
14. Make a smooth, white playdough: mix together 1 1/4 cups water, 2 cups soda, 1 cup cornstarch. Sprinkle on carpets or upholstery and vacuum up to remove pet smell and other disagreeable odors.
15. Relieve canker sore pain by using it as mouthwash.
16. Keep cut flowers fresh longer by adding a teaspoon to the water in the vase.
17. Put an open container of baking soda in the fridge to absorb the odors.
18. Sprinkle it in your slippers, boots, and shoes to alleviate shoe smells.
19. Put it under sinks and along basement windows to repel crawling insects.
20. Sprinkle around the garden to prevent rabbits from eating your veggies and to sweeten your tomatoes.
21. Add a cup to the toilet, leave it for an hour, and then flush. It will clean the toilet and absorb the odor.
22. Use a paste of baking soda mixed with water as an anti-acne face scrub.
23. Scrub fruits and vegetables with baking soda and water to remove pesticide residues and wax.
24. Mix 1 tsp. baking soda with your usual shampoo to remove styling product build-up and to relieve oily scalp.
25. Make ‘invisible ink’ by mixing equal parts baking soda and water; paint on paper then hold up to a lightbulb to read the message (the heat will brown the baking soda)
26. To open up a partially clogged drain, pour 1/2 c baking soda in, then add 1 cup of vinegar; let bubble for several minutes, then run hot water down the drain.
27. Combine equal parts baking soda and borax to make your own dishwasher detergent.
28. Sprinkle a bit of baking soda in the bottom of your trashcan to alleviate stinky trash odors.
29. Scour crayon and pencil marks off of your wall without damaging paint with a bit of baking soda on a damp cloth.
30. Freshen up your toothbrushes by soaking in a solution of equal parts baking soda and water.
31. Sweeten your breath by using a solution of baking soda and water as a mouthwash.
32. Brush your teeth with baking soda to whiten and remove stains naturally.
33. Make a solution of 1 Tbsp. baking soda, 1/2 tsp. liquid soap, and 1 gallon of water; spray on plants to keep powdery mildew at bay.
34. Add 1/2 cup baking soda to your washing for whiter whites and brighter colors.
35. Pretreat clothes with a paste made from 4 Tbsp. baking soda and 1/4 cup warm water to remove stains (even perspiration!).
36. Sprinkle on steps and sidewalks as a wintertime de-icer.
37. Keep weeds from growing out of cracks in your concrete walk- or driveway by sprinkling generous amounts of baking soda into the cracks.
38. Rid your pet of earmites by washing out their ears with a cotton ball dipped in a solution of 1 tsp baking soda in 1 cup warm water.