Cleaning with Essential Oils: Easy Recipes

Have you taken care of all your spring cleaning yet? Start cleaning with essential oils! Learn about the benefits and get super simple recipes for all areas of your home!

Why you should be cleaning with essential oils

You can avoid chemicals and toxins.

Cleaning with essential oils can help keep you and your family safe. With so many cleaning products available for purchase today, it can be hard to know what you’re really getting. By making your own household cleaners, you can avoid the many potentially harmful ingredients out there.

You can save money.

When it comes to essential oils, a little goes a long way. Many recipes for natural cleaning products require just a few drops of essential oils and inexpensive ingredients you likely already have on hand, including baking soda and vinegar, or even simple water.

You can be eco-friendly.

Making your own product can help reduce your impact on the environment. When you don’t buy the manufactured products, you’re not contributing to any harm big corporations might cause, including water or air pollution. You’ll also generate less waste. When you mix up your own cleaners, you can reuse the same container over and over instead of adding empty packaging to landfills.

You can get the scents you want.

It seems every cleaning product in the store comes with its own scent. Some have that icky chemical odor while countless others are full of overpowering, fake fragrance. Cleaning with essential oils gives you more control over the aromas that fill your home. Customize your blends with your favorite oils, and feel good that the scents are all-natural!

You can do more with less.

Essential oils are great to have on hand because they have tons of different uses. Besides cleaning with essential oils, you can use them in your beauty routine, for your health, for your mood, in the yard, and in all kinds of other ways! And of course, use them in a diffuser to make your home or office smell great. We really like this bamboo option.

Essential oil cleaning recipes

Recipes from Wyndmere

All-Purpose Surface Cleaning Spray

Per 1 ounce of water add

-8 drops of orange essential oil

-6 drops of rosemary essential oil

-5 drops of tea tree essential oil

 

Lemon Furniture Dusting Polish

Per 1 ounce of jojoba oil add:

-4 drops of lemon

-4 drops of lavender

-2 drops of orange or sandalwood

 

General Cleaning Blend

Per 1 ounce of water or natural scrub mix add:

-6 drops of lemon

-4 drops of lavender

-4 drops of tea tree

-3 drops of grapefruit or rosemary

 

Floor and Surface Cleaner

Per 1 ounce of water or cleaning base add:

-10 drops of pine needle

-6 drops of cedarwood

-6 drops of rosemary

-3 drops of peppermint

To make a floor cleaner, add this blend to a bucket with 1 gallon of water, 3 tablespoons of white vinegar and 3 drops of a mild soap like castille.

 

Yoga Mat & Gym Bag Spray

Per 1 ounce of water add:

-3 drops of tea tree

-3 drops of lemon

-2 drops of lavender

-2 drops of peppermint

 

On-the-Go Hand Cleaner Spray

Per 1 ounce of water add:

-6 drops of lemon

-5 drops of rosemary

-5 drops of lavender

-3 drops of clove bud

Recipe from Aura Cacia

Purifying and Deodorizing Lemon Tea Tree Garbage Disposal Pods

This recipe is a bit more involved, but once you’re done, you’ll have a handy way to keep your garbage disposal smelling fresh.

Ingredients

-1 fresh lemon

-1 cup baking soda

-1 cup salt

2 tablespoons lemon tea tree essential oil (or a combination of lemon and tea tree)

Directions

-Cut lemon into quarters and puree in a food processor until smooth

-Mix lemon puree with the baking soda and salt, stirring until well blended and wet paste forms

-Mix in the essential oils

-Portion and press the mixture into a flexible ice cube tray or silicone baking mold

-Allow to dry thoroughly (24 to 48 hours)

-Remove the pods from the mold and store in a jar

To use

-Run one pod through the disposal with water

Ideas from Real Simple

Combs & Brushes

To get your combs and brushes fresh and clean, soak them in the following solution:

-1 1/2 cups water

-1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

-20 drops of tea tree, lavender or eucalyptus oil

Allow them to soak for about 20 minutes, then rinse and air-dry

Scuffed Floors

Apply 2 to 4 drops of tea tree oil to the scuff, then wipe up excess oil with a cloth and rub in a bit of distilled white vinegar

Gum-encrusted Items

Apply orange oil to a cotton ball and rub on sticky spots. It shouldn’t stain fabrics, but if you do use it on a fabric, be sure to launder it immediately.

Shower Doors

Apply a few drops of lemon oil with a cloth or paper towel to shower doors about twice a month to help prevent grime buildup.

Toilets

Combine 2 teaspoons of tea tree oil and 2 cups of water in a spray bottle.

Shake it up and spray along the inside rim of the toilet, allowing it to sit for about 30 minutes before scrubbing clean.

And to keep the bathroom smelling fresh, add a few drops of your favorite essential oil to the inside of the toilet-paper tube.

Windows

Combine 10 drops of lavender or lemongrass oil with 2 ounces of water. Use it on a cloth or paper towels to wipe windows clean. These oils might also repel flies.

 

Things to keep in mind when cleaning with essential oils:

A little goes a long way.

Essential oils are highly concentrated and potent. For most uses, you just need a few drops. Using too much can result not only in an overpowering scent, but can also irritate skin. Less is more!

They’re not intended for consumption.

While homemade cleaning solutions with essential oils are free of the toxins and chemicals found in most home and commercial cleaning products, this does not mean they’re not harmful if consumed. Remember to keep your cleaning mixes and essential oils out of the reach of children and pets.

Sensitivities are possible.

Like any other product, certain individuals can have sensitivities or allergies to essential oils. If you experience any irritation after using a cleaning product with essential oils, discontinue use. If using essential oils on your skin, first dilute with a carrier oil like jojoba, almond, or avocado oil.

Also keep an eye on pets. Because of their strong sense of smell, they may be more easily irritated by potent essential oils. Learn more about essential oils and pets here.

Store in appropriate containers.

Because essential oils are so concentrated, they’re best stored in hard, non-porous containers like glass bottles. If you need glass mixing and spray bottles, you can shop our aromatherapy supplies here.

Use essential oils appropriately and they’ll bring all kinds of benefits into your home and life!

And be sure to shop our entire selection of essential oils from Wyndmere, NOW and more. We have dozens of scents to choose from, including a variety of unique blends! You can even get larger, more economical sized bottles of commonly used oils like peppermint, lavender, tea tree and rosemary.

Do you have other ideas for cleaning with essential oils? Let us know! What are your favorites?