Spring Cleaning with Essential Oils
The arrival of spring and summer months is the perfect time to think about spring cleaning. Spring cleaning, as many people may know, is a thorough cleaning of a house or any such space. This practice is mainly prevalent in places which observe a long, cold winter, primarily the western world.
Now there are different ways to clean up the dirt and dust that has been collected in the nooks and crannies of your lovely house. Many popular choices involve the use of harsh chemicals that are environmentally harmful, and which can even harm the human skin and internal body parts. If you are a believer that the environment comes first and if you are willing to actively make a difference through your choices, there are plenty of alternative options to use natural ingredients. Natural ingredients can also successfully and thoroughly complete your spring cleaning this year and the many years to come. One such attractive all natural ingredient are essential oils.
Certain essential oils have antimicrobial properties that can help you clean your home better than any chemical can. The best part about using essential oils as cleaning agents is that you can choose and mix the type of scents you wish to experience in your house. You can mix more than one essential oil and enjoy their combined properties and smells.
Essential oils known for being efficient cleaners:
Peppermint
This essential oil has a wonderful smell and acts as a mild pest repellent. It is also antibacterial & anti fungal and pairs wonderfully well with lavender, rosemary, and eucalyptus for cleaning purposes.
Tea tree
Tea tree essential oil works amazingly well on mold and fungi, as well as removing foul, musty smells. It's great for disinfecting.
Lemon
Lemon’s acidic properties provide antibacterial and antifungal functions to a cleaning solution. It can help remove stains and harsh greasy patches.
Pine
Pine is inexpensive and has a very earthy smell. It acts as a disinfectant and as a deodorizer.
Essential oil combinations & their cleaning functions:
- Water + Vinegar + your preferred citrus essential oil, to clean windows and windowsills.
While it is refreshing to open the windows to let the spring breeze into your home, this can bring your attention to how dirty and dusty those windows may be after a long winter. Mix one and a half cups of white vinegar with one cup and eight drops of your preferred citrus essential oil and put this mixture into a spray bottle. This fragrant and effective solution would be perfect for washing those dirty windows so you can enjoy the fresh spring breeze.
- Eucalyptus + Tea Tree + Lemon essential oil, as a spray for your closets.
Spring has always been a good time to go through your closets and toss the items you no longer want and stock up with your warm weather clothing. Unfortunately closets are one of those dark spaces of a home where the air can easily get trapped, becoming stale and stinky. Mix together one and half cups of water with equal drops of eucalyptus, tea tree, and lemon essential oil in a bottle and use the spray directly in the closet after emptying it out. This will leave a fresh, sweet aroma for your clothes and your closet.
- Tea Tree essential oil + water + baking soda, as the ultimate bathroom tile cleaner.
In a container, combine baking soda and essential oil. Add a few tablespoons of water to form a paste. Spray a little water on the walls. This will help the paste to stick to the spaces. Apply the paste using the brush. Do not forget the space between the tiles. Leave the paste applied for about 5 minutes. After that, use the brush again to scrub between the tiles. Use running water for rinsing away the paste.
- Wild orange + Sandalwood + Clove essential oil, as a cleaning solution to wipe down doorknobs, handles, buttons, and switches.
We all know that germs spread easily when people are under the weather and are constantly touching surfaces other people are touching as well, such as doorknobs and light switches. It’s time to kill off any signs of cold and flu season for good by wiping down anything that’s regularly touched by multiple people with mixture of water and bacteria-fighting essential oils. Eight drops each of wild orange, sandalwood, and clove diluted in one cup of water will smell amazing and kill anything nasty that is lingering on stuff in your home.
- Add lemon essential oil to some tissues or cotton balls to add to your vacuum cleaner’s canister.
Lemon essential oil is one of those super powerful oils that has antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and antibiotic properties. By sticking a few tissues or cotton balls soaked in 5-10 drops of lemon essential oil into the canister of your vacuum cleaner, the oil will diffuse throughout your home and eliminate that dusty smell of the vacuum cleaner while leaving you with a fresh, clean scent.
- Water + Vinegar + Peppermint or Lemon essential oil, as the ultimate mopping solution.
Believe it or not, essential oils are versatile enough to work on almost any type of flooring including hardwood, tiles, linoleum, ceramic, and even laminate. Since spring is when all the critters wake up and sometimes make their way into our homes, peppermint oil will be your best friend in helping you ward off mice, ants, and any other insects or pests. You could also use lemon essential oil if your aim is to disinfect. Add one cup vinegar with 15-20 drops of the essential oil in a bucket of water and get mopping.
- Orange + Pine + Tea Tree essential oils + baking soda + water, as the ideal natural oven cleaner
Your oven must be completely cool before beginning the cleaning process. This is the primary safety protocol. Then, in a small container add the essential oils and baking soda. Add 3 tablespoons of water and stir till a thick paste is formed. If the paste is dry, add more water. Apply this paste using a damp cloth of sponge over the oven. Let it be for 5 minutes. Using a sponge or cloth, scrub off the applied paste. This will take multiple rinsing of the cloth or sponge, but it will be effective. After all the paste has been removed, do the final wipe with a clean cloth and voila, your shining oven is ready to come alive.
Essential oils are more than just aromatherapy. They offer a great natural alternative to harsh cleaning chemicals. So get rid of the chemical smell this spring and try essential oils. In addition to keeping your house clean and disinfected, they will leave your home smelling amazing. That being said, essential oils offer amazing health benefits. If all this spring cleaning talk is giving you a headache, try our Aculief's My Relief Essential Oil Roll-On Stick. Apply to your temples or the back of your neck when you start feeling a headache come on, then get back to your spring cleaning feeling refreshed!