Created by Co-blogger Amelia Ziegert

Searches for safe DIY cleaners are popping up across the Internet and Pinterest. Fortunately, some DIY cleaners are truly safe, easy to make, and use inexpensive products found at your local grocery store.

With some elbow grease, you too can make a DIY Citrus Vinegar Cleaner which saves you money over name-brand cleaners full of hazardous chemicals. The chemicals you find in many traditional cleaners can be unsafe, especially for children, pets, or those with allergies and sensitivities. Not only is the DIY Citrus Vinegar Cleaner is free of traditional, toxic chemicals, this cleaner can last you months or years even, depending on frequency of use.

With the DIY Citrus Vinegar Cleaner, you get peace of mind knowing you are cleaning your home and protecting your family with a safe, effective, and natural product!

Gather supplies. Sanitize jars and lids; if desired, wash fruit. With cutting board and knife, cut fruit in half to prepare for juicing. In order to begin juicing process, gather at least three wide-mouth mason jars (one for the fruit when the juice is reamed, one for fruit juice after the pulp is strained out, and one to hold fruit rinds which will later be combined with vinegar.)

The number of jars you need for this process depends on the amount of fruit you begin with. Use your best judgement and remember that wide-mouth mason jars are inexpensive and useful for many things around the home.

Juice the fruit. This is a lengthy process depending on how much fruit you’ve purchased! The more fruit you’ve purchased, the more vinegar you’ll make. Remember that the vinegar you are pouring in the jar will fill in the little crevices. Pack the jar tightly but not to overflowing because you want to leave room for the vinegar ~Use your good judgment, as there is no perfect ratio of fruit rinds to vinegar liquid. Also, the number of fruits you use in a jar depends on the size of the fruit you are using.

Freshly Reamed Juice:

If you plan to drink your freshly reamed Citrus juice, there is no need to strain the pulp out; however, if you plan to use the freshly reamed Citrus juice in a spray bottle, first strain out the pulp as it clogs the sprayer.

It’s important to strain and save the juice you get from your citrus fruit. It’s delicious, fresh, and valuable for cooking or cleaning.

Once you’ve strained out the pulp from the fresh lemon or lime juice, you can freeze extra juice in ice cube trays, or use it to make drinks such as lemonade, limeade, or margaritas, or use. Just add a little sugar or honey. Yum!

You can also use your fresh lemon juice in cleaning recipes, such as a homemade, non-toxic bleach substitute, or in cooking or prepping food, using juice to keep cut apples looking and smelling fresh.

Store mason jars filled with citrus rinds and vinegar in a cool, dry, and DARK place for 2-12 weeks. Storage time depends on how long you want to wait for the citrus vinegar to ferment! The longer you wait, the better and stronger your cleaning solution will be. Stronger solutions appear darker in color than weaker solutions, which have not fermented as long. (Tip: label your jars with the seal date and jar contents so you know when to open them! Lemons and oranges can look the same after awhile.)

Optimal Temperature:

If you keep your AC temperature warmer in the summer, consider making your citrus vinegar during cooler times of the year. Optimal storage temperature for your citrus vinegar is the same as storage for most medications~you don’t want it too warm or too cool.

What to Do After Fermentation

After waiting for your citrus vinegar to ferment, remove jars from the darkened location. Next, pour citrus vinegar through your sieve into a fresh mason jar, holding back the citrus rinds. Repeat the straining process until additional pulp is removed from your citrus vinegar. Then pour citrus vinegar in a spray bottle and place in your kitchen or bathroom for daily use; finally, store the remaining citrus cleaner in clean mason jars in a dark cabinet for future use.

Make sure to save some of the fermented fruit too! You can freshen trash cans and garbage disposals with it!

I make DIY Citrus Vinegar Cleaner, using real lemons or oranges. This is my go-to household cleaner! I prefer to use real fruit in the vinegar mixture since essential oils are costlier and do not last as long as citrus vinegar mixtures.

Citrus Vinegar/Water Ratio

Use a 50/50 mixture of citrus vinegar and water to make the ultimate cleaning solution. Mixing with water helps your citrus vinegar to laster longer and makes the cleaner more cost-effective.

Bathroom Cleaning Tips

Citrus Vinegar Cleaner replaces traditional bathroom cleaner; I use it to wipe down the toilet outside, (laminate) bathroom counter, porcelain sink, and polished fixtures, plus the lemon or orange fruit gives the the bathroom a wonderful scent, while the lemon and vinegar combo helps polish silver fixtures till they sparkle (removing unwanted hard water stains).

What To Clean/NOT to Clean Using Citrus Vinegar

You can wipe down a glass cooktop, laminate counters, certain metal fixtures, and generally most surfaces with Citrus Vinegar, all except for real stone or wood (NO granite, marble, or fine woods please). Use caution and common sense, as vinegar is acidic and slowly eats away at more delicate facades. Nevertheless, while DIY Citrus Vinegar should not be used to clean every household surface, it safely cleans many surfaces and smells divine!