Vinegar: Mix three tablespoons of white distilled vinegar with one cup of water. Dampen a soft cloth with the mixture and dab on a test spot. If it has no negative effect, continue cleaning. Buff with a dry cloth afterward.
White distilled vinegar is a great (and inexpensive) solution to get rid of dust. Because the vinegar cuts through grease and grime, it can also help to naturally lift off more dust.
Cleaning floors with vinegar is a natural, chemical-free way to remove dirt and grime. Carpet odor and dust mite remover: Mix a few drops of your favorite essential oil with distilled white vinegar in a spray bottle. Spritz lightly throughout.
Diluted vinegar can dissolve the finish that protects the wood and leave it looking cloudy, dull, or scratched. (The same goes for wood furniture.) Follow the manufacturer's cleaning recommendations or pick a cleaner that's made specifically for hardwood flooring.
For fabric upholstery: Mix 1/4 cup vinegar, 3/4 warm water and 1 tablespoon of dish soap or Castile soap. Put in a spray bottle. Mist the soiled area. Scrub with a soft cloth until the stain lifts.
To make the spray, she combines 2 cups of water, 1 cup of vinegar to disinfect and cut through grime, 2 tablespoons of olive oil to polish and keep dust away for longer, and a drop or two of dish soap for extra cleaning power. Mix it all together and use it in place of your regular surface cleaner for best results.
You can also make a simple polish by mixing 1 cup of olive oil with 1/4 cup white vinegar. Pour it on a soft cloth and work it into the wood, wiping with the grain. Buff till shiny. Knowing how to clean wood furniture will help you keep your possessions looking lovely, longer.
Navas recommends you wipe a damp microfiber cloth over the affected surface to collect the stray particles. For a more thorough job, to cover more surface area, or to get to harder-to-reach areas, you can use the dusting tool or hose attachment on your vacuum.
Instead, you can more successfully capture dust with a soft cloth lightly dampened with water or a furniture dusting spray, a microfiber duster or an electrostatic duster, which use static electricity to pick up more dust particles.
Vacuum your furniture or dust it with a cloth on the surface and in any crevices. You can use white vinegar diluted in water for cleaning, or white vinegar mixed with olive oil for a clean and polish. Make sure your rag is soft and damp (not dripping), and buff the furniture dry with a clean cloth afterwards.
White vinegar is on our list of "stain busters," but other vinegars, such as red wine vinegar and balsamic vinegar, have dyes, additives, and so on that can cause stains. Remember, however, that white vinegar is acidic. If you splash it on your clothing, carpet, or upholstery, don't leave it there undiluted.
Vinegar is a cool thing to use to stain wood because it's not really dying it – its weathering the wood through a chemical reaction with the tannins in the wood and the chemicals in the vinegar solution!
Vinegar doesn't sanitize or disinfect
Some limitations are that vinegar doesn't disinfect MRSA, STAPH and other nasty germs that can make your family sick. Vinegar DIY cleaners can leave behind as much as 20% of the germs that make families sick because it's not potent enough to kill all of them.
As a general rule, most natural cleaning experts suggest mixing one part vinegar to one part water. These recommendations typically rely on distilled white vinegar as the cleaning element. If homeowners are using cleaning vinegar, they may want to add a little more water to achieve a similar amount of acetic acid.
Baking soda will neutralize odors on whatever surface it touches. After you finish cleaning a surface with vinegar, sprinkle a thin layer of baking soda over the area. Wait a few minutes for the baking soda to absorb the vinegar odor, then wipe it with a damp rag.
Take a teaspoon of washing-up liquid, white vinegar, baking soda and warm water and mix together into a lather (the mixture should froth up as the baking soda and vinegar react with one another). Then, apply directly to any stains or smudges that you can spot on your fabric sofa. Leave to dry out for around 10 minutes.
Remember, while vinegar is generally considered a gentle household cleaner, its mild acidity is strong enough to damage wood on its own, which is why it should always be diluted.