Floor Treatments

Proper care of your floor prevents damage, extends its life and keeps it looking new for years. How do you properly care for your flooring?

If you enjoy going barefoot or even if you don't, kick your shoes off at the door. Why remove your shoes? If you have a rough board that needs smoothing you grab a sheet of sandpaper for the job. Guess what's on the bottom of your shoes? Sand and dirt grind away at the surface of your floor causing an early death.

A closer look at the bottoms of those shoes and you'll find oil, dirt and heaven only knows how many tidbits of left over dog deposits. Small wonder why your floors stubbornly refuse to come clean. Do wear slippers or socks inside. The oil from the bottom of your feet also dirties the surface.

Always vacuum or dust hard floor surfaces before mopping. Start in the far corner of the room and work in small sections. If you don't have a rope mop, just use a hand towel or soft sponge to wipe the tile clean.

Polish Chrome

Get rid of mineral deposits and polish chrome faucets and other tarnished chrome. Simply rub lemon rind over the chrome and watch it shine! Rinse well and dry with a soft cloth.

Clean Tarnished Brass

Say good-bye to tarnish on brass, copper, or stainless steel. Make a paste of lemon juice and salt (or substitute baking soda or cream of tartar for the salt) and coat the affected area. Let it stay on for 5 minutes. Then wash in warm water, rinse, and polish dry. Use the same mixture to clean metal kitchen sinks too. Apply the paste, scrub gently, and rinse.

Baking Soda

Also known as Sodium Bicarbonate, the same qualities that make baking soda a tenderizer and a leaven, also make it a great cleaning product. Baking soda is weakly alkaline. As such, it acts to neutralize acids and break down proteins.

Baking soda’s finely gritty texture makes it an excellent, gentle abrasive cleaner. It is inexpensive, environmentally friendly, fragrance-free, and safe for nearly all surfaces, making it ideal for household use. As a mild abrasive agent, baking soda can also be used in place of toothpaste.

Also, it is baking soda’s neutralizing action on acidic scent molecules that makes it an effective deodorizer. Added to the water when doing laundry, baking soda stabilizes the pH level, enhancing the detergent’s effectiveness. Baking soda may also be added to swimming pool water to balance the pH and keep the water clear.

As an acid neutralizer, baking soda is a great first-aid tool. Dissolved into a lukewarm bath, it will soothe the discomfort of sunburn and the itch of poison ivy. Made into a paste with cool water and applied directly to the skin, it will ease the pain of bee stings. One-half teaspoon baking soda mixed into 4 ounces (120 ml) of water can be taken as an antacid. Note: Those taking prescription medications or following a reduced-sodium diet should check with a physician before consuming baking soda.

Sprinkled around the exterior entrances to and foundations of homes, it may prohibit ants and other insects from crawling in, as it is irritating to their chitinous exoskeletons and they avoid it.

Bleach-Free Toilet Bowl Scrub

Have you ever thought about making your own toilet bowl cleaner? I think a lot of us believe that we have to have strong chemicals to clean dirty items like toilet bowls. That's simply not true. You can make a great cleaner for your toilet bowl at home and with natural ingredients.

Check out this toilet bowl scrub recipe that worked for me:

Combine 2 tablespoons of baking soda with one tablespoon of olive oil and a teaspoon of lemon juice. Throw this into your toilet and scrub away! It always gets my toilet clean.

Make up a batch and keep a bottle by the WC, but remember to shake well before using.