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No frugal home would be complete without a big ole jug of white distilled vinegar. It’s cheap, it’s non toxic, and it is a cleaning superstar. Just about the only thing not to love, is its smell. But with a handful of orange peels you can make your own orange vinegar cleaner for literally pennies!
Why Orange Vinegar Cleaner Is a Rockstar
The short answer is that vinegar is acidic and it does a great job of busting through grease, grime, soap scum, stains, and sticky residues. It’s non-toxic, all natural, environmentally friendly, and safe around kids and pets.
Infusing distilled vinegar with orange peels takes it to the next level. I have never been particularly bothered by the vinegar scent because it dissipates pretty quickly. But the oranges really do help to mask the strong smell and leave a lingering fresh scent. Plus, the oil from the citrus peels boosts your cleaning power!
Conventional chemical cleaners are downright scary with over 50% of them containing ingredients that damage our lungs. And many also contain known carcinogens and hormone disruptors. (Source) Seriously, yikes! But vinegar is safe, effective, and very inexpensive.
Is Vinegar a Disinfectant?
Now, I do want to be clear that while vinegar is an excellent cleaner, it is not an approved disinfectant by the CDC. If your goal is to sanitize surfaces, say to kill the novel Coronavirus, vinegar is not your best choice. Vinegar does have some germ fighting power, but it hasn’t been proven to kill all of the nastiest pathogens. Choose the right cleaner, for the right job.
How to Make Orange Vinegar Cleaner
This trick has been around way longer than I have, but it bears repeating in case you’ve never done it (or you forgot about it.) Are you ready for this??
- Fill a jar with orange (or other citrus) peels.
- Cover them with vinegar, pop on a lid, and stick it in your cabinet for about 2 weeks.
- Strain out the orange peels.
Tada! You’ve just infused vinegar.
How to Use Orange Vinegar to Clean
Now you’re ready to tackle bathrooms, counters, sinks, floors, and more. As a general rule, you’ll want to dilute your orange vinegar 1:1 with water. In other words, fill half a glass or plastic spray bottle with orange vinegar and the other half with water.
If you have another DIY cleaner you like to make, try subbing in your orange peel vinegar for extra cleaning power.
I Love It! Can I Use It On Everything?!
While I share your enthusiasm, there are a few general rules for cleaning with orange vinegar, or any vinegar spray for that matter. Avoid using it on natural stone, marble, or granite surfaces. And the jury is still out on hardwood floors. Some folks swear by it and some say, “no way.”
Why Stop at Oranges?!
You can infuse vinegar with any citrus peels. Lemons, limes, grapefruits, mandarins… any citrus will do! And you don’t have to stop there! Try adding a sprig of rosemary or a cinnamon stick! Lavender or some lemon balm. Your new favorite fancy cleaner is just 5 minutes (and two weeks) away!
Lemme know what you think! What are your favorite vinegar cleaning tricks? Please share in the comments below.
Orange Peel Vinegar Cleaner
With only a handful of orange peels you can make your own orange vinegar cleaner for literally pennies! It’s non-toxic, smells refreshing, and with the power of vinegar and orange oil, it's a cleaning superstar!
Materials
- Peels from 3-4 oranges (or other citrus fruit)
- white distilled vinegar
Tools
- Mason jar or other glass jar with a lid
- funnel
- strainer
- empty spray bottle
Instructions
- Fill a jar with orange (or other citrus) peels.
- Cover peels with vinegar.
- Pop on a lid and stick it in your cabinet for about 2 weeks…
- Strain the infused vinegar from the orange peels using a mesh strainer or a cheese cloth.
- Fill a spray bottle with a 1:1 dilution of orange vinegar and water. (half vinegar and half water)
- Use on counters, floors, bathrooms, plastics, glass, etc. (Avoid use on granite, marble, and natural stone tile.)
To Make a Multi-purpose Orange Vinegar Cleaner: