BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Cleaning White Vinegar

Is it safe to say that vinegar can be used on almost anything when you are cleaning? I have a kitchen table that never looks or feels clean. It looks like marble but I"m almost positive it's just the fake stuff. Would white vinegar work for that? Also, do you use it alone or mix it with water (how much)? Thanks everyone!

When I got my pine floors refinished, they told me to clean them with 1 part vinegar to 3 or 4 parts water. I've used that on lots of other surfaces around the house with no problem.

I'd probably use Bon Aime on the table though.

Julie

I have used white vinegar on everything.

1/2 to 1/2 for stronger cleaning or 1/4 to 3/4 for general cleaning. I have never had it destroy any surface and I have used it on everything.

It is great at cutting odors, toothpaste, and grease.

Well I bought some white vinegar and used it (mixed with water in a spray bottle) to clean part of my washer. I don't like the smell at all. I'm afraid to clean anything else with it because of the smell. Should I add more water? What's the proper mixture ratio? Thanks!

If you would like to you can alter the scent of vinegar to a more pleasant scent by adding a couple drops of your favorite essential oil to the vinegar.

If you are not sure if your table top is marble I would recommend not allowing vinegar to "stand" on the table top as it is a weak acid. You can use vinegar to clean, just make sure to rinse it and dry it after so as to not allow it to stand

White vinegar does have a small odour which soon disappears. Don't let this put you off using it though. It is useful for everything from removing limescale to treating stains on upholstery and fabrics. Dri-pak, based in UK, produce this product in a trigger spray and it has revolutionised my life.

I mix white vinegar with water and spray it on my carpets to freshen them up. The vinegar smell soon goes away and it has never hurt the carpet.

I read that this is a great way to get rid of odors from pets, etc in carpet.

Also, if you put a small dish of white vinegar in a room, it will take any odors out of the air as well.

I have learned to tolerate the smell of vinegar because NOTHING cleans pet stains, odors, etc. as well. We use it to clean our rabbit litterboxes - it keeps them in like-new condition. I also use it to clean up accidents on vinyl and wood flooring and carpeting. It takes the stains right out and eliminates the odor so the critters don't return to the same spot.

I'm allergic to Yellow #5, which is anything that is yellow or orange and sometimes green and blue as well.

I have been using vinegar in just about everything. I put it in the water when I steam the carpets. I wouldn't do this to an antique area rug, over the years the acid could break something like that down. Has anyone pulled out the washing machine to find that soap has spilled? It cleans up rather well with water and vinegar. I have even put it in the wash water when dye has run on to something.

Vinegar breaks down soap and other deposits. I learned this when I lived in an area that had VERY soft water. I was unable to get the conditioner and mouse out of my hair. I was told by a hair dressor to rinse my hair once a week with a weak solution of vinegar and water.

I also use scented oils in the water when I use the carpet cleaner.

If you really hate the smell of vinegar, you can use orange oil to help get rid of the scent. I have mixed a few drops of orange oil into a spray bottle of warm water, then spritzed it over the surfaces I washed with vinegar/water.

You can also try boiling a pot of water with spices in it to get rid of the smell. Vinegar usally dissapates in a short time, though.

Nothing cleans linoleum like white vinegar! The smell is tough, but leaves quickly enough and the thought of not adding more chemicals to the environment in my cleaning products appeals to me. I clean my kitchen counter tops with orange oil from time to time to enjoy the smell that spreads through the entire house. It's yummy and inexpensive, but I'm not sure how environmentally friendly it is or is not...anybody know the chemical make up of it?

I have well water. Well was drilled into limestone bluff. Needless to say there is heavy lime deposits left on everything. Dishes especially glassware gets a cloudy film when run through the dishwasher. I use straight vinegar added to the dishwasher right before the rinse cycle about once a week. Everything comes out sparkling clean. I also clean the bathroom tub, sink and shower with vinegar. It's the only thing I've found to cut through the lime quickly and easily. I like that it has no added chemicals too!

You might be careful using vinegar with some metals. The acid in the vinegar can eat through the metal. I've had no problem with stainless steel though.

I also used to work at a Sonic Drive-In long, long ago. We used a mixture of vinegar and water back then to cut through the grease on the counter tops and wash the windows. Worked great!

Here is some info from Wikpedia.com on orange oil

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Some people who have heavy lime or other minerals in their water swear by using a few tiny pebbles in their tea ketters. Have you tried this?


And Sue, thanks for posting the Wikipedia link!

Thanks for the link, Sue. I haven't paid that much attention to whether or not I wear gloves when I use orange oil, but it might be a good idea even if I'm not a male rat! LOL

hee hee - I like the smell of orange oil too. i wonder why it doesn't seem to affect female rats? weird.

The reasons given had to do with the reaction of something in the oil with something that male mice have that female mice don't. How's that for complete over-simplification? I was amazed that I actually found something that had more of a negative for males of any species over females! I have nothing to worry about as my DH isn't the counter cleaning sort! Dishwasher loading, maybe....but the countertops don't seem to fall in his line of vision.

How does lemon juice compare to vinegar as a cleaner? We have a lemon tree in our garden, usually with tons of lemons that we hardly use. I use them on the pots, and once tried cleaning mould off the shower with lemon juice, but that's about it...

Lemon juice is pretty good, too. I've used lemons cut in half, dipped in salt to do some tough scrubbing jobs. Seems to work well. Plus it gets rid of funky smells. If you do not like the smell of vinegar, lemons are a great substitute.

Of course - I forgot that one with the lemon and salt: that's absolute magic on anything copper. My parents used to have copper-bottomed pots and I became an expert at getting those gleaming pink.

White vinegar also breaks down oily dandruff on your scalp. I use it mainly during the summer. I drench my hair with a squirt bottle and rub it into the scalp. Then wash and rinse as usual which cuts the smell. I've tried numerous dandruff shampoos and this works better than the expensive salon brands.