Lemon cleaning tips and recipes to help freshen up your home

Lemon is such a fresh scent, but we often use products around the home that contain an artificial lemon smell. This doesn’t have to be the case! In fact you can clean your whole house with lemon, and don’t have to spend a fortune on price-y cleaning sprays that don’t even work.

We’ve found some of the best cleaning tips and recipes to help freshen your home naturally.

1. All-purpose kitchen cleaner 

What You Need
Ingredients
Citrus peels (enough to fill at least half of your mason jar)
White vinegar (enough to fill up your mason jar, and cover the peels)

Equipment
1 large mason jar with a fitted lid (I prefer a large jar such as a half gallon or a couple of quart jars).
Fine mesh sieve
Large bowl
Spray bottle

Instructions
Save your citrus peels: As you use up different types of citrus, save the peels instead of throwing them away. Add these peels to a large mason jar.
Add those citrus peels to a jar of vinegar: As you collect citrus peels, add them to a large mason until it’s filled at least half way. (This could take a few weeks.) Once the jar has enough peels, pour vinegar over the peels until it fills the jar. Cover your jar with a lid, and allow it to sit in a dark place for two weeks. The longer you let it sit, the more the citrus will infuse into the vinegar.
Strain it: After two weeks, strain your citrus cleaner using a fine mesh sieve placed over a large bowl. Discard the peels.
Pour the cleaner into a bottle: Add your citrus cleaner to a spray bottle and use it as you would any other all purpose cleaner.

2. Clean the microwave

What you need:

• 1 lemon
• Small microwave-safe bowl
• Clean, dry wipes

Steps

1. Measure about 1/2 cup of water into the bowl then slice the lemon in half and squeeze the juice into the water. Drop the lemon halves into the bowl.
2. Place the bowl in the microwave. Microwave on high power for 3 minutes so the liquid comes to a boil.
3. Do not open the microwave door. The steam trapped inside will help loosen gunk.
4. After 5 minutes, open the door and carefully remove the bowl with the lemons. If your microwave has a turntable, lift it out and wipe it clean. Wipe the inside of the microwave clean starting with the ceiling and the sides.

3. Sanitise your wooden cutting board

What you need:

• Half a lemon
• Coarse salt
• Warm water
• Sponge or cloth

Steps:

1. Sprinkle the cutting board with coarse salt.
2. Using a lemon half with the cut side down, scour the surface, squeezing slightly as you go.
3. Let sit for 5 minutes, and then into a small bowl.
4. Give the surface a final rinse and wipe.

4. Get rid of soap scum in the shower

Instead of spraying chemical treatments on your shower tiles, screen and fixtures, try this homemade natural remedy: Juice six lemons and pour the contents into a spray bottle and spritz over shower surfaces. The citric acid will break down hard water deposits and dissolve soap scum.

5. Wash your dishes

When you run out of washing up liquid, slice a lemon in half, sprinkle bi0carb soda on top, and use the lemon half like a dish cloth to wash your dishes. Easy!

6. Clean glass

To give your glass a natural clean, simply mix four tablespoons of lemon juice with eight cups of water. The powerful citric acid will dissolve dirt, grime and water stains, leaving your windows and glassware streak-free.

7. Freshen your laundry

Give your clothes a natural scent by adding a teaspoon of lemon juice to your washing load.

8. Get rid of mould

Rid your home of mould by using a paste made from equal parts lemon juice and salt and scrub away mildew and mould from tiles and other surfaces. You can leave overnight as well but be sure to rinse.

9. Degrease your oven

Clean your oven by dusting the inside with a light coat of bicarb soda. Spray vinegar with lemon juice over the top of it until it begins to fizz. Leave the solution in for at least four hours and then wipe with a damp cloth.

Tell us, how do you clean with lemons?