Whenever you think of cleaning your house, you think of the typical ammonia, bleach, disinfectant sprays, and a lot more, only to find that they are not as safe or effective as they seem. You have to put your back into it and some elbow grease, but it feels like the quality of the item itself is affected. You stop defeated and you throw in the towel.

But before you throw a tantrum or buy something to hopefully cover the permanent stain on the floor, you can try out these ordinary household items that you can find anywhere in the supermarket that might clean your items safely and effectively. Whether or not you have these in your cupboards or drawers, maybe you will reconsider getting an ample supply of these cheaper and safer alternatives.

Common Household Items for Cleaning Alternatives:

• The amazing combination of water and vinegar. Aside from being cheap and readily available in your kitchen, this combination actually clears stains and kills bacteria and germ build up on mostly touched surfaces. Compared to strong cleaning chemicals you can buy in any hardware stores, this cleaning mix actually keeps your surfaces safe and retain its quality.
• Power of steam. Steam has magical powers – they can iron out your clothes perfectly and rid of mold build up in the corner of your bathroom. It’s a nasty collection of grime and a steam cleaning machine easily gets rid of it. But for this hack, you can use steam to clean a microwave – a mixture of  two tablespoons of white vinegar, drops of essential oil with water and let it run for 5 minutes. It will be easily cleaned with a rag and your microwave will smell better – thanks to the essential oil of your choice.
• Toothbrush power. Hard to reach corners? Tiny dents and crevices in your furniture that you can’t seem to clean? Vacuum can’t get it all out? This handy dandy toothbrush is not only for your mouth, but for tiny spaces and gaps that needs careful scrubbing. You can also use the soft kind of toothbrush to get rid of the dirt build up in between the computer or laptop keys – you’ll feel the comfort of working on your computer again!
• Hairdryer magic. As you get busier around the house, accidents are not uncommon in the common household – especially with kids. Be prepared for random spills on your beautiful wooden table, or maybe on the hardwood floors. Simply grab your hairdryer, turn it to the highest setting, and let water stains be a thing of the past!
• Lint roll away your problems.  Since these lamps stand from floor to ceiling, they are likely magnets to floating dust and accumulate them to dust bunnies – which will be a trigger for endless sneezing and coughing. After a vacuum, you can use a lint roller to remove the smaller specs of dust that the vacuum wasn’t able to reach. It will ensure that your lampshade will be safe and clean for a while.
• The yummy grapefruit. Aside from being a snack or breakfast juice, this fruit is actually handy as a cleaning material. You can cut the grapefruit in half, sprinkle some rock salt on top and begin scrubbing soap scum and hard water stains on your faucet and bathtub. It will make your bathroom sparkling clean and smell heavenly as well – plus, it’s way cheaper than buying professional grade cleaning materials!