In the cleaning aisle of a supermarket there are normally numerous bottles available for various cleaning jobs around the home. Trying to find the right product to clean your oven can take some time. If you want to find eco-friendly products to clean your kitchen it will be even more difficult and almost impossible to find products that are plastic free. Fortunately lots of companies have now realised that customers are now aware of how toxic some cleaning products are and are creating ‘greener’ versions. We’ll go through some homemade cleaning solutions and some of the better eco-friendly cleaning products available to buy.
This article contains some affiliate links. If you buy something I might earn a small amount of commission, at no extra cost to you, which just helps to pay towards the running costs of this website.
Make sure you have a read of the eco-friendly way to clean your bathroom as well.
Eco-Friendly Ways To Clean Your Kitchen
There are a few ingredients to keep in your home that will help you to easily make your own cleaning products for the whole home.
These 3 items are cheap and can easily be bought in eco-friendly packaging. Buy Baking Soda which comes in a cardboard box and white distilled vinegar by either Heinz or Sarsons which comes in a glass bottle. When buying lemons, always buy them loose.
Although white vinegar is amazing for cleaning, there are certain cleaning jobs you shouldn’t use vinegar for.
Eco-Friendly Oven Cleaners
Homemade Oven Cleaner Recipes
You have a few different options for homemade oven cleaners. It might take a little more time and a bit more elbow grease than shop bought oven cleaners but they work very well and are likely to be far less toxic and probably cheaper too.
Baking Soda Paste
- 1/2 cup of baking soda (115 grams)
- 3 tablespoons of water
- Vinegar (in a spray bottle)
Mix the baking soda and water together, adjust the amount of water or baking soda as necessary to ensure you have a spreadable paste. After removing the shelves from the oven spread the paste all over the inside, avoiding the heating elements. For the best results leave the paste overnight. After being patient and waiting for the paste to work you can use a damp cloth to remove it. There may be a few stubborn bits that you need to remove with a spatula.
After you’ve removed the paste, spray the inside of the oven with some vinegar and wipe the oven again with a clean, damp cloth.
There are slight variations to the above recipe that you can use.
Baking Soda & Vinegar Paste
- 2 tablespoons of baking soda
- 1.5 tablespoons of lemon juice
- 2.5 tablespoons of vinegar
- A drop of liquid dish soap
This mixture can be used to clean the inside and outside of the oven including the glass. Mix the baking soda and dish soap together, followed by the lemon juice. Finally, slowly add the vinegar to the mixture until you have a paste. Spread the paste around the areas you want to clean and leave it overnight if possible, but for at least a few hours use a clean, damp cloth to remove the mixture and the dirt. You may need to repeat the process if you have particularly stubborn baked on stains.
Add Salt – You can add some salt to both of the recipes above for dirtier ovens, to add some scouring power. Avoid scrubbing glass too hard if you’ve included salt as you could scratch it. (Not a good idea, especially for rented accommodation).
Lemons or Water
A simpler way to clean your oven is to leave a dish with lemon juice or just water in the oven and switch it on. The steam should help to loosen any greasy stains. Once the oven has cooled, dip a clean cloth or natural scourer into the lemon juice or water and wipe down the oven.
Cleaning the hob
I’m not going to go into much detail about homemade hob cleaning solutions because I’ve already reviewed a homemade hob cleaner. It worked really well and I was very pleased with the results.
The oven cleaners listed below tend to be designed to clean the whole oven, including the hob.
Eco-Friendly Oven Cleaners You Can Buy
Eco-Friendly Surface Cleaners
Homemade Surface Cleaners
You can easily make an eco-friendly multi-purpose spray for various surfaces within your home using just a few ingredients. This can be used for kitchen surfaces, cupboard doors and the outside of your fridge as well.
- Lemon, vinegar and water
Put the juice of one lemon, one cup of vinegar and one cup of water into a spray bottle for a cheap eco-friendly multi-purpose spray. If you have any stubborn dirt, spray and leave for a while before wiping.
Eco-Friendly Surface Cleaners You Can Buy
Eco-Friendly Dishwasher Cleaners
Homemade Dishwasher Cleaner
I’ll be honest, I’ve never owned a dishwasher, but I have used them before in rented accommodation. One thing I noticed was how smelly they can get. This is generally because food particles tend to gather near the drain. Cleaning your dishes isn’t go to go well if you have a build up of soap, grease and general grime all around the inside of the machine. The first thing to do is remove any obvious dirt by wiping kitchen towels (or reusable cloths) around the inside of the machine and the drain. Secondly remove anything that can be removed (like the dish racks or cutlery rack if possible) and give them a good clean with a multi-surface spray. Follow this by running a very hot water cycle (with no dishes). The next step is to use a homemade dishwasher cleaner.
Homemade Solution 1
- Cup of White Vinegar
The simplest thing to do next is to just use vinegar. Add a glass of distilled white vinegar onto the top rack and run a complete cycle using the hottest water setting available. Afterwards just wipe down the inside of the machine.
Homemade Solution 2
- 2 cups of baking soda
- 2 cups of distilled white vinegar
- 3 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide
- 1 tablespoon of dish detergent
1. Mix the baking soda and hydrogen peroxide until it has the consistency of damp sand. Using a large spoon, scoop out enough mixture to form large balls.
2. Place the balls in the dishwasher overnight.
3. The next day, fill a glass with the vinegar and dishwashing detergent, and place the glass on the top rack of the dishwasher, along with another ball of the hydrogen peroxide and baking soda on the bottom rack.
4. Run the dishwasher on its hottest setting to allow the cleaner to clean the dishwasher effectively
I found this dishwasher cleaning recipe on Tips Bulletin. There is no explanation as to why leaving the balls overnight is necessary or what it achieves or even where in the dishwasher to leave the balls. However if you own a dishwasher I certainly think this homemade dishwasher cleaner is worth trying out. Let me know how it goes by leaving a comment.
What is Hydrogen Peroxide and is it eco-friendly?
“Hydrogen Peroxide (…) is simply water with an extra oxygen molecule (H2O2) and breaks down into oxygen and water. It’s certainly kinder on the environment (than chlorine bleach). H2O2 is produced by both animal and plant cells and is formed naturally in the environment by sunlight acting on water.” – Green Living Tips
“From a biodegradability standpoint, hydrogen peroxide is very desirable, since it breaks down into water and oxygen molecules. Not only does it biodegrade, but it does so quickly. After hydrogen peroxide does its cleaning, whether it’s removing bacteria, mold, dirt, or debris from a substrate, it begins breaking back down to its original building blocks.” – Barnhardt Cotton
Cleaning The Dishes
I’ve written before about homemade washing up liquid and eco-friendly washing up liquid you can buy. Read more about the eco-friendly way to clean your dishes!
Eco-Friendly Washing Machine Cleaners
It is quite weird that in the UK the washing machine is often found in the kitchen. When you think about it, it is strange, but then again, UK homes are normally quite small. So for anyone confused why washing machine cleaners are included in this article, that’s why.
Homemade Washing Machine Cleaner
- 2 cups of distilled white vinegar
- 1/3 cup of baking soda
The majority of washing machines in the UK are front loaders, generally because they have to fit under kitchen counters! This cleaning solution is therefore for front loading washing machines.
Before doing anything else it’s important to wipe off any obvious dirt and clean around the rubber seal on the door. Initially you can use a damp cloth but feel free to use a cloth dipped in vinegar. You can scrub mould with baking soda and an old toothbrush in the folds of the rubber seal.
After wiping everything down, sprinkle some baking soda into the drum of the machine and add some vinegar into the detergent dispenser. Run a cycle of around an hour and your washing machine should be properly refreshed and lovely and clean.
Make sure you also read about how to have an eco-friendly laundry routine.
Eco-Friendly Dishwasher and Washing Machine Cleaners You Can Buy
The products you can buy to clean dishwashers tend to be ok to use for washing machines as well.
More Eco-Friendly Ways To Clean The Kitchen
Cleaning Kettles, Drains, Coffee Machines and more…
Out of all the products I’m going to list now, the descaler and drain cleaner are probably the most useful. I personally see no real need to buy a coffee machine, maybe a cafetiere, but a coffee machine just seems like buying something for the sake of it. That might just be me, but I try not to buy things I don’t really need. Anyway…
- Kettle and Iron Descaler (to remove limescale)
- Drain Cleaning Sticks – these seem like a great alternative to bleach to keep drains unblocked
- Drain Unblocker
- Coffee Machine Cleaner
- Fruit and Vegetable Wash – I’ve only included this one because in these strange times we live in I know some people are extra cautious with their fresh produce. Personally I think washing fresh fruit and vegetables in cold water is probably sufficient, but if this makes you feel safer go for it.
- Anti-Bacterial Bin Cleaner
There you have it, some homemade kitchen cleaners and some eco-friendly ways to clean your kitchen that won’t cost the earth. If you have homemade solutions that you use, please let me know below!
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