Get the App

Recipes

Find a Recipe Blue Ribbon Recipes Pinch It!™ Feed Browse All Recipes

Editorial

Food Bites & Articles Videos What is a Blue Ribbon? Meet the Test Kitchen

Community

Member Recipes Groups Sweepstakes Contests Shopping

mom's cleaning stuff

mntleo2 avatar
Recipe by
Cat Sullivan
@mntleo2
Kenmore, WA

I raised 5 kids and always had to live on a budget. I got this recipe from my mom who knew how to stretch a buck "so long that it snaps" as she often said. This cleaner is so inexpensive and easy to make, it cost less than 50 cents per bottle and will replace and do the job of many of your expensive store-bought cleaners. I keep a supply of the ingredients around anyway. I keep a spray bottle under my kitchen sink, in the bathroom, and wherever everybody wants to know where "Mom's Stuff" is when they need to clean up a mess, wash the table, clean the counters, or clean up a pet mess

yield serving(s)
prep time 5 Min
method No-Cook or Other

Ingredients For mom's cleaning stuff

  • 4 oz
    rubbing alcohol
  • 4 oz
    household ammonia
  • 1 1/4 c
    water
  • 1-2 drops
    food coloring
  • 1 squirt
    dish detergent

How To Make mom's cleaning stuff

  • 1
    Use a 32 Oz squirt bottle. You can buy them at Costco or any store such as Target. Make sure they have markings on them for fluid oz. Using a permanent marker, mark the 4 oz and 8 oz indicators. and 2 C so you can easily see them to add your liquid to make this cleaner again and again.
  • 2
    Pour rubbing alcohol to the 4 oz indicator. Add ammonia to the 8 oz level.
  • 3
    Add 1 1/2 C water to 2 C indicated on the bottle
  • 4
    Add a couple of drops of food coloring (I often mix blue and green to make aqua, blue and red for purple, or just use one color. I did read once that for babies bright colors can look edible but blues and aqua do not look very appetizing.
  • 5
    1 squirt dish detergent like Dawn or whatever you like
  • 6
    Put on the spray top and shake until the colors blend,
  • 7
    This spray is a grease cutter, a sterilizer, a counter and stove cleaner, a good spot remover, a widely useful all-around spray cleaner. It costs around 40 cents per batch and will clean just about anything.
  • Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!
ADVERTISEMENT