Vinegar

Today started out on a gnarly note when my husband walked into my bedroom (we usually share a room but I've been sleeping in the kind of "nursery") and asked, "Honey, how do you clean puke off a mattress?"

Good question...as young parents, this was a new one for us. We gazed blankly into each other's eyes, as our pale toddler stumbled in. "I don't know...aggghhhh..." I responded eloquently. My husband shrugged and went to clean up the bulk of the mess. However, I was able to utilize one tool I knew: vinegar.

Strange as it may seem, vinegar does an amazing job at neutralizing odors. At first it has its usual pungent smell, but when it dries everything smells fresh. It does a lot of cool cleaning things, and it is so dirt cheap. Vinegar also has disinfecting properties that make it great for household cleanups.

I have heard some people say vinegar is just as good at sanitizing as bleach, but even though I don't use bleach I need to do a little myth busting on this one. Vinegar does kill a ton of germs, but it doesn't do quite the job bleach does. I'm not worried about my family being exposed to some germs and building up our immune systems and yada yada yada that isn't what this entry is about. However, if you're a nerd like me and want to do more reading about the efficacy of vinegar as a disinfectant check out this cool link! BONUS: more info from the CDC at the end of that awesome post.

The bottom line for me with vinegar and household cleaning is that it fulfills two important needs for my domestic life:

1. I'm not horribly worried about my kids getting into it like I am with bleach.

2. It's a cheap disinfectant. (Again I must mention, it does not kill germs with the same gusto that bleach does!)

Vinegar is cool.

Now, for some cool ways for you to use vinegar around the home!

Use it to disinfect counter tops, door handles, phones, floors, etc. with a 1:1 water to vinegar ratio, a spray bottle and a cleaning rag.

Again, vinegar neutralizes odors. Use the aforementioned water/vinegar ratio to clean out stinkies from the fridge or trash cans. I also pour some down the garbage disposal when it gets stinky, or if I forget to switch laundry loads and my clothes smell then I use 1/2 cup of vinegar and do a quick second wash.

1/2 cup of vinegar can also make your laundry softer.

Vinegar can also help in the bathroom. I use vinegar to remove stains from the shower (sometimes I forget to take my bobby pins out of the shower and they rust in there- oops), sink or toilet. You can also use it to deal with those icky smells I mentioned.

Basically, if in doubt- it's probably pretty safe to try vinegar or a vinegar/water mix for a cleaning project. Use your best judgment and a little creativity and see what vinegar can do for you!