The Spit And The Polish

Make Your Own Cleaning Products

NEW YORK, April 6, 1999

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(CBS) How many cleaning products does it take to do a thorough spring cleaning? Not nearly as many as most folks have under the sink. CBS News this week focuses on spring cleaning - from polishing to sanitizing and lemonizing, from ceiling to floor.

To think that a simple change in season could drive so many to buy faster-acting drain openers; glass cleaners that boast a streak-free shine; soap-scum removers; disinfecting abrasives with bleach; and ammonia in every color of the rainbow.

Janet Donohue, of the Soap and Detergent Association, says,
"We look at your home as a source of rooms with different soils and different surfaces. There are products to take care of some of the soils and surfaces in your kitchen - your counter tops, your sinks, your floors, and your windows."

Our store shelves are lined with products that brighten, freshen, and cut grease with lemon, because we really want them, the Soap and Detergent Association says.

"I think consumers show with their wallets every day that they appreciate the choice in cleaning products, and that these products are doing the job they want them to do," says Donohue.

But do we actually need so many different products to get the house clean? Joey Green says no. In his latest book, Joey Green's Encyclopedia of Off-Beat Uses for Brand Name Products, he suggests methods for getting a squeaky-clean home without a cartload of products.

Green says some basics already around the home will do the same job as a commercial cleaning product.

Here are some of his tips:

Arm & Hammer Baking Soda

A great item to work with, since nine out of 10 people already use it in the refrigerator as a deodorizer.

Consider using baking soda:

As an abrasive to remove stains and dirt from counter tops and sinks, much like Comet or Ajax.
As a carpet deodorizer. Sprinkle on and let sit for 15 minutes, then vacuum.
In the laundry room. Throw a handful in the washing machine to boost the strength of the detergent. Works best with liquid detergent.

Heinz Vinegar

Removes wallpaper. Use straight from the bottle or mix it 50/50 with water.
Cleans windows and fixtures. Use it in a spray bottle.
Cleans bathroom tiles and toilet with equal parts vinegar and water.
Deodorizes pet stains, such as cat urine in a carpet.
Deodorizes rooms. Just fill a bowl or glass and let it sit for five minutes.

Efferdent

These denture-cleansing tablets can be used to:

Clean toilet bowls.
Remove caked-on food from pots. Drop two tablets into water.
Shine diamond rings.
Clean vases with caked-on water deposits from flowers.

Bounce Fabric Softener Sheets

These sheets can be used to:

Freshen and deodorize air. Hang in waste basket or coset, stick in sneakers. Drop one in a dirty-diaper pail. Keep inside luggage.
Remove soap scum. Used sheets direct from the dryer can be used to clean shower doors.
Prevent dust from resettling. Used Bounce sheets can clean TV and computer screens.
Remove caked-on food in a casserole dish. Fill dish with water, stick a Bounce sheet in and let stand overnight. The anti-static agents in the sheet lift food off the casserole dish.

Pam Cooking Spray

Removes soap scum on shower doors

Leggs Sheer Energy Pantyhose

Remove dust from window screens.
Shine wood floors. Stuff a towel inside the pantyhose and wipe the floor with them.
Prevent soil from leaking through the bottom of potted plants.
Polish furniture.
Clean windows and bathroom faucets. The nylon is a mild abrasive.
Wax a car.

Kool-Aid, Tang, Country-Time Lemonade