Clean and polished windows are essential if you want your home to look its best, and when it comes to giving your windows a beautiful shine, you don’t need to use cleaning products containing harsh chemicals. Natural window cleaners can be just as effective at making your windows sparkle. What’s more, mixing up a bottle of natural cleaner from kitchen ingredients takes less time than a trip to the grocery store, and you have the satisfaction of knowing you aren’t releasing artificial chemicals into your home.
Natural Cleaning Ingredients
Vinegar, lemon juice and borax are three natural cleaning ingredients that effectively remove dust, grease and dirt from windows, leaving them shiny and smudge-free. Health Freedoms.org advises householders to mix a 50/50 solution of distilled white vinegar and warm water and spray the glass with the solution before wiping it dry. However, a 100% vinegar spray might be required if the windows are very dirty or the streaks and smears remain after cleaning with a weaker solution. Spray the 100% vinegar solution on the problem areas and wait five minutes before scrubbing.
Eco-Cycle recommends vinegar as a window-cleaning ingredient too and suggests dissolving two tablespoons of borax in three cups of water as an alternative. Another option is to mix one tablespoon of lemon juice with a quart of water, as Grist mentions.
Safe Commercial Window Cleaners
Not all commercial window cleaning products contain harmful chemicals. If you prefer to purchase a safe, eco-friendly window cleaner versus creating one at home, choose from products manufactured by companies that offer natural and eco-friendly options. Most grocery stores sell a variety of eco-friendly products.
Window Cleaning Tips
When you’re familiar with a few window-cleaning tricks and tips, giving your window panes a perfect, streak-free shine feels effortless.
- Don’t clean windows while they’re in direct sunlight.
- Use a good quality, extendable squeegee, which gives a better finish than a sponge.
- Use microfiber cloths or newspaper for drying and polishing.
- Make sure your squeegee and washcloths are perfectly clean so you won’t spread oil or dirt over the glass.
- Spread a large bath towel on the floor to catch drips when cleaning inside.
- Wear plastic gloves if using vinegar to prevent the solution from drying your skin.
- Wipe horizontally when cleaning outside and vertically when cleaning inside so if a streak appears, you know which side it’s on.
- If your squeegee isn’t cleaning well, you may need to press a little harder.
Clean, presentable windows are one of those small extras that make a big difference in your home’s appearance. When you use natural window cleaners, you can clean your windows as often as you want without worrying about your family being exposed to harmful chemicals. Create your own recipe from natural ingredients to make your windows gleam.
