okay, lets say you just moved, or you're living paycheck to paycheck. lets get you started off with just 5 things:
and here's how it will tackle most things. if you have or end up with some pocket change later, you can peek at the next section to pick up just a couple more items.
as a general rule, dish soap will do an okay job at most things. use it to clean the sink, most dirty/ greasy items, and a slightly soapy wet wash cloth will get the counters. it can also clean the inside of the fridge. personally, i like to think of the science behind soap when i clean. soap is just a molecule that binds both water and oils together into one molecule. thus, changing out soapy water as you use it will leave more available soap to do its job.
bleach: (CAUTION: DO NOT MIX BLEACH WITH JUST ABOUT ANYTING OTHER THAN WATER, YOU WILL CREATE TOXIC AND HARMFUL GASSES) i use bleach for organic messes. moldy items, dirty toilets, mildew, and of course, for bleaching out stains from countertops and more (be sure to do a spot test so you dont splotch the whole surface with it!). the things about bleach, is it needs time, and the correct dillution. bleach will not do its sanitary job without the correct ratio, and will also be a huge health hazard as it will not wipe off as easily. it needs time to do its job of cleaning as well. for example, if you have a moldy vase you cant reach your hand into, just leaving it with the correct dillution and some warm tap water for a couple hours, most of it will wash away. another go or some pressurized water will then do the rest. as for the toilet make sure you flsuh both before and after as to avoid it mixing with the ammonia in our urine and gas yourself out!
vingear: do you want to take things up a notch and have yout kitchen dazzle? do you want to get the streaks off of your stainless steel? then look no further! half a bottle of vinegar and the other half water, and youre good to go. clean off surface, and then spray some of the mixture in there. a good microfiber towel will do the rest of the work. vinegar has other uses, as its good for removing oders, slight sterilization, and reducing grime. thus, its a good additive for using to clean your floors, polishing windows (dont waste money on windex!!) and for sterilizing fruits and vegetables (there is a difference between cleaning vinegar and cooking vinegar, using cooking for food!). theres also a trick where you can put baking soda into your drain and then vinegar in ther, and it can help unclog it, or is good for routine cleaning. vinegar and baking soda mixed together actually just create water after they transform, thus, if you find a cleaing recipe that calls for the mixture of the two, it is either misinformed, or it is meant for you to apply one or the other first to the item that you need to clean, and then add the other on top so that the chemical reaction helps dislodge grime.
microfiber towels: a good set of these is really what makes or breaks the ability of some ofyour other cleaning tasks. those old glass cups at your grandmothers house cant be helped with soap, but a dry microfiber can buff the old grease right out. really, any buffing you need done (often in combinartion with vinegar) can make things look brand new. the real tip is to try to avoid anything that cant dissolve (like plant matter) out of the cloths, since it will be stuck in there even after the wash. you can pick the bits out by hand, but thats up to you and your time. another practive i try to keep is to wash them only with themselves, and to keep the dryer cycle short. some reccomend not putting them in the dryer at all, but i think thats just too tedious, and a short cycle has done me just fine. i also heavily reccomend not using fabric softener (even on your regular clothes) as it has hydrophobic properties and thus will ruin the absorbtion of the towels.
baking soda: this studd is liek magic. its very good for anti-oder, its texture aids cleaning baked on debris, and when made into a paste can do much mroe. people will put some in a cup into the fridge to eliminate odors. i will put some into stinky yupperware and let it sit. making a paste out of it, and then putting it on the bottom of your burnt bottomed pans, then covering with cling wrap to prevent eveaporation. let sit for an hour, and then some elbow grease will often have them looking like new. just remember that a box only lasts a month before it needs to be reaplaced! this may be whats making it not do what you need it to.
melamine sponeges: have you ever fallen in love with mr.cleans love on your dirty cracks and crevises, but cant see him anymore because of his exhorbiant prices on his sevices? well girl, then melamine is your melaman.