My best friend Rachel and I were having our nails done at a local salon. We were getting caught up on what each other had been up too.
Rachel is an interior designer. Out of the blue Rachel said ” my neighbor has mold in her shower.” ” Do you know what can get  rid of it?” She also said, ” oh ya, while I’m asking; I have a smell in my drain.” Then the discussions began. The lady next to me said, ” pardon me, I don’t mean to ease drop, but I have weeds and pets.” How do I get rid of the weeds without poisoning my dogs?

I had a Ahh Haaa moment and said to myself this would be a great instructional blog to do. If you have any questions that you would like me to cover, please send them to me. For each question, I will work on a couple of suggestions.

Thank  you Rachel for a good time and all the questions.

Q: My husband takes a ton of showers a day, and we have mold. How can I get rid of it?

A: Instead of using bleach, the most important thing you can do to battle mold is to keep your bathroom and shower dry as possible in between uses. If necessary, open a window or install an exhaust fan and dry the affected area after each use.

Tea Tree Sanitizer


Tea tree oil has a strong but not unpleasant smell that takes a fews to dissipate.
( The same might be said for Chlorine bleach.) Tea tree oil can be very expensive, but a little goes a long ways. This recipe you can keep on hand until needed.

Simply mix:

2 teaspoons tea tree oil
2 cups of water

Combine both, shake  into a spray bottle and spray areas. No need to rinse.

Borax-Vinegar Mix


Best made and put into a spray bottle. It does not have a long shelf life.

1 teaspoon borax
3 Tablespoons vinegar
2 cups hot water

Spray on problem surfaces and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes before scrubbing and rinsing.

Vinegar Spray


Just 5 percent of white distilled vinegar bought at a regular store, reportedly kills 82 percent of mold. Pour it straight into a spray bottle and spray it on the surfaces. No need to rinse.

Q: My drain smells, how do I get rid of the smell?

A: Since this is one of the germ-filled spots in the house. It’s important to keep drains as clean and clear as possible. Heavily used drains should be cleaned out once a week.

Baking Soda- Vinegar Mixture


1/2 cup of Baking Soda
1 cup Vinegar
About 2 cups boiling water

First remove the stopper. Pour 1/2 cup of Baking Soda down the drain, followed by slowly adding the vinegar. It will start to Fizzle up. Trap it with a rag. Let sit for 30 Minutes. Then remove rag and pour the boiling water down the drain.

Q: I have weeds and pets, how can I get rid of them?

A: Straight vinegar I put into my commercial sprayer.

Q: How can I disinfect and clean my kitchen counter tops?

A:  Fill a spray bottle with 2/3 cup of vinegar and 1 Tablespoon of soap ( I use castile liquid soap) diluted with 1 cup of warm water. For added smell and a degreaser I use lemon and you can also add a favorite essential oil.

* Never use this mixture on stone, marble and tile counters. You can use castile soap or any mild soap and warm water.

Q: What is a good and safe way to clean the  toilet bowl ?

A: 1/4 cup of baking soda 1/4 cup of vinegar
Sprinkle baking soda into the bowl, followed by vinegar. Bubbles are created by a chemical reaction, this in turn will loosen any stains. Scrub with a toilet brush before flushing.
1 cup of hydrogen peroxide, let set for 15 minutes. It kills germs while bleaching out any hard water stains.
Sprinkle 1/4 cup of Borax and swish with a toilet brush. Let sit over night. Put the lid down if you have pets.

Q: Cleaning windows without streaks? Tools: Newspaper, Squeegee, Cotton Clothes, Old T-Shirt.

* Window Washing Tips: When washing windows inside and out, use vertical strokes on one side and horizontal stokes on the other side. That way, if you are left with streaks you know which side to touch up.


A: Diluted Vinegar Spray
1/4 to 1/2 cup of vinegar  with 2 cups of water. Mix in a reusable spray bottle and your good to go.

* However, if you have been using a commercial glass cleaner, it is likely they have left behind a surfactant film that will cause diluted vinegar to leave streaks. If this is the case, just add a few drops of liquid soap to the mix to break down the film. After a cleaning or two, you can leave out the liquid soap.

“OOBLICK” A favorite tactile pastime of many preschoolers.

Mix warm water and cornstarch in a bowl in approximately a 2 to 1 ratio; 1/4 cup of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of water should be enough to do most jobs. Apply with a cotton cloth or an old t-shirt and rub until the film disappears. Make sure you use lint free material.

Q: I have ants in our kitchen. How can I get rid of them?

A: Wipe down all cabinets, countertops and any other areas with a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water repeat this often. They don’t like the smell of vinegar.

* Never use vinegar, lemon or other citrus on Marble, Stone and Tile because they are acidic and the surfaces can get etched by the acid.

Baby powder, dusted on the ants when you see them, and at their entry point into your house.

• Place bay leaves or cloves at their point of entry. Ants hate the scent of these, and will avoid them.

 

• You can also try sprinkling cayenne pepper at their point of entry.

 

 

• Q: I have a ground mole, but don’t want to kill it. I just want to get rid of it. How do I do that?

 

 

• A: A popular home remedy for repelling moles is castor oil. Mix 1 oz. of the oil with 1 Cup of Murphy’s oil soap 1/4 Cup of cayenne pepper and 3 Cups of water. Spray the tunnel with a hose sprayer. Another product to try spraying is flea and tick shampoo-the type used for cat and dogs. Mix 1 Cup of the spray with 20 Gallons of water.

 

 

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• * Flea and Tick Shampoo can be the cheapest.

 

 

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• Q: I can’t stand using bleach for whitening my clothes. The smell makes me sneeze. What can I use instead?

 

 

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• A: Sunshine is the most natural whitening and sanitizing available. 

 

 

• You can use lemon juice in your rinse cycle and wash normally. 

 

 

• 1/2 cup of Borax to the wash cycle.

 

 

• White vinegar added to the rinse cycle.

 

 

• 1/2 Cup of hydrogen peroxide to the rinse cycle.

 

 

• Oxygen bleach generally uses sodium percarbonate, which is a combination of washing soda and hydrogen peroxide. It breaks down into oxygen, water, and soda ash, which are harmless to the environment.

 

 

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• * It’s a good idea to experiment to see what works best with your water and clothes.

 

 

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• Q: I have finished wood floors and I’m not sure what to use on them?
  A: Use 1/2 cup of vinegar to one gallon of warm water.
  50/50 mixture of water and vinegar in a spray bottle.
  Happy Cleaning!