Natural Mopping

 This week I wanted to branch out a bit using my Essential Oils. Not sure mopping the floors is much a funk lifter but you just never know until you try right?

 I wanted to use a citrus oil...Lemon, Jade lemon, maybe orange but they will break down plastics. Since I wanted to save money and I like the convenience of the store bought brands container I went with Lavender and Purification. If my research is correct these oils should be fine in the plastic container....Time will tell.

 When I mixed up the potion the oils were just floating on top, of course I knew oils and water don't mix, duh. I gave the mixing bowl a good squirt of witch hazel then mixed again. It helped break up the oils so they blended in much better, not perfect but better for sure. I quickly poured the potion on top of my already prepared cloths. Recipe at the end of this post.

 Now for the big event. Will this really work?

 So far so good!!! Here is the extra saving bonus. Once the cloth was nice and dirty. Not sure nice should go with dirty but...whatever :) I just removed the cloth and flipped it over to the clean side. off I went again.

The results....Prof is in the pudding!!! The floors are nice and clean, no nasty chemicals, they are disinfected , and no cloudy film!!! The hardwood is nice and shinny as it should be.

I might just have a winner on my hands :)

 I mop, I mop a lot, I mop up some pretty sticky stuff, I mop up some unknown substances, our floors get nasty, they get nasty fast.

I have lot of kiddo's on my hands some days. Much of their playing happens on the kitchen floor...trucks, Barbies, bowling, and all that jazz. Yep I mop a lot!!!

I the cost of disposable mop cloths are not cheap, they are full of things I can't pronounce, it takes between 4 and 5 of the disposable nasty things to do just the kitchen, that's not counting the breakfast room.

Over the years hubby and I have installed hardwood floors in the majority of our home. A few years back we sprung to have the Living Room done by Pros. Worth every penny I must say. We have lots of hardwood, that equals the use of lots of disposable clothes.

Today I use 3 DYI clothes for the Kitchen and Breakfast room floors that was all that was needed!!! I did flip each of them over to use the back side, something you can't do with the disposable ones. The cloths didn't leave the floors "wet" as the disposable cloths did in the past. That always worried me a bit. There was no film once the floors were dry as there was with the disposable ones. I didn't need a mop and bucket and I sure as heck don't intend to be on my hands and knees mopping.

So here is the recipe

Empty disposable mop head container
8 cheap as dirt wash clothes - I bought a bundle of 12 from wally world, under $4.00
1 1/2 Cups water
3/4 Cup white vinegar
5 Drops Lavender Essential Oil
5 Drops Purification Essential Oil

First fold the wash clothes the same way in the container as the disposable clothes are done.

Next mix up the potion, I always use a glass bowl for mixing when using essential oils.

Pour the potion slowly over the washcloths. I let mine sit for a bit then flipped the closed container over to make sure all of the cloths were wet.

I only made 8 clothes for now as I was not sure how many I would use nor how fast I would use them. I'm not sure how long or how well they will store. Since there are no preservatives in the potion I will keep and eye on them to watch for mildew and a possible sour smell.

Why the oils?
Lavender has 101 uses!!!! Besides smelling good it is also and antiseptic.
Purification is a blend of essential oils made by Young Living. It disinfects, cleans, and deodorizes. lots of other good uses as well.
Adding the oils to the potion not only cleans up some of the nasty germs left by the rug rats, it also helps cover up the odor of the vinegar.

I will keep you updated on the shelf life of my new cleaning tool :) I should also add it is good for the environment :) no more disposable cloths in the dump. I must admit that is not my primary reason for this DIY...I want clean safe floors for the grands, and I want to do it on the cheap :)