Seton Magazine Catholic Homeschool Articles, Advice & Resources
Summary
Amanda Evinger shares her discoveries to keep cleaning costs to a minimum while still getting a shining home for her family to study, pray and relax in!I think many of us would agree: if there’s one thing we don’t want to waste our precious money on, it’s cleaning floors and washing dirty socks.
Most of us would also say we don’t want to have to spend much time cleaning either, but we do like a clean house.
Thankfully, there are many ways out there that we can keep cleaning costs to a minimum, while still getting impressive results—a shining home we can study, pray and relax in!
Here are a few tips for budget busting while cleaning:
1. Think natural.
It is being discovered more and more on a scientific level that toxic chemical cleaners can cause serious health problems.
The good news is that natural cleaners are often the same price, if not cheaper, than chemical cleaners, especially when bought in bulk. And they actually work! One of the best deals I have ever come across is Shaklee’s Basic H, an organic super concentrate which can be used for most cleaning needs in a home.
When priced out penny by penny, it has been calculated to save a household thousands of dollars over the years (when compared with the cost of chemically-based cleaners).
2. Make your own.
Consider mixing up your own cleaners and laundry detergent. Some families do a great job making up their own cleaning and laundering mixtures with everyday items like baking soda, lye and vinegar.
If it works for you, go for it! Investing in some good spray bottles (try a hardware store—you are likely to find more durable ones there for a cheaper price) and buckets to store your mixes in will help a lot.
3. Make sure you are using the right amount of laundry soap.
This sounds obvious, but I know I went for years using almost twice as much laundry soap as I needed to because I never read the fine print instructions. I just figured one scoop, one load—but actually my laundry soap called for a 1/2 to 3/4 scoop per load.
I could have saved well over $500 if I had used the right amount of soap. I also know families that feel they can easily get a very clean load of laundry with a little less soap than suggested.
4. Buy laundry soap and cleaners in bulk if possible.
Biokleen makes an excellent box of natural laundry soap that will wash at least 500 loads for a decent price, and I am sure there are other similar bulk laundry detergent deals out there as well.
5. Use grocery bags
Instead of spending money on garbage bags for smaller trash cans, just use plastic shopping bags instead.
6. Use rags
Try to use rags as much as possible over paper towels. You can possibly save $100-200 a year this way!
7. Keep cleaning simple.
There are all kinds of cleaning gadgets and gizmos that require disposable materials that you have to buy again and again (manufacturers like it this way).
Resist the temptation to get over-complicated, and just use basic cleaning materials that work.
When I was living with Mother Teresa’s Sisters, I had it drilled into me day in and day out that “cleanliness is next to godliness,” as St. Teresa of Avila once said.
Of course, nuns may have a different capacity to keep things in order and clean (they don’t usually have to deal with peanut butter smudged fingers, washable markers and Play-Doh), but the message is still true for us all—we are stewards of God’s gifts to us.
He gave us our homes, and by His grace and the help of each family member, we can keep them relatively in order—and we can do it for just a few pretty dollars!
Keeping a tidy home will give us the peace of mind we need to handle the rigorous and rewarding schedule of homeschooling.
Header photo CC Konstantin Yuganov | adobestock.com
About Amanda Evinger
