DIY Toilet Bowl Cleaner

My family calls this "Emily Powder" but it's actually now called Eco-Me Scrub Cleanser. Once upon a time it was called "Emily Scrub Cleanser by Eco-Me." I guess they decided that was too long but I liked calling my cleanser Emily.

Anyway, they don't have it at the Co-op anymore, so I was deciding whether to get it from Amazon or make my own. The ingredients are so simple: baking soda, cream of tartar, and essential oils.

According to Bob Vila's website, making your own toilet bowl cleaner won't really save you any money, but it is very easy to do. Here is what he says:

STEP 1: In a GLASS bowl (must be glass), combine two cups baking soda (one 16 oz box) and 100 drops (roughly one teaspoon) of a disinfecting essential oil, such as tea tree oil, lavender, orange, pine, or a blend of oils.

STEP 2: With a WOOD spoon (must be wood), mix the oil and baking soda together, breaking up clumps as you go.

STEP 3: Store mixture in an airtight glass jar outside of the bathroom. The bathroom is too humid of an environment. I wonder if you could just mix & store in a Pyrex glass container? For us, blue = food, but if I got one with a red lid and wrote on it with Sharpie, we would know that it's not for eating.

STEP 4: To use, drop 1T of the mixture into bottom of the toilet bowl and sprinkle an additional 1T on the walls. Use your toilet brush to spread the cleaning powder around. Then pour in either 1/2 cup of special 20% vinegar OR 2 cups of standard 5% distilled vinegar from the grocery store.

Once the powder fizzes, use your toilet brush brush to scrub any stains. Let the remaining mixture sit for about 15 minutes, then flush the toilet. Done!

I think this is really interesting. I'm curious how many people make their own cleaning products (we used to make our laundry powder but don't anymore). I did accidentally find that a spray bottle of water and rice vinegar works very nicely for cleaning marker stains off of whiteboards!

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