When Life Gives You Lemons…Make CLEANER!

Do you ever make a fresh batch of lemonade, and after squeezing the juice from the lemons, hesitate a moment before throwing the beautiful yellow rinds in the garbage? Me too! I finally figured a way out of this “lemon guilt,” and today, I am going to share it with you!

Instead of throwing away the rinds, toss them into a large sized jar (hint: choose a jar with a lid). Any glass jar will do, but I like to use giant ones. Once you have done that, fill the jar with plain white vinegar, making sure the lemon rinds are completely submerged. Replace the jar lid. That’s it. Easy, right? And now you are on your way to making a great nontoxic degreasing cleaner for your kitchen. All that’s left to do is wait.

Set the jar somewhere out of the way, and leave it to sit at least a week. I actually leave mine about 2-3 weeks! When you are ready to use it, grab a funnel, a strainer, and an empty spray bottle. Carefully strain and pour the cleaner into the bottle, and you’re ready to use it!

This homemade solution makes a great degreaser and demineralizer to save you some time. We have really hard water where we live, and we get mineral deposits on all of our water faucets and other metal surfaces that come in contact with water. It’s gross! I spray this cleaner on, let it soak for about 5 minutes, and with a little bit of light scrubbing with a scrubby sponge, the mineralization comes right off! It’s my favorite thing to use on the refrigerator water dispenser, too. I also use it on our windows and my glass top stove.

One caution…there are a few surfaces that vinegar can damage! Here’s the whole list for your reference, but you should know that all stone countertops, cast iron cookware, and hard wood flooring are on that list.

I hope this helpful little shortcut gives you one more nontoxic way to keep your family safe, your kitchen clean, and your lemon rinds unwasted. So pour yourself a glass of that lemonade (or another cup of coffee), add some joy, and have an amazing day!