How Can I Disinfect My House Naturally?
Refusing to using natural products as disinfectants stem from the belief that they are not as powerful as their toxic chemical counterparts. However, with a little research and creativity, there are all-natural options which safely disinfect without any harmful residue for you or your family.
Actually, natural and botanical disinfectants can be just as effective as chemicals, if used correctly. However, natural options also tend to work more slowly than chemical disinfectants, so the surface must be kept wet with the solution for a longer period in order to effectively kill germs.
Vinegar
This clean, natural and biodegradable liquid is more than a cooking product. It’s made up of 95% water and 5% acetic acid, which kills about 80% of germs.
As such, it’s a powerful, natural disinfectant that can be used to clean your sweat-stained clothes, wash your dishes, clean rusty tools, and remove hard water deposits.
It also acts as a deodorizer and easily cuts through grease. Look for vinegar with higher acetic acid concentration to up its germ-killing power.
Hydrogen Peroxide
While it lacks a green sounding name, it’s an incredible natural, biodegradable compound.
Also known as oxygen bleach, hydrogen peroxide is basically water with an extra oxygen molecule, and it breaks back down into oxygen and water.
That means that unlike chlorine bleach, it is kind to the environment.
It’s best to use at a 3% concentration, which is how it is usually sold in stores.
It can be used for your laundry, bathroom and kitchen cleaning, greasy pots and pans, and kids toys. Use it as a spray, create a paste with baking soda, or use it for soaking.
Word of advice: don’t mix vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. They cancel each other out if mixed.
It’s better to use them one after another. The order doesn’t matter!
Alcohol
Alcohol is a great natural disinfectant, and a common ingredient in many hand sanitizers and disinfectants. It can be used as a disinfectant for surfaces, as an ingredient in DYI cleaners (especially window cleaners!) and to remove bad odour from your laundry.
But before you turn a bottle of vodka into a DIY disinfectant in regards to the SARS-CoV-2 virus: CDC recommends that your alcohol should have at least 70% alcohol content, so at least 140 proof, for surface disinfection.
If you have strong spirits with at least 70% alcohol, you can mix your own surface disinfectant from this. Rubbing alcohol of at least 70% also works!
Essential oils
These concentrated liquids are distilled from plants. Studies have shown that essential
oils such as lavender oil, clove oil and many others have natural antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties.
Hot water
Hot water can effectively kill bacteria and viruses, but the water temperature should be at least 140 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Boiled water at 212 degrees Fahrenheit is often used to kill pathogens when food is cooked or reheated.
And of course, hot water is best when combined with soap or other disinfectant, as it is when washing dishes or clothes. A 2010 study published in the Public Library of Science found that warm water at around 130 degrees Fahrenheit was not effective at killing viruses on its own, but adding a strong oxidizing agent, such as bleach, disrupted the viral genome enough to stop it from spreading.
And when it comes to sanitizing your clothes, wash them at a temperature of at least 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
The dryer also helps to kill germs, as its temperature ranges from 135 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Do not attempt to wash your hands or body with water at this temperature, as this may burn or irritate your skin.