I know a guy who is a GREAT cleaner. I mean he has a gift that makes Mr. Clean look like an amateur. Lucky for me, he’s also my handsome husband. (Yeah!) Now, that doesn’t mean that I don’t have to clean the house. He has a commercial cleaning company, and usually comes home tired and doesn’t really want to clean at the end of a long day, so I still do most of the house cleaning during the week. But on the weekends, we are able to knock out the housework together in just a couple of hours. Happy Wife!

The other day we watched the The Lorax movie. Not only was it well done and entertaining, it made us think about “the trees” and such. We’ve been trying to live more environmentally responsible on a more consistent basis at home. We’re recycling, cutting out plastics, using reusable grocery bags, turning off the water when we brush our teeth… all kinds of little things we’re trying to do to leave less of a carbon footprint. So when I saw this pin for an orange scented vinegar household cleaner, I couldn’t wait to try it. Ann from The Fountain Avenue Kitchen gave a simple way to get rid of the strong vinegar smell – soak it in orange peels.

I peeled a large orange (and shared it with my hard working husband), and put the peels in the jar, then filled it with white vinegar and put it on the counter.

Two weeks later I poured the contents through a strainer and into a spray bottle. The first thing I noticed was the scent. It smelled of orange, but also smelled of vinegar. It wasn’t the overwhelming scent of vinegar, but it was still there. Like Ann, I don’t mind the scent of vinegar, but some people don’t care for the smell of a pickle factory.

On to the cleaning tests. First I tried it on the granite kitchen counter. It left a film on the smooth surface. I asked my husband for his professional opinion, and he thought that the oils in the orange peel was the cause. Since oil cleaners are used on wood, we tried it on the wooden cabinets next. It did a good a good job on the wooden surface.

So here are the Pintesting results:

Overall Rating: 3 Pins

Accuracy:  Because of the film from the oil, it didn’t make as good of an all-purpose cleaner as straight vinegar, which doesn’t leave a film. I tried to take pictures to compare the two, but the photos didn’t capture the difference. The film could also be felt when we ran a finger over it. The oil did make it a good wood cleaner, and even though the vinegar smell didn’t completely disappear, it was much more subtle with the orange scent. 3 Pins

Difficulty:  Put orange peels in a jar, cover with vinegar, put on the lid and walk away for a couple of weeks. No stirring. No cooking. Not a thing to do but wait. 5 Pins

Time:  It took less than 5 minutes to peel the orange, put it in  jar, and cover with vinegar. However, two weeks of waiting is a pretty long time. 2 Pins

Cost:  This is really inexpensive. Oranges are not expensive (at least they’re not in Florida), and the peels are usually considered rubbish. We get a box of two gallon jugs of white vinegar at Sam’s Club for under $4.00. 5 Pins

Practicality:  If someone was very sensitive to chemicals, or was trying to use all natural cleaners, this would be a good wood cleaner. Due to the smearing of the film, I don’t care for it as an all-purpose cleaner. Also, because of the time involved, it’s much easier to purchase environmentally friendly cleaning products at the store. They’re about the same price as the “regular” cleaners and are easy to find in most supermarkets. 3 Pins