Did you always think that making zero waste products from scratch would be time-consuming and require a whole bunch of ingredients the name of which you can’t pronounce? Me too! That’s why I was absolutely blown away when I found out, that most of the key household items are actually super easy to make! This DIY zero waste cleaning spray is a great example of how you can easily create waste and toxic-free cleaning products from scratch – in just 5 minutes!

Benefits of DIY cleaning spray

Why should I spend time and effort on homemade cleaning products when I could simply buy them from a supermarket – or even a zero waste store? What are the benefits of DIY cleaning spray in comparison to the supermarket alternatives? Let’s take a look!

The most obvious, and maybe also the most important, feature of this zero waste cleaning spray is that it is toxic-free. There are no chemicals in this spray, only natural products. This means less toxins at your home, giving you a more healthy living environment. It also means that less toxins end up in the environment through sewage systems and poor recycling systems (this obviously depends on where you live).

Other pros of this DIY cleaning product is that it is super cheap to make and it helps you to utilize waste that you’ve already produced! Vinegar costs next to nothing and if you consume citrus fruit, citrus peels are going to be their natural by-product. As they cannot be put into compost, this is a great way to give them a meaningful afterlife!

Cleaning spray with citrus

The easiest way to create zero waste cleaning spray would be to mix vinegar with water, but the smell is quite strong and can be off-putting for people who’re not used to it. This is why I prefer to enhance the smell of citrus into mine by soaking the vinegar with citrus peels! Despite the immediate smell of vinegar, this citrus cleaning spray leaves nice citrus smell.

You can use any kind of citrus peels, but the final product will be slightly different depending on the fruit. I prefer to use lemons over other types of citrus fruit as the color of the cleaning spray remains light and transparent in comparison to for example oranges, that dye the liquid more brownish. But this is simply a question of preference – and even more importantly what kind of fruit you consume in your household as you obviously want to make most out of the waste that you’ve already produced!  

This is an all-purpose cleaning spray so it can be used for pretty much everything! However, avoid using it on granite and marble countertops, as it may cause pitting!

Zero waste cleaning spray recipe

Ingredients:

Method:

1. Fill ¾ of a jar with citrus peels and cover them with white vinegar. You can also add rosemary for extra scent.

2. Leave the jar in sunlight for 2-3 weeks to give the vinegar time to soak the citrus scent.

3. Remove the peels (and rosemary) when the time has passed or the peels have started to turn gray in color.

4. Mix the final product with water in a 50-50 ratio and place it in a spray bottle. You can add few drops of lemon essential oil if the smell is too strong. Your zero waste cleaning spray is now ready!

I know what you might be thinking in there. Two or three weeks to make a cleaning spray might seem like a lot but I promise, it really doesn’t seem like it. It only takes a couple of minutes to prep the ingredients and make the mix, the rest is just waiting game!

Have you tried this recipe or do you have an alternative zero waste cleaner recipe that you like to use? Let me know in the comments!

This is not a guide on what you should buy to get your zero waste journey started. The purpose of the movement is not to replace what you already have to get your hands on new and shiny bamboo cutlery but to consume what you already have and pay more attention to the everyday choices that you’re making. We all must eat and we do need things, but we also vote with our dollars, euros and pounds.

The purpose of this guide is to soften your transition and make it something nice and easily adaptable, rather than a painful experience you must go through because, well, the planet kinda needs us. It will provide you some practical tips on where to get started, what you should avoid doing, and what resources (social and material) you can utilize to make your transition easier!

Let’s go and change your life!

If you spend a lot of time on Instagram you may have noticed that lots of zero waste influencers have picture-perfect cupboards where they store their grain and pulses in perfectly matching glass jars. This is not what zero waste is about. It is all about minimizing waste and using what you already have. If you have a bunch of old glass jars that happen to be insanely aesthetic then perfect, go ahead and use them. Remember, however, that using old plastic tubs is just as important and valid.

Don’t throw away perfectly functional items to replace them with eco-products. Your old products might not be as Instagram savvy, but zero waste movement is not about the looks. It's about not producing unnecessary waste.

Starting from big lifestyle changes like going vegan, making your own beauty products, or growing your own food might sound tempting. They are, however, more likely to turn your exciting journey of zero waste discovery into something quite unpleasant. Why is that?  

Big lifestyle changes are hard for most people and there’s unfortunately a big possibility that you will not succeed, at least on the first attempt. Failing your first step towards zero waste living can be a big setback and in the worst case, it can make you turn your back to the whole movement. Doing something small and succeeding in it is rewarding as well, and simply knowing that you can change will encourage you to take bigger steps later in your journey.