Five simple ingredients handle most home cleaning. White vinegar and lemon are acids that dissolve limescale, bicarbonate of soda scrubs gently and absorbs smells, soda crystals cut grease, and castile soap lifts everyday dirt. None of them reliably disinfects, acids damage marble and limestone, and bleach must never be combined with vinegar, lemon or ammonia.
Which ingredient should you use for which job?
Think in two groups. Acids (vinegar, lemon, citric acid) dissolve mineral deposits such as limescale. Alkalis (bicarbonate of soda, soda crystals) break down grease and food. Soap lifts general dirt.
- Limescale and water marks: white vinegar or citric acid.
- Grease on tiles, cooker tops and bins: soda crystals, or castile soap for lighter grime.
- Baked-on food and stains on hard surfaces: a bicarbonate of soda paste.
- Smells in fridges, bins and shoes: dry bicarbonate of soda.
- Everyday wiping and floors: castile soap or washing-up liquid in warm water.
Mixing an acid with an alkali cancels both out, so vinegar and bicarbonate of soda together clean less well than either alone. The fizz is mostly the two neutralising each other into salty water and carbon dioxide.
What can white vinegar do, and where should you not use it?
Distilled white vinegar is a dilute acetic acid. It is cheap, it dissolves limescale and soap scum, and the smell fades as it dries.
- Good for: glass, mirrors and glazed tiles, using one part vinegar to one part water in a spray bottle and a dry cloth or squeegee to finish.
- Not good for: thick grease, or killing germs. Household vinegar is not sold as a disinfectant.
- Keep it off natural stone. The Natural Stone Institute warns that products containing lemon, vinegar or other acids may dull or etch calcareous stones such as marble, limestone and travertine, and recommends a neutral cleaner, stone soap or mild washing-up liquid instead (Natural Stone Institute).
- Check fittings first. Some tap and shower makers rule out acetic acid on their finishes; hansgrohe, for example, says cleaners containing it can cause significant damage and recommends a mild citric acid cleaner (hansgrohe). Our limescale removal guide goes through taps, screens and shower heads one by one.
What can bicarbonate of soda do?
Bicarbonate of soda (sodium bicarbonate, also sold as baking soda) is a mild alkali and a fine, soft powder. It is the gentlest scrub in the cupboard.
- As a paste: mix three parts bicarbonate with one part water for oven doors, roasting tins, sinks, grout and tea-stained mugs. Leave it on tough marks for a while before scrubbing, then rinse well, or it dries to a white film.
- For smells: an open dish in the fridge, a spoonful in the bin, or a sprinkle in trainers overnight.
What it cannot do: dissolve limescale or disinfect. It is not the same as baking powder, which also contains an acid, or soda crystals, which are far stronger. Test it first on glossy or soft finishes.
What can lemon and citric acid do?
Lemon juice cleans because of its citric acid, so it does the same jobs as vinegar on light limescale and water marks, with a pleasanter smell. Rub a cut lemon over a stained plastic chopping board or a chrome tap, leave it a few minutes, then rinse.
For bigger jobs, buy citric acid powder: it is cheaper than lemons, has no smell, leaves nothing sticky behind, and you can adjust the strength, starting from the dose on the pack.
Limits: the natural stone warning applies to lemon too, it does not disinfect, and juice left on a surface turns sticky. Lemon juice is also not the same as lemon or citrus essential oil, which Cats Protection lists among the oils that are toxic to cats; our guide to cleaning products and pets explains more.
What can soda crystals do?
Soda crystals (sodium carbonate, or washing soda) are a much stronger alkali than bicarbonate of soda, and the natural choice for grease.
- Greasy jobs: dissolve a handful in a bowl or bucket of hot water for tiles behind the cooker, bins, grill pans and barbecue racks.
- Drains: Dri-Pak, which makes them, suggests flushing drains regularly with a strong solution to keep them free from grease.
- Laundry: added with your usual detergent, they soften London's hard water.
Keep them off: Dri-Pak says not to use soda crystals on aluminium or plated silver, warns that loose lacquer or varnish may come off, and advises rubber gloves for prolonged contact (Dri-Pak). That rules out aluminium pans and many cooker hood filters; our kitchen deep clean guide covers the filters.
What can castile soap do?
Castile soap is a true soap made from vegetable oil, traditionally olive. A small squeeze in warm water makes a mild cleaner for worktops, paintwork and sealed floors.
Hard water is its weak spot, and most of London has it. Soap reacts with the calcium and magnesium in hard water to form scum, which shows as a dull film on glass, tiles and shiny surfaces. Use it sparingly, rinse, and switch to washing-up liquid where you see streaks.
Never use castile soap and vinegar together. The acid splits the soap back into its oils and leaves a greasy film. It is not dangerous, just wasted effort, so use one, rinse, then the other.
Which cleaning products should you never mix?
The dangerous combinations almost all involve bleach.
- Bleach with vinegar, lemon or any acid. The UK Health Security Agency says that mixing bleach (sodium hypochlorite) with acidic products produces chlorine gas, and gives vinegar as an example of an acidic solution (UKHSA). Acidic toilet cleaners and limescale removers count too.
- Bleach with ammonia. UKHSA says bleach mixed with an ammonia-containing cleaning product may produce chloramines, which are highly irritating to the airways. Check labels for ammonia before using anything near bleach.
- Bleach with anything else. The Health and Safety Executive warns that bleach products give off harmful gases when mixed with acidic toilet cleaners or ammonia (HSE), and Dri-Pak advises never using bleach with any other cleaning product (Dri-Pak FAQs).
In practice:
- Use bleach on its own. Rinse the surface, or flush the toilet, before any other product touches it, and save the vinegar for another day.
- Keep every product, homemade ones included, clearly labelled. The HSE recommends original labelled containers where possible, to avoid confusion about contents.
- Clean with a window open or the extractor fan running.
If products get mixed by accident, leave the room and get into fresh air. UKHSA advises anyone who has breathed in chlorine to seek medical advice (UKHSA). Use NHS 111 if you are unsure, and call 999 in a life-threatening emergency (NHS).
Do natural cleaning ingredients kill germs?
Not reliably, and that matters most in the kitchen. The Food Standards Agency says disinfectants kill bacteria and viruses, should be used on a visibly clean surface, and should be checked against the manufacturer's instructions to make sure they suit food surfaces (Food Standards Agency). It also advises washing chopping boards thoroughly soon after preparing raw food.
So use natural ingredients for dirt, limescale and grease, and a food-safe disinfectant, as its label directs, where raw meat, fish or poultry has been.
Frequently asked questions
Is malt vinegar as good as white vinegar for cleaning?
Use distilled white vinegar or a cleaning vinegar instead. Malt vinegar is brown, so it can leave marks on grout, fabric and pale surfaces, and its smell lingers for longer. Cleaning vinegars can be stronger than the vinegar sold for cooking, so dilute them as the label says, and follow the same rules about natural stone and bleach.
Can I unblock a drain with bicarbonate of soda and vinegar?
It rarely shifts a real blockage, because the two ingredients mainly cancel each other out. Pull out any hair you can reach first, then try a sink plunger. For greasy kitchen drains, a regular flush of hot water with soda crystals helps stop build-up. If the drain stays blocked, call a plumber rather than pouring in one product after another.
Are natural cleaning ingredients safe around children and pets?
They are generally gentler, but they still need care. Store them labelled and out of reach, as you would any cleaning product, and never in old drinks bottles. Keep pets off floors until they are rinsed and dry, and remember that some natural products, especially those scented with essential oils, can harm cats.
Prefer to hand the cleaning over? SW Clean London's regular home cleaners work with the products you leave out for them, so a home that runs on vinegar and bicarbonate of soda can stay that way, and eco-friendly products are available on request. Note which product goes where, and any natural stone, in your client account. Read about our home cleaning service or book your regular cleaner online.