In addition to puppy cams and easy-peasy vegetarian recipes, I am a little obsessed with finding DIY (Do It Yourself) cleaning tips online. Finding a new household cleaning trick that requires very basic household items and no nasty chemicals is unbelievably exciting. It is good for my wallet, and it is also good for my health. I can work at home with the peace of mind that I am not hot-boxing in a closed room full of cancer-causing cleaning fumes.

Here is my personal list of favorite DIY cleaning tips and tricks I've gathered over the years. To the green warriors who have been doing this for years, this is old and unexciting news. But for the newbies who've yet to discover the magic of distilled white vinegar, I invite you to check some of these out.

1. For tough stains and build-up in your toilet bowl, use white vinegar. I was already using white vinegar as a basic cleaning agent for my bathroom tiles, kitchen counters and stove tops. So imagine my glee when I learned online that white vinegar can also be used to clean up the super-tough stains at the bottom of your toilet that won't go away even with hardcore scrubbing and cleaning powder. Empty out your toilet bowl as much as you can and fill the hole with white vinegar. Leave for a few hours or overnight and then scrub at the build-up. Your toilet bowl will look as good as new when you're done! 

2. To get rid of fruit flies, make an apple cider vinegar trap. This worked wonders in my apartment. Fill a jar with 1-2 inches of apple cider vinegar. Poke holes in the lid, or cover the hole with plastic wrap and poke holes in the plastic wrap. Leave it out in the kitchen. Fruit flies will be attracted to the apple cider vinegar scent and get trapped in the jar instead of infesting your produce.

3. To get rid of sticky gunk left from tape or adhesives, use apple cider vinegar.

4. Make a flea trap with a pie tin, water and olive oil. Back in the day when I was a subletter in an apartment with two cats, I learned online how to make an all-natural flea trap. Fill a pie tin half-way with water and add a tablespoon of olive oil. At night, leave the pie tin on the ground and shine a night lamp onto the surface of the water. The fleas will be attracted to the light and jump into the water and be trapped there.

5. Keep your sink brushes, dish scrubbers and bath brushes clean with hydrogen peroxide. Bottles of hydrogen peroxide can be bought at any supermarket or drug store. To keep your sink brushes and other household cleaning brushes clean, keep a container of hydrogen peroxide and leave your brushes there so they always stay clean and won't get nasty build-up over time.

6. Clean stains and streaks from stainless steel using club soda.

7. Disinfect your cutting boards with lemon juice. Squeeze some lemon juice onto your cutting board and let it sit before wiping off.

8. Use your old baking soda in the refrigerator to clean your drain. When you need to replace your old baking soda in the fridge, use it to deodorize and clean your drain. Pour baking soda down the kitchen drain and disposal while running warm water.

9. Use olive oil to fix a squeaky or sticky hinge on your door. Just rub the problem hinge with a cotton swab or rab doused with olive oil and it will act as a natural lubricant to make it close smoothly or stop squeaking.

What are your favorite DIY cleaning tips? Share your favorite ideas with the community by commenting below! 

PHOTO (cc): Flickr / cafemama