Cleaning on a Budget

If you are one of the many people who are on a low income and don’t have much money left after buying your weekly shop, you may find it difficult to keep your home clean as you are unable to afford everything you need in order to clean it properly.  There are a number of ways that you can save yourself money, and even make some of the products you need from the things you may have already in your house.  See some of these handy hints on how to clean your home while living on a tight budget: •    Buying cloths and sponges that you can use, wash and re-use will save you money in the long run, though they may initially be slightly more expensive to buy, they more than pay for themselves. •    Go online and request free samples from companies selling cleaning products. •    Read reviews on a product before you buy it, there’s nothing worse than spending money on something that is no good and is not going to be used. •    Consider using supermarkets own brands of cleaning products rather than more expensive branded products. •    Compare prices of cleaning products in various shops and buy from wherever is cheapest. •    Collect voucher and coupons for money off cleaning products from magazines. •    Buy an all-purpose cleaner that can clean all if not most of your home, this save you from having to buy a number of different products for each and every cleaning job. •    If you clean daily and keep on top of the cleaning it will make the cleaning quicker for you, furthermore, it means that dirt and grime won’t have time to develop into a stubborn stain, stains often require a stronger and specialised cleaning product to remove, which aren’t often cheap to buy and aren’t necessary if you clean regularly. •    When you are doing your laundry, try to save on electricity and hang your laundry out to air dry rather than always using the tumble dryer. •    When you are buying appliances, such as a new washing machine etc. always buy the most energy efficient one you can afford as this too will save on electricity. •    Implement house rules, such as no shoes in the house etc. will mean less cleaning for you to do in the long run. •    Place mats at the entrances of your house and ask people to wipe their feet before coming in, if you have taken your pet for a walk, keep them on this mat so any mud/dirt collects here instead of in your home. •    When using cleaning products, ensure you read the directions as misuse of the product could damage your things which you will then need to pay to replace. •    Use newspaper to clean mirrors, not only does this provide a smear free finish but it also saves you some money on using a cloth or kitchen roll. •    Look after your cleaning equipment, clean it regularly and keep it in a good state of repair, this will ensure it ‘lives’ for longer. •    Fluorescent light bulbs are more energy efficient and last longer than average light bulbs. •    Make your own cleaning products: o    Mix water and vinegar together in equal parts to create an all-purpose cleaner, alternatively, use vinegar by itself as a bleach. o     Use lemon juice to remove stains, shine up brass and copper and as a natural air freshener.   Lemon juice can also be used as a multi-purpose cleaner. o    Baking powder: can be used as a non-abrasive cleaner, furthermore it absorbs odours from the air and acts as a deodoriser.