# Will cleaning w/ vinegar leave my house smelling of, well, vinegar?



## St. Margaret (May 19, 2006)

I use it in my laundry but I need to switch my bathroom/kitchen/etc cleaning to green. Should I be investing in (or at least borrowing) a whole book on this? I reread the recent Mothering article but now I'm wondering if DH is going to frwak if he smells vinegar (he's very gung-ho about AP and NFL but he hates the smell), as well as worrying about it corroding some surfaces (like the metal around the softener well in the washing machine where I've spilled some







). Will adding some lemon juice help? Teach me! I am open to any instructions, tips, warnings, etc. about making the switch. Oh yeah and it's gotta be CHEAP b/c I sahm now-- I figure vinegar and water will be cheap but any other rec'd cleaners... THANKS!


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## CORGIDOG (Jun 19, 2007)

I know when dh washes his hair with vinegar or cleans the floor with it, the smell does linger for a while. Interested to see what anyone else recommends!


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## nascarbebe (Nov 4, 2006)

Yeah, the house will still smell of vinegar but not for a very long time. Like if you clean in the morning and you have a friend coming over in a couple of hours the smell will be gone by then. Are you using straight vinegar? since you mentioned corrosion? Most people use 50/50 vinegar to water. I have no idea if you can add anything else, like an essential oil, to make it smell a bit more pleasant. I've only been cleaning with vinegar for a few months and I'm still not used to the smell. But it works!


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## ~MoonGypsy~ (Aug 21, 2006)

It's not an overwhleming smell if you dilute it down, but your house will smell like pickles for a little bit.

You may want to try some candles or heating some smelly oils afterward.


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## St. Margaret (May 19, 2006)

Thanks! I was only worried about it smelling for like the whole day or days. We use straight vinegar in the wash but I'd dillute it for house cleaning. Gonna try it out this week I hope!


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## momto l&a (Jul 31, 2002)

We cant stand the house smelling like vinegar.

Haven't found anyway to mask the oder.

We also don't think it cleans any better than plain old water.


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## reducereuserecycle (Jan 16, 2007)

i hate the smell of vinegar, but it seems to diappear pretty quick


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## wannabe (Jul 4, 2005)

I only use vinegar in the toilet - everywhere else in the house I use water and a microfibre cloth, they clean perfectly well, and no smell, no residue, and VERY cheap!


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## Earthy Mama (Jun 4, 2004)

I add orange essential oil to my vinegar and the orange seems to cut the vinegary smell pretty well...


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## WaitingForKiddos (Nov 30, 2006)

I threw in some EO in the vineger/water spray I keep in the kitchen. Now it's more like grapefruit with a kick. In the bathroom's spray bottle I added perfume oil, so NOT natural but the smell stays in there longer so it needs to be less vinegary. I found that I have a habit of keeping my cleaning rag with the bottle and that the rag gives off an odor. So, I cut them in quarters and now just use one for each day and throw it in the hamper when I'm done with my daily wipe down. Oddly enough, there is no vinegar smell in the hamper and it seems to cut the smell of DP's machine grease coated uniforms!


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## goldfinch (Jun 8, 2006)

I've been using 100% vinegar. Is that too strong?

The smell really doesn't bother me, but I know some people can't tolerate it at all...


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## eloise24 (Nov 17, 2005)

We add some lavender and tea-tree oil to our vinegar and you can't smell the vinegar at all (really!).


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## [email protected] (Jul 11, 2007)

LOL this thread reminded me of the time that I used vinegar to kill weeds on my patio, and used garlic spray to control mosquitos at the same time. My back yard smelled like a caesar salad for days!!!


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## St. Margaret (May 19, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *[email protected]* 
LOL this thread reminded me of the time that I used vinegar to kill weeds on my patio, and used garlic spray to control mosquitos at the same time. My back yard smelled like a caesar salad for days!!!











Thanks for the tips, all!


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## HappiLeigh (Mar 30, 2005)

I use one part vinegar to one part water, and I add essential oils for fragrance. I do not notice a lingering vinegary smell.


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