We’re all busy and let’s face it, no matter how much we want to use natural methods around the house, most of them just take too much time—shopping for ingredients, mixing, drying, storing—and seem more trouble than they are worth. Here are some natural solutions that will actually save you time and do the job better than man-made chemicals!

Cleaning Burned Pans

We’ve all done it; forgotten there was a pan of food cooking on the stove until we smelled the result! A lot of us give up after a few tries and throw the pan away but you no longer have to do that. You can clean a stainless steel or non-stick pan easily with one of two methods.

For stainless steel pans you’ll need:

1 c vinegar
2T baking soda
Water to cover burned area
A scouring pad

After the pan has cooled, fill the bottom of the pan with water nearly up to where the scorched/burned area ends. Add the vinegar and bring to a boil. Remove the pan from the heat. You can then add the baking soda, which will begin a fizzing reaction. Wait until the fizzing stops, empty the liquid, and scour the pan. If there is any leftover burnt places just apply a paste of water and baking soda, let stand for fifteen minutes, then scrub it off.

Several people who have tried this method have reported that the vinegar and baking soda resulted in another mess to clean up. To avoid this, empty the liquid before adding the baking soda then scrub.

Non-stick pans that have burned on food can also be rescued. All you need do is fill the pan with water, put a dryer sheet in it, and then let it soak overnight. The next morning you can remove the sheet and scrub the mess right out.

Cut the Grease and Freshen the Air!

White vinegar is a terrific grease cutter and one of the best disinfectants on the market. Keep a spray bottle of straight white vinegar in the kitchen and use it to get grease off your stove, the range hood, or any other place. Grease wipes right off with white vinegar and you’ll rarely have to do more than wipe it away. White vinegar will kill germs and bacteria on your kitchen counters and leave the surfaces gleaming.

Do you buy air fresheners to eliminate odors or make the air smell better? You can save money and stop polluting your inside air with this recipe:

1 oz rubbing alcohol
6 oz filtered water
10-40 dropped essential oil, your favorite. Peppermint, orange, lemon, jasmine, or lavender seem to be the most popular.

Whenever you think the air smells stale or you want to cover up some cooking odors just spritz the air with this freshening spray. The mixture will last about a month if you don’t use it up before then!

Quit Wasting Money on Costly Detergent

I’ve always wanted to make my own laundry detergent. I don’t like all the additives and chemicals in commercial detergent and I really hate paying those exorbitant prices. But I also did not like the liquid detergent recipe that seemed to be the only one around until recently. Then I found one that was easy to make, store, and use.

1 bar (or box of flakes) Fels Naptha or Ivory Soap
1 box Borax (from laundry aisle)
1 standard box of Oxi Clean, washing soda, or a large box of baking soda
Essential oil if you must have your laundry scented

Use your food processor to mix the ingredients. I do it in quarters, a quarter bar of soap plus a quarter of the other ingredients, because I don’t have an enormous food processor. After mixing you can put your detergent in the appropriately sized container(s). For an everyday light load you’ll need 1 tablespoon of detergent. If you have a heavily soiled load you should use twice that much.

All the ingredients except the optional essential oils will cost about $6. Most large size laundry soap costs about that much or more. The difference is that you use only a tablespoon or two of the natural soap whereas commercial soaps tell you to use at least ½ cup per load. Your natural soap will cost less and last about four times longer than a box of leading brand laundry detergent!

Natural is Better

If you are trying to use more natural products in your cleaning routines, you’ll begin to notice some changes almost right away. Just using vinegar as a kitchen cleaner and natural laundry detergent is a big step. You’ll notice less allergic reactions like sneezing, people will notice how fresh your house smells, your skin will be less irritated when you use natural detergent, and you’ll generally feel healthier and more energetic.