Natural Kitchen Spray Recipe with Vinegar and Essential Oil

Homemade kitchen spray recipe using ordinary household ingredients including vinegar and essential oil. Non-toxic recipe that cleans and sanitizes kitchen surfaces.

I’ve just moved and in clearing the old house I’ve been finding all kinds of hidden dust, cobwebs, and dribbles, among secret stashes of cat toys and treasures. You think your home is clean until you start moving furniture and climbing up to see the tops of cabinets and shelves. So you can probably imagine that I’m going through a lot of all purpose spray cleaning those surfaces and you’d be right. Except the spray I use might not be the one you might be thinking of.

Some years ago I found out that I could make my own natural kitchen spray. It’s the easiest and most cost effective way that I’ve found to jump-start goals to creating a more natural home. At first I made a version using just vinegar and water and though it performed well, it did smell very vinegary for about ten minutes after. The addition of essential oil works wonders on the scent though and there are oils that can even help with destroying germs and bacteria.

All Natural Kitchen Spray Recipe

The main ingredient in my kitchen spray is ordinary white vinegar. It’s inexpensive, colorless, and completely natural. Vinegar is harmless to people and pets but makes short work of bacteria and other microbes. It also cleans grease and grime, helps break down limescale, and is suitable for a lot of different types of surfaces. It leaves a streak-free finish on glass but is also great for wood, kitchen countertops, ceramic, metal, and grout.

In one study, corroborated by Heinz spokesman, Michael Mullen, it was found that just a five percent solution of distilled vinegar was effective in killing 99% of bacteria, 82% of mold, and 80% of germs/viruses, all without the help of harmful chemicals. Vinegar is also used as an additive to commercial cleaners to help create a ‘streak-free shine’.

In my years of using this vinegar cleaning spray I’ve never once thought that it didn’t have the power or effectiveness of commercial products. Sometimes when you switch over to homemade there’s a period of adjustment and wishing for the old store-bought version. Not so with this. As a soap maker I also find this spray handy since vinegar helps to neutralize any lye granules or fresh soap splatters that might be lingering on kitchen surfaces.

Natural Home Ideas

• Homemade Beeswax Firestarters
• How to Make Simple Candles
• Natural Beeswax Furniture Polish Recipe

Natural Kitchen Spray Ingredients

• Empty spray bottle
• Distilled white vinegar
• Water (preferably distilled water)
• Essential oil – I use rosemary essential oil blended with citronella essential oil but others that have a nice scent and antibacterial properties include Lavender, Tea Tree, and Lemon.

1. With a black sharpie, mark the back of a spray bottle approximately 2/3 the way up and beside the mark write ‘Vinegar’. Another 1/3 the way up and make another mark and write ‘Water’. Using a funnel, fill the spray bottle up with those two ingredients, starting first with vinegar.
2. Add up to a half teaspoon (fifty drops) of your preferred essential oil to the bottle. Give the bottle a good shake.
3. Since the essential oils like to float to the top, make sure to shake the bottle before each use. Spray away and wipe up as you would with any other household cleaner. If you do smell a bit of the vinegar coming through, it will dissipate after just a few minutes.