7 Go-to Cleaning Remedies ...

The best of the cleaning remedies I have ever found is a stain remover that is a mixture of blue Dawn dish soap and hydrogen peroxide. For whatever reason, it has to be the blue kind of soap, but it works like magic. Pour hydrogen peroxide on the stain and let it sit for a minute or two, and then scrub it with the blue soap and the stain should come right up. Tough stains may take a little more work, but nine times out of ten this worked for me.

We've all had a new pet that hasn't been potty trained yet. The strong ammonia smell that comes with their urine, especially cat urine, is hard to remove. If left untreated, animals will often continue to return to the spot as it has been "marked" by them, so it's important to remove that scent. Try pouring club soda on the spot and let it sit. Scrub it up later with some soap and water, and it should be as good as new.

A good deep cleaning agent that easily removes mold and mildew is the mixture of baking soda and vinegar. The combination produces a powerful chemical reaction that minimizes the time you spend scrubbing. In fact, it's so powerful, it can even unclog drains. Pouring a little bit of both down the drain and covering it with a rag for about five minutes will allow the reaction to occur. You can then flush it with extra hot water, and hopefully the drain will clear right out! If there's a lot of hair, it may not work. But you can use the combination on stubborn shower stains and stinky garbage disposals for a sure success.

If you've ever tried to scrape dried food off the inside of a microwave, you know how frustrating it can be. Heat half and half water and vinegar in the microwave for about five minutes. When you open it up, all you have to do is wipe it down. The food will come right out, and your microwave will look brand new, no harmful chemicals involved.

Is the air in your home smelling a little stale? Air fresheners are so expensive and sometimes you never know what kind of chemicals are being used in them. Pour a cap full of vanilla extract into a cup and bake it in the oven at 350 degrees for about thirty minutes. Your house will smell like you've been baking, and may inspire you to tackle that cake recipe you've been eyeing all week.

Dust gets everywhere. It seems like you dust one day and it's back with a fresh new layer the next day, taunting you. Fabric softener is actually a great way to fight back against those dust bunnies. You can mix fabric softener with water and spritz it on your dusting cloth for plastic and glass surfaces. For wooden surfaces, you can actually just use a fabric softener sheet directly on the surface of the wood and it will repel dust. It's a very simple tip using something you most likely already have!

If you have a dishwasher, chances are, you don't clean it often. It typically does the cleaning for you. Show it some love this spring. Run an empty cycle and put lemonade Kool Aid in it to give it a fresh, lemony scent. It'll work better and you'll feel better knowing the dishes you're using are even cleaner.

It's that time of year to tidy up your house and let in the freshness of springtime. As you get to scrubbing, take time to pay attention to the more neglected areas of your home. We all have our own cleaning remedies, some that have been passed down over the years. What are some of your own cleaning remedies, and have you tried any of these?