Hydrogen peroxide can do much more than provide first aid to your minor cuts and scrapes. The next time you want to clean and disinfect surfaces in your home, consider this reaching for that humble brown bottle.
Why Clean With Hydrogen Peroxide?
Not only does it clean many surfaces, but it also offers other benefits. Hydrogen peroxide is:
- Super affordable
- Earth-friendly
- Non-toxic
- Zero odor after it dries
- Disinfects as it cleans, as proven by science
15 Things You Can Surprisingly Clean With Hydrogen Peroxide
Prepare to be amazed.
1 – Grimy grout between floor tiles lifts away with hydrogen peroxide
Apply undiluted hydrogen peroxide. After it stops fizzing, use a brush to loosen the grime and disinfect it. Rinse the grout lines with plain water. You will have clean, odor-free tiles.
2 – Non-porous kitchen countertops
Sealed, non-porous kitchen countertops always benefit from a good disinfectant! Skip the costly pre-boxed wipes and spray down your counters with this more affordable alternative. After the fizziness stops, give it a wipe. This is particularly important after you prep meats, seafood, or poultry products.
3 – Your computer mouse
If you spend much of your time using a mouse, it becomes visibly dirty. Add a splash of peroxide to a microfiber cloth and quickly wipe down the mouse. You’ll be amazed at how much filth you remove.
4 – Clean your keyboard with hydrogen peroxide
After you clean your mouse, treat your keyboard to the same disinfecting procedure.
5 – Hydrogen peroxide can rid a sponge of bad odors
Everyone knows how stinky sponges can become with repeated use. Plug up your sink, pour undiluted peroxide over the sponge, and let it sit for about a half an hour. Rinse under hot water for an odor-free, sanitized sponge.
6 – Baby’s bathtub toys
Bathtub toys generally remain in the humid environment of the bathroom. Of course, that means they could harbor smelly mildew. Kill mildew and germs by spritzing them with hydrogen peroxide, letting the cleaner sit for ten minutes, then rinsing in hot water. Pat them dry, and they’ll be ready for the next bath time.
7 – Indoor or outdoor trash bins
Some people can’t tolerate the pungent odor of bleach–but they want odor-free waste bins. The only way to accomplish this is to rid the cans of the odorific bacteria. Substitute hydrogen peroxide for bleach. You might need to use a whole bottle. But it’s so affordable–and effective–that you won’t even mind!
8 – Essential oil diffusers
Essential oil diffusers can harbor bacteria in the nooks and crannies. About once a month, place a few drops of peroxide in the diffuser. It will cycle through and reach the places that you cannot.
9 – A cleaner commode, minus the harsh chemicals
If you want a sanitary, clean toilet without flushing harsh chemicals into your water system or septic tank, consider using undiluted hydrogen peroxide. It works both in the bowl and on all exterior surfaces of the commode.
10 – Cleaning power for your shower
The shower is a breeding ground for germs and mildew. Use a spray bottle to apply hydrogen peroxide and a sprinkle of baking soda, saturating all surfaces. Scrub with a brush. Finish with a hot water rinse.
11 – Pretreat blood-stained laundry with hydrogen peroxide
Put the peroxide directly onto the garment and watch the bubbling action lift away the blood stain. Gently blot and retreat, if needed. Launder as usual.
12 – Pretreat yellow armpit stains before laundering
Similar to removing blood stains, you can also treat the armpits of your t-shirts in the same manner. They will come out bright and fresh.
13 – Clean your phone
Your phone goes everywhere with you, and it gets shockingly dirty. Clean it up by spraying peroxide onto a cotton round, then wipe down the screen, case, and all exterior surfaces. Do NOT apply the cleaner directly to the phone.
14 – High-touch areas like doorknobs and light switches
High-touch areas all around the home, like light switches and doorknobs, also need your attention. Spray this wonder cleaner onto a cleaning cloth and wipe these down once a week to remove germs.
Note: never spray liquid directly onto light switch plates.
15 – Toothbrushes
In between replacement toothbrushes, you accumulate bacteria in the bristles. Put your toothbrush (pointing bristles down) in a coffee cup and pour peroxide over the head. Let the foaming action work its way between the bristles. Soak for fifteen minutes, remove the brush, and rinse under hot water. Repeat for each family member’s toothbrush.
The Takeaway: Give Cleaning With Hydrogen Peroxide a Try
Cleaning with hydrogen peroxide helps money by avoiding costly commercial cleaners. Besides that, you can keep everything sanitary while being kinder to the environment. Give it a try!
She has a B.S.Ed. in Secondary Education/English and a Spanish Minor. In addition, she holds a Certificates in Natural Health and Herbology from accredited programs. She pursued these natural wellness certifications due to her love for herb gardening.
Despite freelancing to make a living, her love is "all things home."
Deborah grew up in a family that grew a large vegetable garden and a fruit orchard, helping her parents pull weeds and can home-grown foods as part of her childhood. In fact, she had no idea that she could purchase veggies and fruits in pre-packed steel cans until she went to college and made a food run.
Today, she lives in Bertie County, North Carolina, an agricultural rural area with more chickens than people. She lives with her husband and two rescue pets a sweet toy fox terrier and a cat who showed up one day and moved into the house. Together, they enjoy DIY projects, furniture refinishing, gardening, and canning.
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