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Written by Meredith Davis
Raise your hand if you enjoy drinking a warm cup of tea in the afternoon.
It doesn’t just make us warm and cozy; it also has health benefits. It has disease-fighting properties, among others. But there’s more to tea than that. It can be used in a variety of ways, such as adding to bathwater. But did you know that you can also use it for household cleaning and deodorizing purposes?
If you have a surplus of tea in the house, using it as a home deodorant is an excellent way to consume your excess supplies. Plus, it is good for the environment. Here are some good reasons you should consider using tea as a cleaning aid and deodorizer.
It’s a Natural Cleaner
There are many uses for tea in terms of cleaning. For people who prefer DIY cleaners, tea is an excellent alternative option that you can use for various materials. Not only is it all-natural, but it’s not that expensive either. You can easily make a tea-based cleaning solution at home with minimal additional costs.
There are too many commercial cleaning products containing harmful chemicals. So much so that they can compromise the well-being of everyone in your home, including your pets. Do not expect that those will be good for the environment, either.
So if you’re concerned about what your cleaners can do for the environment, consider using alternatives. Tea is a natural cleaner. Hence, it can help you with your cleaning duties without harming the environment. It is a simple change to your usual cleaning habits at home that will not cost you more than your regular cleaning routine and has less adverse environmental impact.
It Neutralizes Foul Odors
At Planet Maids Home Cleaning Services in NYC, we know that tea is also a natural deodorizer, meaning it can help eliminate unwanted smells or odors. So while you’re using tea to clean something, you can take advantage of the fact that it also helps neutralize any foul odors on whatever it is.
Some examples of places in the house that you can use tea to clean and neutralize foul odors would be the refrigerator and microwave. All you need to do is steep green tea leaves in boiling water. Let it cool for a bit, add additional cool water, and then use that tea water to clean your refrigerator and microwave.
You can also use dried or steeped tea leaves to help neutralize foul odors coming from your smelly carpet. One note before using steeped tea leaves: Let them dry completely as the tea can stain the carpet if it’s too wet. Once you have your dried tea leaves in order, sprinkle them all over the rug. Let the tea leaves sit there for about an hour before vacuuming the leaves away.
It Has a High Level of Astringency
Black tea is especially great at cleaning things because it is astringent due to the tannic acid. However, unlike vinegar that can be entirely stripping, black tea’s acidity levels are much milder. Hence, they won’t be as harsh as vinegar. Although it’s not as stripping, you can still use black tea’s astringency to help cut through greasy and dusty areas.
It Makes Your Floor Clean and Shiny
One excellent way to use tea as a natural cleaner is by using it on your hardwood floors. Black tea, in particular, will be great for this purpose.
Boil a whole pot of water and add about six tea bags into that water. After it boils, wait for twenty minutes or so to let the tea steep in the water. You can use that solution with your mop to clean your hardwood floors. Make sure to add cool water into the solution as needed. You can take this time while waiting for the tea to steep for sweeping the floors and getting rid of dust or pet hair. Once you turn off the tea-water solution, you can add it to your mop bucket. Don’t forget to wring your mop before mopping the floor as well. Let the floor dry after you’ve finished cleaning the area.
You can also use this cleaning solution by putting it in a spray bottle and rubbing your hardwood floors in a circular motion with a rag. You can do this for some precise cleaning for areas that might require more attention.
You’ll find your hardwood floors looking shiny and bright as well as clean after that tea water mopping that you did. It also helps deodorize the floors.
It Retains its Aroma
We’ve talked about how tea can help eliminate or neutralize any foul odor sticking around whatever you clean. Tea can also help add a pleasant aroma to whatever you’re cleaning.
If you use tea bags with flavors like mint or lemon, they can also leave behind the scent of these flavorings, which helps add that pleasant aroma. You can even use any used herbal tea bags you have, even if they’ve run out of flavor. Just dry these tea bags, put them in a small porous bag, and place it in your cupboards or any place that needs a freshener.
Conclusion
- Tea is more than just a pleasant drink. You can also add it to your cleaning repertoire.
- Using tea is less acidic to use than vinegar. Yet it still provides a powerful cleaning and deodorizing effect.
- Consider finding ways you can use tea if you want to reduce your reliance on harmful and chemical-laden cleaning products. As a result, you are also reducing the negative impact you bring to the planet.
Do you know any other ways to use tea as a cleaner or deodorizer? Let us know in the comments!
