Enzymatic cleaners are a great option to remove stains and odors. Rather than buying an enzymatic cleaning solution at the store, you can make your natural carpet cleaner at home. We’ll explain everything you need to know about enzyme cleaners and teach you how to make them with simple ingredients.
What is an Enzyme?
According to Live Science, enzymes are proteins or other biological molecules that speed up chemical reaction rates. In the human body, enzymes help with metabolic and digestive functions.
Certain enzymes break larger molecules into smaller fragments, while other enzymes bind molecules together. Enzymes are a catalyst, which means they help speed up scientific reactions.
What Makes a Cleaner Enzymatic?
An enzymatic cleaner contains specific proteins, bacteria, and other nutrients that can break up complex molecules into small pieces. Compared to traditional cleaning solutions, an enzyme based cleaner is safe for people and the environment. They don’t contain toxic chemicals that can cause damage to the user. These cleaners are also biodegradable making them safe for any area of your home.
How Do Enzymatic Cleaners Work?
Substances like fat, oil, starches, and protein will remain in your home if you just wipe them away with a towel or less effective cleaning substance. However, if you use an enzymatic cleanser, those substances will break down into other elements such as hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon. By breaking down the molecules of the mess, the stain and odors are removed as well.
What Kind of Cleaning Tasks are Enzymatic Cleaners Good For?
Now that you understand what an enzymatic cleaner is, we’ll explain what you can use one for. They are great for a variety of different tasks that you might come across on a daily basis in your home.
Odor Removal
Nobody wants odors in their home. You can use an enzyme cleaning solution to remove odors from pet stains, food, and bathroom odors. Keep your house clean and smelling fresh for when guests arrive.
Enzymes break down the molecules associated with the root of the odor source. For example, if your dog soiled the carpet, the enzymes break down the urine and effectively remove the stain. Once the stain is removed, and the urine gets cleaned up, the odor is gone as well.
Enzymes help eliminate odor causing bacteria. They work on both hard and soft surfaces to get rid of nasty and offensive smells in your home.
Laundry
If you spilled something on yourself while you were drinking or eating, you could use an enzyme solution to clean up the mess. These cleaning substances work great on stains that based from fats or oils, so you won’t have to worry about your favorite shirt getting ruined if you miss your mouth while eating dinner.
Before you put your clothes in the washing machine for the regular wash cycle, soak the stains overnight in an enzyme solution. Enzymes will break up the molecules on the fabric, so they wash out easily in the washing machine. You can even try this on tough stains like grease, coffee, and chocolate as an effective method of cleaning your clothes.
Kitchen Cleaning
What do you use to clean your kitchen now? Do you use bleach? According to the Beyond Toxics Organization, bleach can irritate your eyes, mouth, lungs, and skin. It’s strong enough to burn internal and external human tissue. The production of bleach produces a chemical called dioxin, which is harmful and damaging to the environment. It’s also extremely reactive, making it hazardous and toxic when it mixes with other chemicals.
Instead of using bleach, an enzymatic cleaner is a safe and effective alternative to cleaning up messes in your kitchen. You can use these cleaners on your kitchen countertops, kitchen sink, and kitchen floors to remove stains and eliminate odors.
Stain Removal
If you have stains in your home caused by sweat, urine, blood, grass, or other biological materials, a homemade carpet cleaner is a great solution. If your pets had an accident inside the house, you could use your carpet shampoo recipe or DIY carpet stain remover to get rid of that nasty stain.
In addition to cleaning carpets, you can use the homemade carpet stain remover on other surfaces such as upholstery and hard floors. They won’t damage your couch cushions or wood floors if you’re trying to remove a stain.
How to Make Your Own Enzymatic Cleaner
Are you ready to make your enzyme carpet cleaner? You can cheaply and effectively make an enzyme cleaning solution at home. We’ll explain all of the necessary steps that you need to know for creating a DIY carpet cleaner.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The first thing that you’ll need to do is gather the materials. All of the ingredients are cheap. You might even have most of these in your home already. If not, it’s easy to find these at a local grocery store at an inexpensive price.
For a simple solution, gather a half-cup of brown sugar or white sugar. You’ll also need one teaspoon of yeast and two cups of fresh citrus peel. The final ingredient is water. 4 ¼ cups of lukewarm water work best with the measurements of the other ingredients.
You can use lemons, limes, grapefruits, and oranges as your source for fresh citrus peels. Choose one, or a combination of a few of these fruits based on what’s readily available in your home. Rinse the peels with water and scrub away any dirt or impurities, and then pat the peels dry with a clean towel.
Next, shop the peels from your lemons or limes into cubes that are a half-inch wide. Make sure they are small enough to fit inside the top of a soda bottle. It’s important that you do not use any citrus peels that are rotting or dried out. Rotten peels will add mold to your solution, and dried peels don’t have enough citrus oils.
If you want to make a larger batch of an enzyme cleaning solution, simply scale the ingredients accordingly.
Combine Your Ingredients
Get an empty 2-liter soda bottle and clean it thoroughly. Make sure you use a soda bottle. These bottles are made from materials that are meant to store liquids that are under pressure. Next, insert a funnel into the top of the bottle, so it’s easier for you to add your ingredients without spilling or making a mess.
Add all of the citrus peels to the bottle first. Once all the peels are in you can add the sugar, yeast, and water. Get rid of the funnel and screw the cap back on tight. Once the cap is secure, spend the next several minutes vigorously shaking the bottle. Do this until all of the sugar has dissolved.
Vent the Mixture Daily
For the next two weeks, you’ll need to vent the gas several times each day. Unscrew the cap three times throughout the day in the morning, afternoon, and evening. Taking the cap off vents pressure that’s built up inside the bottle from the gas.
After two weeks, continue venting the bottle. However, you won’t need to do this three times per day. By now most of the sugar has been converted, so there’s not as much carbon dioxide production. Venting the bottle once per day is efficient.
Allow it to Ferment
You want the yeast to ferment. The ideal temperature for this to happen is at 95 degrees Fahrenheit, or 35 degrees Celsius. Find a warm spot in your home to place he bottle for at least two weeks. If you want a stronger solution, let it ferment for up to three months.
Shake Daily
If you don’t shake the bottle, the solid ingredients will sink to the bottom. To prevent this, shake the bottle every day during the fermentation process. You don’t need to shake it as vigorously as you did on the first day. Just do it enough to stir up the contents. After you shake the bottle, vent the gas by unscrewing the cap.
Strain and Bottle the Cleaner
Once you have determined the fermentation process is over, pour the solution into a bowl using a strainer to remove all of the solids. You can throw away the citrus peels. Next, you’ll need to transfer the solution into an airtight container. The enzyme mixture will lose its potency if it’s exposed to oxygen.
Using Your Enzymatic Cleaner
Keep your enzymatic cleaner in a spray bottle for optimal storage. For delicate jobs, such cleaning cars or floors, mix one part of the cleaner with 20 parts of water. For an all-purpose cleaner such as kitchens and mirrors, mix ½ cup of enzyme cleaner with 4 ¼ cups of water.
To make the cleaner even stronger, use four parts of the enzyme solution mixed with one part of apple cider vinegar. For the toughest stains, don’t dilute the cleaner. Use the undiluted enzyme cleaner for built up grease on appliances.