The art of cleaning greenhouse with vinegar is not a hard one to master. After all, vinegar is one of those “magic” things in life: it’s totally natural, has many useful applications, and is generally safe to use.
You can also use it to keep ants out of your garden. In this article, we are going to talk about ways to clean up your greenhouse using this cheap and plentiful material.
What Type of Vinegar Should I Use?
The ideal type of vinegar you should be using is white vinegar. You should mix it up in a 1:8 ratio-that is, one-part vinegar to 8 parts water.
The good news is, this is very cheap and can be found at nearly any retailer online or in your neighborhood.
How Can I Use Vinegar to Clean A Greenhouse?
We want to be very clear that the greenhouses we are referring to in this article are domestic greenhouses that backyard gardeners are using for their own enjoyment, not commercial ones.
You can use other natural things in your vinegar cleaning mixtures that smell great and can be used on surfaces like glass as well as tile. You can also make up pastes that can be used on surfaces requiring an abrasive cleanser. Best of all, it’s natural.
To make a great paste for metal surfaces in your greenhouse, you can mix up a teaspoon of salt with a cup of vinegar. Then add a quarter-cup of flour and stir it up.
A paste will form, and you can apply the paste to the metal. Allow it to rest for 15 minutes and then rinse off using warm water. Polish that same surface using a clean rag.
Get yourself a spray bottle that is brand-new, never been used. Mix up some filtered or distilled water (if possible) and your vinegar. Shake it up and feel free to use it on counters, tiling, or any smooth surface that could use some cleanliness.
The use of this cleaning solution is a good way to get rid of dirt, sticky substances and hard water stains. So long as it is a non-porous surface, you can use vinegar and water mix to clean it.
You can also make a mix using one-part lemon juice, two parts water and one-part white vinegar using a new spray bottle. The benefit here is that you can get rid of 99% of bacteria using this mixture, which makes it ideal when sanitization is required. Use it on nonporous surfaces.
Undiluted vinegar can be used as a means of getting rid of mineral deposits if any should result from the water used in your greenhouse. Just pour in distilled white vinegar to a spray bottle, attach the nozzle and spray it onto the area that requires cleaning. Use a sponge or brush and then rinse off the vinegar with water.
If a sink, you use to keep your greenhouse going becomes clogged make use of vinegar to unclog it. Pour half a cup of baking soda into the drain. Then, pour half a cup of white vinegar down also. The fizz this creates will help break up whatever has clogged the drain. Then pour some hot water down the drain to finish the job.
Terra Cotta Pots: Clean with Vinegar
Many of us make use of terra cotta pots in our greenhouse and gardening adventures, and the use of vinegar to clean them off is cheap, easy and effective.
All you need to keep this part of your greenhouse clean is a pot brush, a utility sink or bucket, and of course white vinegar.
Begin by getting rid of excess dirt from your pots. You can simply take the pot brush and wipe off as much of the debris and dirt as possible. Do the best you can and get as much off as you possibly can.
There’s no need to be perfect about it as the following steps will handle the rest of the dirt.
Next, use some standard household vinegar. Mix one cup with 3 cups of water using your bucket or sink. Submerge those pots and allow them to soak for about 30 minutes.
After the time is up, take them out and see if the crust or dirt wipes off easily. If so, you can wipe them down and be done. Otherwise, allow them to sit longer. Use your pot brush for tough dirt stains.
If it’s really bad you can soak them in straight vinegar. Now bear in mind that the pot can absorb vinegar so if you take this route you must soak it in water after to dilute the vinegar is absorbed.
End by washing the pots using eco-friendly soap and water.
Glass and Vinegar
You can keep the glass in your greenhouse clean using vinegar, rubbing alcohol and water. Add just one drop of lemon or orange essential oil to make a nicely scented cleaner. Simply mix up a cup of rubbing alcohol, a tablespoon of white vinegar and a cup of water.
Put it all into a spray bottle and use it on the glass. You can also use it on mirrors and surfaces finished in chrome. Then, use paper towels or a microfiber towel to wipe it down.
It is very effective at polishing and cleaning glass surfaces.
Vinegar and Your Plants
One thing to keep in mind when using vinegar for cleaning greenhouse is that you should be careful around your plants. Vinegar is known for being a natural herbicide, we have used it in our backyards as a means of controlling the weeds without harming the environment.
This is thanks to the acetic acid that you find in vinegar. While it is great to get rid of those annoying weeds, caution should be used when you use this in your greenhouse.
Vinegar works because when we spray it onto the weed, the waxy layer that protects the plant from water loss is stripped off. The weed then dries out and dies. However, if this happens to a plant you care about, desiccation causes that plant to die.
Therefore, be sure all fans are turned off and make sure no wind is blowing around so that vinegar that you spray doesn’t hit the plants you want to protect.
You might keep it concentrated by aiming your spray bottle through a paper cup with the bottom removed.
Other Great Uses for Vinegar
You can keep your cats out of the greenhouse by sprinkling vinegar near the areas you don’t want them by. Cats do not like the smell.
Did your garden tools or spigots get a bit rusty? Simply place them in undiluted vinegar overnight. Rust will be gone before you know it.
You can keep ants out of your garden by spraying some vinegar around the frames of your door and windows. Place it along known ant trails to keep them away.
You can make a mix of half vinegar and half water and use it to get rid of calcium buildups on limestone or brick. Spray it on there and allow it to set.
Lastly, you can make cut flowers freshen up by adding a teaspoon of sugar plus 2 tablespoons vinegar for every quart of H2o your flowers are in.
Wrap-Up
The use of vinegar in the greenhouse is one of the cheapest and most effective ways of keeping things clean. Best of all, it’s natural and friendly to our precious earth! Get a huge quantity today and enjoy a clean and sanitary greenhouse.
Great intel! Thank you 🙂