Ingredients

1 X litre jar

Enough orange peels to completely cram into the jars

White vinegar (never use cider vinegar in cleaners as it attracts fruit flies)

Method

Curl the peel around inside the jar. (I used 8 large oranges and couldn’t fit any more but if your oranges are smaller you will need more peels)

Pour the vinegar into the jars to completely cover and close tightly

Store the jar in a cupboard or other cool, dark place for 2-4 weeks then remove the peels and transfer the vinegar to a spray bottle or another storage bottle.

For basic cleaning purposes I dilute the vinegar with water by 50%

Other

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When making anything with vinegar do not use metal lids or aluminium bowls, pots, etc

It doesn’t matter what size jar you use as long as it has a tight fitting lid and the peels are crammed in full.

Also I use lemon, grapefruit mandarin or lime peels, they work just as well. I also occasionally add cinnamon, lavender, rosemary or cloves for a different smell and the lavender, rosemary and cloves are also antimicrobial, the lavender and rosemary are antifungal as well.

With the lavender, rosemary or cloves added it makes a great final rinse on the washing machine and kills mould spores like you would get on wet towels or socks.

I’ve used this on all types of cleaning surfaces all my life (recipe was great grandmas). It’s been used on wood, granite, paintwork, glass, bathrooms and kitchen surfaces without a problem. Although I have heard people say not to use it on granite, I have never had a problem, Maybe because I dilute it 50/50 before using.

Use as a final hair rinse for soft shiny fragrant hair. Can also be used to spritz your dog’s fur after washing, the vinegar smell dissipates and leaves the fur, nice smelling, soft and shiny.

Using the seeds – For cleaning wood that is prone to mould Gran used to pulverize the grapefruit seeds up, soak them in a cup of water then spray and let dry onto the surface. She used it in the chook sheds in winter when things didn’t dry out quickly to keep out mould and also on wooden food chopping boards. Apparently you can add 10 drops of bought grapeseed oil to water for the same effect – just costs heaps more to buy than extracting your own from the grapefruit pips J
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