TikTokers are turning orange peels into a non-toxic cleaning spray, and this hack has an expert's seal of approval
- TikTok user Marta Tarallo shared how she makes a non-toxic cleaning solution.
- The solution requires only three ingredients: orange peels, vinegar, and water.
- Melissa Maker, a cleaning expert and founder of Clean My Space, approves of this hack.
TikTok is loving an eco-friendly cleaning hack that turns leftover orange peels into a non-toxic cleaning solution, and a cleaning expert gave the trick her stamp of approval.
Beauty and zero-waste blogger Marta Tarallo broke down the steps to creating the solution in a TikTok video that has been viewed over 400,000 times at the time of writing.
Tarallo starts by placing the orange peels in a mason jar, instructing viewers to let the peels infuse with the vinegar in the container for about three weeks.
She then uses a funnel to filter the peels out and recommends that her viewers compost the fruit scraps. Next, she adds water to the jar containing the orange-infused vinegar and puts the solution to work, showing how she uses it to easily wipe down a kitchen counter.
Since Tarallo originally posted the video in May, other TikTok users have also shared their take on making and trying out the easy non-toxic orange-and-vinegar cleaning solution.
It's also cost effective, since a little of the orange-vinegar mix goes a long way. Tarallo told Insider that she makes her solution "once every couple of months."
A cleaning expert says the recipe is effective and can be adjusted to use other fruit peels instead
Melissa Maker, founder of Clean My Space, told Insider that you can easily switch the recipe up to include peels from other citrus fruits you happen to have on hand instead, like lemon, grapefruit, or tangerine. And you can even swap out the vinegar if you don't have any.
"You can also mix dish soap (1 teaspoon) and water (2 cups) and use that in place of vinegar with the peels," she added.
Maker said that this recipe is an effective cleaning agent because "infusing vinegar with orange peels helps not only to make the vinegar smell nice but also boosts its cleaning power since the vinegar will absorb some oils from the orange peel."
Maker echoed Tarallo who told Insider that, in her experience, the fruit always helps the vinegar smell less pungent.
"Trust me when I say the vinegar will seriously smell like the fruit you picked!" she said. She fills her jar up "with the peels of about 3-4 citrus fruits."
Non-toxic cleaning hacks are very popular on TikTok
Professional cleaners frequently share non-toxic, eco-friendly kitchen cleaning hacks on the social-media platform.
In October, Allison Nelson, a Denver-based professional cleaner, shared a two-step hack to clean your microwave using water and an optional disinfectant.
Another TikToker, Kacie Stephens, the owner of Sydney-based cleaning service The Big Clean Co, shared a chemical-free way to clean a greasy oven door in December. All it took was a little bit of baking soda and a lot of elbow grease.