DIY Natural Sink Scrub Recipe

This all natural DIY Sink Scrub is easy and inexpensive to make and creates a great sink cleaner and refresher!  It’s also great to put down the disposal. The ingredients are baking soda (a natural deodorizer and cleaner), powdered citric acid (superstar ingredient and powerful cleaning agent), and essential oil (for fresh clean scent!). I think this is a fun gift for the holidays or a house warming. I personally really appreciate something that’s consumable (meaning it will get used up) but not another treat, since we have so many of those around the holidays! Pair it with a cute sponge or dish brush and use my free printable for a label!  To Use: I make this year-round and keep under my sink. I sprinkle some in almost every time I finish doing the dishes, and at the end of the night before bed. It leaves things clean and smelling so fresh! I especially love using peppermint oil during the holidays, but lemon is also great year-round. I’ve included tags for both at the end of this post.

Need more non-food neighbor gifts? My other favorite neighbor gift are these Holiday Simmer Pots. Need more easy holiday gift ideas? Check out my inexpensive ebook, Gifts from the Kitchen, by clicking here!

Ingredients and Special Equipment

• Baking Soda – This acts not only as a great cleaning agent and deodorizer, but also an inexpensive base. I buy this in large quantities on Amazon!
  
• Citric Acid – This powerhouse ingredient has endless uses from cooking and preserving to beauty and cleaning! I buy mine on Amazon. It’s a natural de-greaser, cleaner, and refresher.
  
• Essential Oil – For Christmas time I love using peppermint oil in this scrub, it makes everything smell so fresh! During the spring and summer I usually use a citrus oil; lemon is my favorite for that fresh clean smell. Make sure you are using essential OIL, and not baking extract.
  
• Container– I keep this in either a glass jar under my sink, or one of these push-top style containers, and have for years. Someone commented that mixtures containing baking soda and citric acid can react and cause glass to break/explode if the mixture is introduced to moisture, which is good to know! I’ve never had that issue but I thought it was worth noting here to be aware. If you live in a particularly humid climate, or are worried about your ability to keep the mixture dry, it might be better to put in a breathable container, or plastic.
  
• Latex/nitrile gloves – gloves are helpful in order to mix the mixture by hand to remove lumps.
  
• For gifting– jars/container, ribbon, and my printable tags. At the end of this article, I have several options for tags available if you’d like to use a scent different than peppermint. It’s also really cute to include a sponge or Scrub Daddy!

Instructions

When I say this is simple to make, I mean it. We’re talking 2 minutes tops! Just mix 3 ingredients in a bowl and you’re ready to go. Easy to make as little or as much of this DIY Sink Scrub that you want using a ratio of 1 part citric acid to 3 parts baking soda, and a few drops of essential oil to make it smell nice.

1. Combine baking soda and essential oil in a mixing bowl. Use a whisk to combine well. I like to use a latex glove to mix the mixture by hand and make sure the oil gets well distributed.
   
2. Add citric acid and stir to evenly distribute.
   
3. Transfer mixture to jars.
   
4. To use, wet down sink, sprinkle in a few spoonfuls of scrub powder and use a sponge or dish brush to clean sink. Rinse clean with water. For a garbage disposal refresher, run water down the drain and then immediately add a few spoonfuls of sink scrub. Do not rinse. I like to just let it sit in there and do its thing!

Gifting Peppermint Sink Scrub

This all natural sink cleaner makes a great gift for the holidays or a house warming! I like to package it in a cute jar with ribbon and a little sponge. I’ve created these printable labels you can easily download and print off on cardstock. Just cut to desired shape (I like to clip the corners for a traditional tag shape) and tie on. I’ve left room at the bottom to sign your name!

I’m a fan of Scrub Daddy sponges, and the pink Scrub Mommy sponge looks really cute with the peppermint theme, and if you’re lucky you might be able to find the limited edition Snowflake Version! I found these at Target. Another add-in would be these little holders, I use these and love them!

Super easy and Super useful! If you make some, let me know what you think!

I’m adding a couple other options for labels as well. This link below has labels without the “Peppermint” on it in case you want to use any other scent of your choosing.

And below you’ll find a label for Citrus since lemon is a favorite of mine, as well as any other citrus oil! I hope these are helpful!

DIY Natural Sink Scrub Recipe

5 from 9 votes

This all natural mixture is easy to make and creates a great sink cleaner and refresher!  I use this nightly after the kitchen is clean for the night.  It leaves things smelling really clean and fresh.  It's also great to put down the disposal. 

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

ServingsServings1 cup of scrub

Print Rate SaveSaved!

Ingredients

• Multiply quantities to make desired amount. As written this recipe makes about 1 cup of cleaner. To make a large amount, just follow the same ratio of 3 parts baking soda to one part citric acid.
• 3/4 cup baking soda
• 1/4 cup powdered citric acid
• a few drops essential oil

Instructions

• Make sure your mixing bowl and jars are completely dry. 
• In a mixing bowl, combine baking soda and essential oil and whisk together.  Use a latex glove and really mix well with hands to combine well. Add citric acid and mix to evenly distribute.
• Transfer mixture to container.
• To use: wet down sink and sprinkle in a few spoonfuls of powdered mixture.  Use a wet sponge to scrub sink clean and then rinse clean with water. I also like to drop a few spoonfuls of powdered scrub into the garbage disposal for a refresher!

Notes

NOTE:  I have always stored this in a glass jar, but I heard from some people that if any moisture gets into the jar it can cause the baking soda and citric acid to react with each other and potentially explode your jar, which is why many sources recommend not storing mixtures with baking soda and citric acid in glass.  I've used glass jars for this and never had this issue- you'll obviously want to keep it dry. Just be aware!   If you prefer, a cellophane bag with a ribbon or twist tie would be a good option, you can also get shaker jar lids on amazon which is a great solution since the small holes allow the mixture to breath and also makes it easy to sprinkle in the sink! I love these inexpensive daisy toppers which simply replace the "ring" portion of the jar.

Keyword: DIY All Natural Sink Cleaner

Author: Sara Wells

Did You Make This Recipe?Snap a picture, and hashtag it #ourbestbites. We love to see your creations on our Instagram @ourbestbites!