Vinegar is a mainstay of the old folk recipes for cleaning, and with good reason. The vim of the vinegar is that it kills bacteria, mold and germs.

SIMPLE SOLUTION: Heinz company spokesperson Michael Mullen references numerous studies to show that a straight 5 percent solution of vinegar—thekind you can buy in the supermarket—kills 99 percent of bacteria, 82 percent of mold, and 80 percent of germs (viruses). He noted that Heinz can't claim on their packaging that vinegar is a disinfectant since the company has not registered it as a pesticide with the Environmental Protection Agency. However, it seems to be common knowledge in the industry that vinegar is powerfully antibacterial. Even the CBS news show "48 Hours" had a special years ago with Heloise reporting on tests from The Good Housekeeping Institute that showed this.
Just like antibiotics, common disinfectants found in sponges and household sprays may contribute to drug resistant bacteria, according to researchers of drug resistance at Tufts New England Medical Center. Furthermore, research at the Government Accounting Office shows that many commercial disinfectants are ineffective to begin with, just like antibiotics.

Keep a clean spray bottle filled with straight 5 percent vinegar in your kitchen near your cutting board, and in your bathroom, and use them for cleaning. I often spray the vinegar on our cutting board before going to bed at night, and don't even rinse, but let it set overnight. The smell of vinegar dissipates within a few hours. Straight vinegar is also great for cleaning the toilet rim. Just spray it on and wipe off

Vinegar Kills Bacteria, Mold and Germs :: Green Living at Care2

I used to hate cleaning because of all the chemical smells, till I came to Mommysavers and found VINGEAR. So thanks. I love it and use it for everything.

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I just think that is funny because vinegar stinks, lol. But you are right! The smell goes away and it's much better than breathing in chemicals. I am the vinegar queen!

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I'm still trying to convince one of my good friends that she can disinfect with vinegar instead of bleach. She uses bleach for everything and complains about her sinus trouble afterwards.

Thanks for the article

Thank You!! I Personally Love the Smell of Vinegar - and I Was Mixing it with Water ,
Now this Is Great - I Will Use it Straight to Clean the Bathroom Sinks and Toilet Seats.


I Wasn't using it as Much since I Didn' t think it was a Disinfectant.

What does it mean by "straight 5% vinegar"?

Is that what the vinegar says on the bottle, or do I mix it with water? I'm thinking I don't mix it since it says "straight" but I don't know what 5% means.

I know this because I can!

If you look on your bottle of vinegar you will see somethink like "Diluted with Water to 5% Acidity" I think most vinegars are like that. I just remember looking for this when I was canning this past summer and didn't have any lemon juice on me.

: I used to use vinegar and then I watched an episode of Montel about 2 weeks ago where a microbiologist was on, and she stated that the only thing that kills bacteria (and disinfects) such as MRSA and staph is bleach. A small amount will do (1/2 c per gallon) However I do hate the smell of bleach, but if it works who can argue. I'v also noticed that on the bottle it states something about evaporation?? and Montel had stated something to the effect that it was enviornmentally friendly (too some extent) I'm so confused with all these conflicting reports. I just want to keep harmful bacteria at bay, especially since we have had schools with reports of HS students with MRSA and staph infections hospitalized. I welcome any info anyone may have.

The microbiologist is right. While a lot of bacteria can't stand up to even a weak acid like vinegar (use straight, DO NOT dilute it with water), most of the germs (including viruses) and other pathogens (such as parasites and parasite eggs) can only be 'disinfected' by a strong base (the opposite of acid). The best disinfectant we can get as consumers is bleach - diluted to a 10% solution and diluted FRESH before each use. Vinegar IS NOT a substitute for bleach. When you really have to kill germs, bleach is the clear winner.

Second is ammonia.

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About a year ago, I read about using Vinegar in combination with Hydrogen Peroxide as a household disinfectant. Skeptical, I did a lot of research online . . . enough to think it was worth a try. The combination is supposed to be more effective than bleach.

I have one spray bottle with vinegar and one with hydrogen peroxide in my kitchen. Both are very affordable when purchased in bulk, and they work well. I even spray some produce with them to reduce the effects of pesticides (rinse with water).

If you do a Google search for "vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, disinfectant," you can read up and decide for yourself.

Here's one helpful link: Potent Peroxide

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