I’ll be the first to admit that I have a bit of a disinfecting wipe addiction. They are JUST SO VERSATILE! What’s not to love? You can use them on toilet seats, countertops, floors, trash cans, walls—they are the Swiss army knife of cleaning supplies. Over the years, I have tried a plethora of brands: Clorox, Method, Lysol, Seventh Generation. My hands down favorite is the Seventh Generation. I love that not only are they natural and non-toxic, but that they also hold up really well. I regularly buy these in bulk using Amazon’s subscribe and save program and give a 6-pack of these to my daughters’ teachers several times throughout the year.

Costly Obsession

That said, I was somewhat appalled to see that apparently I’ve bought these 37 times. That’s a lot of waste for the landfill as well as costing me A LOT of money. Currently, a 6-pack on Amazon costs $32.40. Even with a 15% discount for the subscribe and save program, that is $27.54. So…that means that I have spent $1,018.98 on disinfecting wipes. I guess addictions get costly pretty quickly.

Nothing Fits the Bill

Several months ago, in an effort to generate less trash and to save some of our hard-earned money, I decided to start making my own reusable disinfecting wipes. I scoured the internet for recipes and found a lot of great recipes out there, but nothing quite did the trick. I wanted something that didn’t use rubbing alcohol (most did) because I thought it would be too drying for my skin. The wipes needed to be thin and hardy like the disposables. (I didn’t want terry-cloth or microfiber material because I figured it would be harder to rinse out the gunk). They also had to be super absorbent. And the recipe needed to be simple and easy to make or I would likely go back to my old habits of using disposables. Above all, it needed to be natural and non-toxic. When I couldn’t find any recipes that fit the bill, I came up with my own.

DIY All Natural Reusable Disinfecting Wipes

Easy to make reusable disinfecting wipes that are natural and won't break the bank.

Prep Time5 mins

Total Time5 mins

Equipment

large glass jar with lid to hold wipes, must have an opening large enough for your hand

Materials

36 Clorox Handi Wipes (Clorox Handi Wipes come in a package of 72, I use 36 per recipe so that I always have more on hand while these are in the wash)
1 tsp Soap Nut Extract, Dish Detergent, or Castille Soap (you can buy soap nut extract on Amazon or make your own from boiling soap nuts)
1/2 tsp Tea Tree Oil
10 drops Thieve's Essential Oil Blend or Now Nature's Shield
1 cup Hydrogen Peroxide
1 cup water

Instructions

layer the dry wipes in the large jar, one at a time (this makes it easier to remove each one when using it)
mix soap, essential oils, hydrogen peroxide and water together
pour mixture over the wipes
(you may need to squeeze the wipes to ensure all are coated)

Notes

These wipes are easy to use. When I’m done with them, I just throw them in the hamper and wash them with other rags and cleaning cloths.

One thing to note, these definitely have a distinctive smell due to the essential oils. I use tea tree oil around the house all the time, so I’m used to that odor. However, at times I find the Thieves blend can be a bit overwhelming. When that happens, I just skip the Thieves blend and use only the tea tree oil.

Interested in saving even more money by using homemade soapnut extract for this recipe? See my post on soapnuts for details.

I make these wipes about twice a week. If I had to take a guess, I’d say I’ve washed each of these wipes at least 20 times in the washing machine over the course of the last several months. They are definitely wearing out a bit, some even have a few holes in them. But for the most part, they are still going strong! I’m pretty sure a pack of 72 reusable wipes, which cost about $13, will last me an entire year. Obviously, there are costs associated with the essential oils and soapnuts and hydrogen peroxide (even water isn’t necessarily free, per se), but, a little goes a long way, and a bottle of each of these (other than the hydrogen peroxide) should last you close to a year. So, you will save tons of money by making your own disinfecting wipes! Happy cleaning!