Antibacterial soaps. Caustic floor cleaners. Toxic cleaners. Chemical disinfectants. Most Americans use household cleaning products loaded with chemicals that would be quite at home in a hazardous waste dumpsite.

Many commercial products include ammonia, formaldehyde, hydrochloric acid, lye, paradichlorobenzenes, butyl cellosolve, ethanol, or triclosan. All have been linked to health problems, including skin conditions, irritation, reproductive problems, and even cancer.

But Melissa K. Norris, a consumer-health advocate from the Pacific Northwest, says natural alternatives made from non-toxic ingredients offer a safer, less costly but equally effective alternative.

What’s more, you can make your own from readily available natural materials you probably have around the house.

In her new book, “The Made From Scratch Life,” Norris provides simple recipes for such products that are easier to make than you might think.

“Many of today’s cleaning products, from what we use to clean our homes to our bodies, contain dangerous chemicals,” she tells Newsmax Health. “We shouldn’t have to worry about what we’re using to clean things as much as the items we’re cleaning.”

Norris notes that two natural ingredients most of us have can be used to clean just about every surface of our homes: Vinegar and baking soda.

“These two have become a staple in my home and cleaning closet,” she says. “For cleaning, I usually use white vinegar, but I always have raw apple cider vinegar on hand for cooking and health reasons. Whichever you happen to have can be used.”

Using these and other common household staples, Norris has devised the following recipes for made-from-scratch cleaners that can be used in place of toxic chemical products.

All-purpose citrus cleanser. Ditch your commercial home cleanser and make your own with a combination of citrus peels (four to five) and three cups of white vinegar.

• Place your lemon or orange peels in a quart-size jar.
• Pour white vinegar over the peels until they are completely submerged.
• Cover with a lid and set in a dark cupboard for two weeks, shake the jar every few days.
• Pour the vinegar through a strainer or cheesecloth.
• Dilute with two parts water to one part lemon vinegar.

“Use [this] on windows, countertops, mirrors, and as a general multipurpose cleaner,” Norris says. “You can use any citrus fruit or add some herbs for your own unique custom blend. If you don’t have any citrus peels, you can add ten drops of your favorite lemon or orange essential oil.

Window cleaner. To make an effective solution to clean windows, fill a spray bottle a quarter of the way with vinegar, and then top it off with water. “I’ve used this cleaner with paper towels and washable rags, and it cleans my sliding glass door, the mirrors, and all the windows without a single streak,” Norris says.

Laundry detergent. Instead of using chlorine bleach, try adding ¼ cup of vinegar to your laundry to keep your whites clean. “It will kill odor-causing bacteria and clean your washing machine with no discoloring,” Norris notes. “I toss mine into the liquid softener dispenser.

Floor, carpet cleaner. For an effective way to keep your floors and carpets clean, add a cup or so of vinegar to a bucket or sink full of water — no soap. Use the solution to mop your hardwood, laminate, tile, or linoleum floor or spot-clean carpets with a rag. “If you have little ones or pets, you won’t have to worry about harsh chemicals where they play,” Norris says.

Drain de-clogger. Vinegar is good way to unclog drains. Pour ⅛ to ¼ cup of baking soda down your drain, follow it with a chaser of vinegar, and let it sit for 10-15 minutes, before finally pouring in a cup of boiling water. “For an especially clogged drain, repeat,” Norris advises. “I do this every other month or so to keep pipes clear.”

Dishwashing solution. If you have baked-on food stuck on your pots, pans, and dishes, liberally sprinkle on baking soda and scrub it away, rinsing with water. “I’ve found this works best with a dry pan and no added water,” Norris says.

Oven degreaser. To clean your oven of grease stains, liberally sprinkle baking soda on them and scrub with a dry rag. The dry baking soda absorbs the grease, and the grit lifts it off. “This method works extremely well and requires a small amount of elbow grease,” Norris notes. “Especially soiled spots may need another dousing of baking soda.”

Bathroom cleanser. Baking soda is an effective alternative to chemical cleansers for showers, bathtubs, sinks, and toilets. For faucets, dampen a towel in vinegar, wrap it around the faucet and handles, and let it sit for a half hour before wiping clean to remove hard-water stains and gunk. For a toilet seat, handle, and base, use with the homemade all-purpose citrus cleaner and wipe clean.

In devising the recipes, Norris says she did some historical research into cleaning products used by American pioneers in the days before industrial chemicals became commonplace.

“The pioneers didn’t have aisles of cleaning and personal care products to choose from. They used simple ingredients to meet all of their cleaning needs,” she explains.

“I began looking into natural cleaners. I knew my great-great grandparents hadn’t browsed the aisles at the general store for their favorite brand of cleaner. What had they used?”