Do you love using Thieves Cleaner but are tired of spending so much money for it? Are you looking for a safe and affordable way to rid your home of toxic cleaning products? Whatever brought you here, you are in luck because I have created a recipe that works just as well as the popular essential oil blend cleaner by Young Living but at a fraction of the price. My Thieves cleaner recipe contains affordable ingredients and can be made in a matter of minutes!
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Many of you know I’m not a big fan of Young Living. However, they are the first essential oil company I used and I don’t dispute the quality of their essential oils or products.
Way back then I remember being told that a little bottle of Thieves oil blend literally had 10,001 uses including changing the oil in my car. Just kidding but that’s the enthusiasm I experienced around this blend. I was sold hook, line and sinker on essential oils, broke the bank to buy several oils including a bottle of Thieves Household Cleaner. This was many moons ago but I do remember loving using it to clean basically everything. Not only did it smell good, it worked.
Since then I didn’t continue buying the cleaner and resorted to cleaning most everything with vinegar. Lately I have grown very tired of the smell of vinegar and bought THESE concentrates from Plant therapy which I love but again, not trying to break the bank on cleaning supplies and if I can DIY it, I’m definitely going to.
Turns out, like with many other household products, making my own DIY Thieves cleaner is easy. In fact, this was one of those DIYs where I could kick myself for not making it sooner! Forget paying $30+ dollars when you can so easily make it yourself!
Please note that the original Thieves cleaner is a cleaner concentrate meaning you add a capful into your spray bottle and top with water. My recipe is not a concentrate and should be used as a multi purpose spray.
What’s So Special About Thieves Essential Oil Blend?
The Thieves blend is a blend of clove, cinnamon oil, eucalyptus radiata, lemon oil and rosemary oil. This blend has potent antibacterial properties and was discovered in the 15th century by a group of thieves who wanted to rob the dead bodies of the Bubonic Plague. They found that if they applied this blend of essential oils, they could rob the bodies without getting the plague themselves.
Luckily the great antimicrobial benefits of this blend was preserved through the centuries and today essential oil users use the blend to protect during flu season, improve the immune system, kill airborne pathogens by diffusing, relieve a sore throat and relieve the respiratory system during illness.
There are many studies showing that each individual essential oil in the Thieves blend has an effect on respiratory health, the immune system and major antimicrobial benefits. This 2018 study showed that clove and cinnamon in particular have an effect on Lyme disease.
Most essential oil companies offer this blend. However, Young Living is the only brand that coined the name, Thieves. DoTerra has On Guard, Plant Therapy has Germ Fighter, Mountain Rose Herbs has Shield and Eden’s Garden has Fighting Five just to name a few.
But What’s The Problem with Store-Bought Cleaners?
Glad you asked….Multipurpose cleaners that you find in the grocery store often contain toxic ingredients such as bleach/ammonia, formaldehyde, fragrances, phthalates etc. These toxic chemicals are known carcinogens and neurotoxins and often are endocrine disruptors.
Speaking of bleach, did you catch my post on 25 amazing uses of Hydrogen Peroxide?
What Can You Clean W/ My DIY Thieves Cleaner?
- Any hard surface except wood
- Stainless Steel
- Toilets
- Sinks
- Showers/Baths
- Door Knobs
- Stoves
- Microwaves
- Walls
- Inside the car
- Tile/concrete/vinyl
I’m not adding mirrors or glass because of the castille soap. Even 1/2 tsp. of soap can cause a small amount of streaking. It’s not enough streaking to bother me however and I would recommend you try it yourself. Honestly, you would have to be very picky for it to be bothersome.
This cleaner is used to clean literally every surface in my home except my piano and wood floors. I would not advise using it on wood because the cleaner could strip away the finish. If you’re tempted to use it on wood or any questionable surface I haven’t mentioned, be sure to perform a patch test first.
What You’ll Need:
Materials
- 1/3 cup Rubbing Alcohol
- Top off w/ Distilled Water
- 1/2 tsp. Castile Soap
- 60 drops Germ Fighter Blend (Thieves Oil)
Tools
- 16 ounce glass spray bottle
- Funnel
Instructions
- Add alcohol, castile soap and essential oils to a glass spray bottle and top off with distilled water.
- Shake thoroughly!
- The Castile soap and alcohol act as an emulsifier but you might still need to shake before each use.
Notes
- There are many recipes for Thieves homemade cleaners that call for 1 tbsp. or more of castille soap. While experimenting I tried this and found I couldn’t use it on anything due to the obvious streaks it left on everything.
- I love the de-greasing action of a soap in this multipurpose cleaner but it is worthless at least to me, if it shows streaks on everything I clean.
- I also have noticed many Thieves cleaner recipes around the web use witch hazel instead of alcohol or they don’t include either at all. I personally like to add alcohol because of it’s powerful antibacterial action. Have your tried my CDC compliant DIY Hand Sanitizer?
- I like using castille soap due to how concentrated is without compromising safety but in a pinch you could use dish soap.
- If you have all 5 essential oils and would like to add them straight into your spray bottle you can add 20 drops clove, 20 drops lemon, 10 drops cinnamon bark, 7 drops eucalyptus and 3 drops rosemary oil.
- It is important that you use a glass spray bottle. This essential oil blend is quite powerful and can eat through plastic over time.
How to Use:
- Simply spray Thieves cleaner and wipe away with a paper towel.
If you would like to make your own Thieves Essential Oil Blend, I added the recipe I use below. Each oil is easy to find and affordable. I find it helpful to have a bottle on hand at all times!
Make Your Own Thieves Oil Blend:
This recipe makes a 1/2 ounce. You can read more details on my DIY Thieves Oil post.
You might also be interested in my DIY Thieves Balm recipe! This blend is also a great addition to DIY Foaming Hand Soap!
Which Company Has the Best Thieves Blend?
I prefer getting my essential oils either from Plant Therapy or Mountain Rose Herbs. Both offer high quality, affordable, organic oils. Plant Therapy ships free and much faster than MRH so I often end up going with Plant Therapy. You can find Plant Therapy’s Germ Fighter HERE and Mountain Rose Herbs Shield HERE.
Is DIY Thieves Cleaner Kid Safe?
If you have small children, you should know that Thieves blend is not kid friendly according to many essential oil experts mainly due to how “hot” cinnamon and clove oils feel to the skin. The original Thieves Blend Cleaner does state that it is safe to use around children though.
I personally diffused Thieves blend and even applied it (highly diluted) to both my daughters when they were little. I would not hesitate using this DIY Thieves cleaner on high chairs and toys because it is very much diluted. However, if you are concerned, Plant Therapy has a blend just for kids to fight germs but they use gentler oils. You can find their KidSafe version of Thieves HERE.
I hope you’ll give this simple DIY Thieves cleaner recipe a go. This cleaner works so well, is quick to make and quite affordable. Plus, if you’ve never smelled this essential oil blend, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how lovely it’s scent is!
xx, Jenni
