4 Homemade Febreeze Recipes
Basically the ingredients to make homemade Febreeze is a mix of water and fabric softener.
Directions: Unless otherwise noted, place ingredients in a spray bottle and shake well to mix. Test a small unnoticeable area first before using to make sure no discoloration or damage occurs. Use as needed, shaking well each time before use.
Recipe #1
1 cup fabric softener
1 cup white vinegar
2 cups water
Recipe #2
2 cups water
1 cup fabric softener
Recipe #3
3 cups water
3 TBS fabric softener
3 TBS rubbing alcohol
Recipe #4
2 cups water (warm)
1/4 cup fabric softener
1 TBS baking soda
ETA: Review the comment section below for discussion about flammability concerns and adding chemicals to the air we breathe. Interesting!
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Posted in Homemade Cleaners, Popular Tips | 
( 20 )
04 Feb 2007 at 1:58 pm
MacGyver Tip: DIY homemade Febreeze…
The TipNut weblog posts 4 simple recipes for rolling your own Febreze deodorizer on the cheap. Each recipe contains a combination of water and fabric softener with slight variations. I used to rely on Febreze a lot in college (what?),……
04 Feb 2007 at 2:56 pm
I’m curious as to how these tips compare to Febreeze. The active ingredient in Febreeze is one of the Cyclodextrins–I don’t know if fabric softeners have this same chemical in them that Febreeze does. Either way, I’d be curious to hear people’s experience with the faux Febreeze.
More details on Cyclodextrins from P&G:
scienceinthebox.com
Admin Edit: Skato I just fixed the link so that it wouldn’t break the template, everything else is as you wrote it
04 Feb 2007 at 3:27 pm
This is not the most brilliant idea for health reasons since most major brands of fabric softener contain a bevy of toxic and central nervous system affecting chemicals. We are already subject to hundreds of chemicals each day. Why would you want to add to that.
Fabric softener is also known to break down the flame retardants that are sprayed onto furniture and clothing and could increase the flammability of your furnishings.
04 Feb 2007 at 3:27 pm
Just because it smells the same doesn’t mean it works the same…
04 Feb 2007 at 4:17 pm
[...] 4 Homemade Febreeze Recipes » TipNut.com [...]
04 Feb 2007 at 5:24 pm
Cheap vodka - 1/2 and 1/2 with water. Leaves no real smell, works great on stuff like furniture and carpets. Car use might be a bad plan if you ever get pulled over, it does leave some smell if it’s in a closed area. Old tip really.
04 Feb 2007 at 9:00 pm
All of your recipes would stop things from stinking, but in distinctly different ways.
A little geeky info:
Fabric softeners do their softening by coating fabrics with a thin chemical layer that, put simply, acts as a lubricant making the fibers feel smoother. They’re also electrically conductive to minimize static buildup.
As Jay said above, Cyclodextrin is what makes the magic in Febreze. The molecular structure of cyclodextrins allow them to actually wrap around odor-causing hydrophobic compounds. (hydrophobic = repelled by water)
I’ll also second what Ryan said about fabric softener increasing flammability.
Simply put, the perfume in fabric softener will cover up odors with scent. The magical cyclodextrins actually wrap around the odors and suppress them.
Whew.
05 Feb 2007 at 2:27 am
MacGyver Tip: DIY homemade Febreze…
The TipNut weblog posts 4 simple recipes for rolling your own Febreze deodorizer on the cheap. Each recipe contains a combination of water and fabric softener with slight variations. I used to rely on Febreze a lot in college (what?),……
05 Feb 2007 at 4:12 am
[...] auf Lifehacker: vier Rezepte für selbstgemachten Geruchsfresser à la Febreze für die Sprühflasche. Hier die deutsche Übersetzung für alle, die nicht toll englisch können: [...]
05 Feb 2007 at 7:53 am
This is really interesting info and I’m glad you guys are sharing it. Since clothing is actually washed in liquid fabric softener, is the clothing we wear flammable (if using liquid fabric softener in our laundry)?
Jay Gilmore: I still wear perfume sometimes and hubby’s big into cologne, so I’m not broken from self-induced chemical environments yet. Not including the plugin air fresheners that hubby’s in love with. But I understand what you’re saying, good point.
07 Feb 2007 at 5:04 pm
TN,
Honestly, I don’t use conventional liquid fabric softeners but rather soy-based fabric softeners that are scented with essential oils and natural scents. Granted I also don’t use conventional laundry detergent either since most of them are very harsh for both my skin the environment; they are not truly biodegradable. Many of these are quite harmful to aquatic life and don’t get filtered by many water processing plants.
On the flammability issue, many fabrics such as drapes, soft furniture and childrens clothes are treated to be flame retardant for safety reasons. It is recommended that you not use chemicals that could jeopardize this retardancy. Even natural based fabric softeners can effect the flammability in clothing.
I will confess though, I have had occasion to use the real Febreeze from time to time but even then I have started to opt for more natural solutions.
08 Feb 2007 at 10:19 am
Great timing Jay, I just finished reading about laundry detergents in a book I’m currently reading and how toxic they are:
Page 67, The Encyclopedia of Country Living
I did pull together a list of homemade laundry soap recipes if anyone is interested in that option. I enjoyed doing that at one time, but it’s definitely a discipline to develop considering how much easier it is to just pick up a box at the store :P. I’m not sure about the Fels Naptha or the Washing Soda for some of the recipes, but the rest of the ingredients I think are environmently friendly.
I added information in the original post above to read the discussion here regarding flammability and chemical concerns. Thanks very much for the comments everyone, I found it interesting and learned something :).
17 Feb 2007 at 1:33 am
[...] pointed me in the direction of these four cheap ‘recipes’ for making your own Febreeze spray. All are cheaper than the real deal by a long shot and involve fabric softeners and water [...]
28 Mar 2007 at 9:21 am
[...] 4 Homemade Febreeze Recipes » TipNut.com [...]
08 Jun 2007 at 4:14 pm
[...] you’re interested, there are also several websites showing how to make your own laundry machine febreeze wanna-be. Tags: Permalink | Trackback [...]
12 Aug 2007 at 6:07 am
[...] (via Lifehacker) has four recipes for Homemade Febreeze. They mainly involve mixes of water fabric softener and maybe vinegar, baking [...]
17 Mar 2008 at 2:16 pm
I make lye soap and use it to wash my clothes….
Not consistantly, but it is pure soap. I sometimes put essential oils, but for laundry, I leave it plain mostly.
I will use febreeze sometimes tho- dog + couch…. sometimes = eewww.
26 Apr 2008 at 3:00 pm
I am reading the recipes for homemade laundry and febreeze recipes. These are great ideas and I am going to start making my own. I am wondering if anyone has tried using only essential oils, like Lavender or Rosemary mixed with water or any other substance for refreshers? If so,do you have a recipe?
I am learning a lot and can’t wait to start making my own products!
26 Apr 2008 at 8:26 pm
Hi Stacey, I do have some info for you: Easy Homemade Deodorizer Sprays.
There are also a few more ideas for fresheners in the Homemade Cleaners category if you’d like to browse through it, or you could try doing a search for “fresheners”, I think you’ll get them all that way too.
Enjoy :).
26 Apr 2008 at 8:47 pm
Thank you! I am going to try the vinegar with EO! You have a great website with plenty of helpful information….thanks for responding and I will keep coming back for more great tips!!!