Lemon Pine Wood Cleaner

This natural lemon pine wood cleaner recipe smells fresh and helps to shine and protect wood surfaces. It is also very affordable to make, with a small amount going a long way!

Lemon Pine Wood Cleaner Ingredients

• 4 ounces of olive oil
• 4 ounces of white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon of lemon essential oil
• 1/4 teaspoon of pine essential oil

Lemon Pine Wood Cleaner Instructions

Mix ingredients in a sealed glass bottle.  Shake, then apply a small amount with a soft cloth to buff, shine, treat, and clean wood.  Wear gloves.

Lemon Pine Wood Cleaner Research

• At a dilution of 2.5%, pine oil was effective against certain airborne fungi.  This can help improve indoor air quality. From:  Motiejūnaitė, O., & Dalia Pečiulytė, D. (2004). Fungicidal properties of Pinus sylvestris L. for improvement of air quality. Medicina (Kaunas), 8, 787-794.
• Pinus peuce showed antimicrobial activity against multiple pathogens tested.  From:  Karapandzova, M., Stefkov, G., Trajkovska-Dokic, E., Kaftandzieva, A., & Kulevanova, S. (2011). Antimicrobial activity of needle essential oil of Pinus peuce Griseb.(Pinaceae) from Macedonian flora. Macedonian pharmaceutical bulletin, 57(1), 2.
• Phenolic constituents of the following plants showed in vitro antimicrobial activity: purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria.), willow herb (Epilobium angustifolium), cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus), raspberry (Rubus idaeus), white birch (Betula pubescens), pine (Pinus sylvestris) and potato (Solanum tuberosum). From:  Rauha, J. P., Remes, S., Heinonen, M., Hopia, A., Kähkönen, M., Kujala, T., … & Vuorela, P. (2000). Antimicrobial effects of Finnish plant extracts containing flavonoids and other phenolic compounds. International journal of food microbiology, 56(1), 3-12.
• The following essential oils and their constituents in order of effectiveness were active against pathogens in apple juice:  against E. coli: carvacrol, oregano oil, geraniol, eugenol, cinnamon leaf oil, citral, clove bud oil, lemongrass oil, cinnamon bark oil, and lemon oil, and against S. enterica:  melissa oil, carvacrol, oregano oil, terpeineol, geraniol, lemon oil, citral, lemongrass oil, cinnamon leaf oil, and linalool. From:  Friedman, M., Henika, P. R., Levin, C. E., & Mandrell, R. E. (2004). Antibacterial activities of plant essential oils and their components against Escherichia coli O157: H7 and Salmonella enterica in apple juice. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 52(19), 6042-6048
• Out of 21 oils tested, cinnamon, clove, geranium, lemon, lime, orange and rosemary exhibited the strongest activity against the tested bacteria. From:  Prabuseenivasan, S., Jayakumar, M., & Ignacimuthu, S. (2006). In vitro antibacterial activity of some plant essential oils. BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 6(1), 1.
• Vinegar was as effective as tested commercial cleaners in its antimicrobial action on hard surfaces.  From:  Olson, W., Vesley, D., Bode, M., Dubbel, P., & Bauer, T. (1994). Hard surface cleaning performance of six alternative household cleaners under laboratory conditions. Journal of Environmental Health, 56(6), 27.
• The Vinegar Institute (n.d.). Vinegar.  Retrieved in May, 2018.  Retrieved from http://versatilevinegar.org/index.html
• WebMD. (n.d.).  The best non-toxic ways to clean your home.  Retrieved in May, 2018.  Retrieved from www.webmd.com

By: Kathy Sadowski, MS in Aromatherapy, Registered Aromatherapy, LMT

4/11/18

This categorized compilation of research articles does not necessarily imply that there are adequate results to demonstrate safe and/or effective human use. These statements are not meant to diagnose, treat, or cure any diseases. The information at this page has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Consult a Doctor before using herbs and essential oils if you have medical conditions, are taking medications, or have questions.