You have a few options to choose from for your cleaning solution without chemicals. You can clean your windows with vinegar and water or water with a few drops of dish soap. If you opt for water and vinegar, you'll need equal parts white vinegar and hot water.
Using isopropyl alcohol and white vinegar together makes a quickly evaporating spray glass and mirror cleaner that competes with commercial brands. This can also be used to give a nice shine to hard tiles, chrome, and other surfaces.
Make a Cleaning Solution
She says to mix one part white vinegar with four parts warm water in a bowl or bucket, noting that you should mix in a tiny drop of dish soap if your mirror is extra dirty. "Transfer the mixture into a spray bottle and spray the mirror with the mixture," Peterson says.
Combine one cup water, one cup vinegar and a teaspoon of dish soap in a spray bottle. Shake gently to mix. Apply the solution directly to the mirror and let it sit for a few seconds. Wipe the spray on the mirror away with either a microfiber cloth or newspaper.
Windex Original Glass Cleaner
Windex is one of the most popular brands of glass cleaners on the market, and it's for good reason. It's incredibly effective at cleaning all sorts of glass surfaces, especially mirrors that immediately show and amplify smudges, fingerprints, and specks of dirt.
Vinegar is great for cleaning glass, but because it's acidic, it can't be used on every surface.
Mix up your window-cleaning solution: In a plastic spray bottle, mix together 2 cups of warm water with 1/4 cup white vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon of Dawn. Sweep away dirt: Using a broom, sweep away the cobwebs and debris from the windows and sills.
(I found Windex to work better, but if you have pets—or kids—who frequently lick outdoor windows, vinegar may be the best route for you.)
You can also make an all-natural window cleaning solution using a mixture of equal parts white vinegar and hot water. Adding a touch of liquid soap to the vinegar solution will help remove any streak-causing wax left on the window from commercial cleaners used in the past.
Clorox® Disinfecting Wipes are easy to use and work on a variety of hard, nonporous surfaces, including mirrors and glass. The powerful cleaning technology dissolves kitchen grease and fights soap scum.
White vinegar is one of the most popular Windex replacements because it's non-toxic, cheap and doesn't leave streaks.
Use soap and water, commercial glass cleaner, or a mixture of one part white vinegar and four parts water (preferably distilled water). Avoid cleaning glass in direct sunlight to avoid streaking. Start from the top of the window and work your way down.
Windex and even generic versions of it contain a powerful chemical, ammonia, which gives the product its telltale pungent scent. Ammonia is colorless at room temperature, has alkaline properties, and is highly corrosive and irritating, according to the New York State Department of Health.
Not only does rubbing alcohol polish mirrors, but it's also useful for cleaning windows and glass crystal too, according to Stephanie Cooper of Energy Cleaning.
Distilled vinegar is effective at cleaning glass because of its acidic composition. While many people exaggerate the mild disinfectant properties, the primary reason it helps with cleaning windows is its ability to cut through dirt and film.
A mixture of vinegar and water can provide an effective and non-toxic cleaning solution for windows and mirrors. To clean your windows with vinegar, combine equal parts vinegar and distilled water in a spray bottle. Mix it to combine.
Known as a trusted brand, for good reason, Windex Glass Cleaner is a highly effective formula and comes with an affordable price tag. It can be used on a variety of household surfaces, including glass, windows, and mirrors.
But even mirror-specific products like Windex, while effective at cleaning, can leave your mirror full of streaks because they contain so much soap. While streaks are annoying, they aren't the only issue that can come up when you're cleaning mirrors.