Getting Started
Hi, I'm Analisa, the creator behind Under Your Sink and this is how we began and why we exist.
Getting Started
How you get started really depends on how you like to learn. If you prefer to understand everything first, you can work your way through the Guides and Learning Hub before you begin, and never hesitate to ask questions.
A more common approach is to start with the job in front of you. If you’re cleaning the shower, for example, read the Bathroom Guide to understand what you’re dealing with and what to use, make the recommended recipe, then move onto the next job when you’re ready.
Two things you need to know
- The process in which you clean matters
- You can do close to all of it with just nine ingredients.
How you clean matters just as much as what you clean with.
There is a logical and scientific order to cleaning. You do not dry your hands before washing them. The order matters.
Once you understand that process, you can clean almost your entire home with just nine ingredients. And it is not hard to learn. In fact, I think it should be taught in schools.
The cleaning system
Learn what the ingredients do, when to use them and in what order, and you no longer need to depend on a cupboard full of specialised cleaning products.
As you put this knowledge into practice and see the results for yourself, you begin to build new muscle memory around how you clean. Over time, you start to clean differently, with more confidence, more control and far less dependence on all the products you were told you needed.
Identify the problem first
Different types of dirt and build-up need different solutions. The Guides help you identify what you’re dealing with, explain the best approach, and point you to the right recipes and ingredients.
Know the nine ingredients
Each ingredient has a specific purpose and works on different types of dirt, grease, stains or build-up. Learn them all, or simply learn what you need as you go.
Turn ingredients into useful forms
Powders, sprays, pastes and gels make them practical. Relevant guides sit alongside the recipes to help connect what you’re using with the job you’re tackling.
Behind every cleaning product are ingredients
The US EPA's broad consumer-products database maps more than 49,000 chemicals to roughly 16,000 consumer products and product types, though that spans well beyond household cleaning.
Trying to decipher cleaning product labels is a thing of the past, and compared to 49,000 chemicals in consumer products, learning nine is but a breadcrumb in the breadbox.
In fact, you do not need to memorise these either. You simply need to get a feel for who does what. Over time, you will build that muscle memory and instinctively know what to reach for.
Meet the nine
Every ingredient in the Under Your Sink toolkit has been chosen for two reasons: it performs an effective, science-backed cleaning function and meets our broader green ethos.
Each ingredient is eco-conscious and selected with transparency in mind. Some are naturally derived, while others, such as true soap, are made from natural raw materials. Together, they help reduce plastic waste, unnecessary ingredients and reliance on multiple single-purpose cleaning products.
We do not make health claims, but many customers tell us that removing added fragrance and simplifying the products used in their homes has made cleaning feel more manageable, particularly for fragrance-sensitive households.
Soap
castile, coconut soap flakes
Traps and lifts everyday dirt and oil off almost anything.
Oxygen
sodium percarbonate
Lifts stains and organic matter. Brightens whites with no chlorine needed.
Alkalis
washing soda, borax, bicarb
Raise the pH of wash water, breaking down grease and boosting the effectiveness of soap.
Acids
citric acid, vinegar
Dissolve minerals: limescale, soap scum, the chalky ring.
There are also a couple of handy helpers, glycerine and xanthan gum, for creating clingy gels. Essential oils are always optional for scent. And the number one solvent: precious water.
Tap any ingredient to explore how it works, what it replaces and how to use it in the Learning Hub whenever you need a refresher.
Turning ingredients into products
This part is about form, and how we apply the products.
Should the solution be a spray, a powder, or a clingy bathroom gel that stays on vertical surfaces and gives the ingredients more contact time?
At first, it is simply about following the recipes and learning which form suits each job. As you use them repeatedly and see how they work, you begin to build new muscle memory around cleaning. Eventually, you instinctively know what to reach for, how to use it and why.
Make your first switch
Reading only gets you so far. Make one cleaner and the whole idea stops feeling abstract.
Start with the all-purpose spray that works on benches, sinks and most sealed surfaces. Make this once and you've retired three or four bottles on the spot.
Everyday all-purpose spray
Add 450–475ml water into a 500ml spray bottle.
Add castile soap, 25–50ml depending on preference.
Add a few drops of essential oil, if you like a scent.
Shake gently. Done. Spray, wipe, get on with your day.
Haven't got the ingredients yet?
The Give It A Go kit has enough to make this and three more. The gentlest way in.
Get the kit →Take it one room at a time
Don't try to overhaul the whole house in a weekend. That's how people burn out and go back to the supermarket.
Nail one room, feel the win, move on. Pick the job that's bugging you most and we'll walk you through exactly what to reach for and why.
You got this! And good on you for giving this a crack.