Never clean 3 areas of your home with white vinegar, cleaning expert issues advice

White vinegar can be a saviour when you're trying to clean your home on a budget – but there are three areas of your home you should avoid when using the affordable ingredient

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White vinegar can be an effective cleaning tool due to its acidic properties. While some use it to banish greasy areas of their homes, others swear by the ingredient for banishing unpleasant odours.

However, hold fire before spraying your entire home with the product. That's because a professional cleaner has urged caution about three areas of properties that do not respond well to white vinegar.

Madame Sweat, a personal and home hygiene expert, posted her top pieces of housework advice on Instagram. She said: "I'm a personal hygiene expert, but I'm also here to help you with your home hygiene. Here are three places you should never clean with vinegar."

1. Natural stone

Don't clean the natural stone worktops in your home with vinegar - even if you dilute it first.

Madame Sweat said: "Never ever use even diluted vinegar on natural stone. It's too acidic."

To tackle this area, you should consider a diluted washing up liquid instead. Gently buff it in with a soft cloth to clean the stone surfaces without causing any damage.

2. Hardwood floors

Unfortunately, white vinegar can damage the finish off this flooring.

Instead, the expert recommended castile soap as the best natural remedy for hardwood floors. This is an olive oil-based soap that originates from the Castile region of Spain.

As this product can be pretty pricey, there are other alternatives to consider too. If you're on a tighter budget, you can try specialised wood floor cleaner with a microfibre mop.

3. Rubber components

Lastly, Madame Sweat warned people against using white vinegar on rubber.

You'll find this material in places of your home like dishwasher and washing machine seals.

She said: "It can actually wear down the rubber over time and strip them. If you want to use something to deodorise, just use baking soda."