Learn creative ways to save money and create wealth every Thursday on the Evening Report at 6:00pm, by watching Change in Your Pocket.

Saving On Cleaning

As we`re well aware, spring is here. In fact, it came much sooner than usual. So there`s no reason to delay spring cleaning any longer. In fact, you can tackle just about any cleaning job with a few inexpensive household materials.

Spring is an opportune time to be working in the yard or spending a weekend inside cleaning out the clutter.

"Each time you clean, do one room. Do your windows, your screen and your blinds," said Elaine Taszarek with Sunny Maids.

The bulk of your cleaning can be tackled with a few household materials. That includes baking soda, vinegar, Borax, table salt and yes, dryer sheets. For example, combine a tablespoon of Borax and a table spoon of baking soda. Voila! You`ve got dishwashing detergent!

"This is not hard work," Taszarek said.

If you have hardwood floors, you certainly don`t need to shell out four bucks a bottle for Pine-sol. All you really need is vinegar and water. The trick is getting the right proportion. You can mix a half cup of vinegar with one gallon of hot water.

And what about those windows? Professional window washers from Mr. Squeegee in Bismarck say you don`t need to get too fancy when it comes to a streak-free shine.

"Add some Dawn dish soap into that water and you should be all right. The only thing other than Dawn in our water that we use is just kind of a window cleaning agent, which gives it a nice gloss to it and makes it sparkle," said Dave Lacher.

Using crumpled up newspapers also won`t leave streaks.

Now it`s time to break out those dryer sheets. They`re not just good in the laundry room, they can also attack cobwebs, clean pet hair off the furniture and will keep dust from settling on TVs and computer monitors. Something to save you some change in your pocket as you`re sprucing up.

You can also remove coffee stains from cups and coffee pots by using table salt.