Your Winning Homemade Glass Cleaner – Now With Video

crunched by Crunchy Betty on February 21, 2012
filed under Household

A year and a half ago, I tested several homemade glass cleaners.
Some of you may be aware of this. Some of you who saunter over here from Pinterest (bless its internety heart) probably came here just because of that particular pin.

The best homemade glass cleaner ever, which I dubbed Alvin Corn, was my shining glory in the moment. I had dreams of every person in the entire world trying this and oohing and ahhing at their newly crystal clear visage. We’re talking back when Crunchy Betty had 20 dedicated readers. I thought we could take over the world.

It didn’t exactly go like that. We had to wait a year and a half for Alvin Corn to gather up the buzz – and it has. Oh yes, it has.

Here’s what it looks like, in all its cloudy glory:

The oddly named, but wildly effective, Alvin Corn glass cleaner.

As it’s coming into its own time, I thought it would be an excellent moment to try my hand at making an instructional video on how to make this winning cleaner. I like to make videos every few months, just to remind myself that writing with my fingers is my forte, not blathering through my mouth.

Also, we will no longer call this, officially, Alvin Corn, because … seriously. Who wants to use something called Alvin Corn? It’s like a chipmunk with a foot ailment.

Can you think of a better name for this glass cleaner than Alvin Corn? Ideas in the comments, please!

In the meantime, I want to refresh your memory on the exact recipe (which I have halved for this particular video, because a full size recipe does not fit into a reused Bragg’s apple cider vinegar bottle).

And then you can laugh at me in the instructional video.

Your Winning Homemade Glass Cleaner Recipe

Before you get the recipe, here are a couple of points:

Do try to use filtered or distilled water with this, as tap water is still a bit yucky, and it may leave more residue on your mirrors and windows.
This should keep for at least a month, with the alcohol and vinegar acting as preservatives, but keep an eye on it for any longer than that.
I find it works even better with an old cut up pair of jersey-type yoga pants than with paper towels, even.

Recipe time!

The Best Homemade Glass Cleaner Recipe

1 c. filtered, very hot water
1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/8 c. rubbing alcohol (at least 70% isopropyl, if not more)
1/8 c. white vinegar

Boil your water and let it cool just a bit. Add cornstarch to your spray bottle, and then the hot water. Shake well to dissolve. Add the rubbing alcohol and vinegar, and shake again. Every time you use this, you’ll want to shake it up to avoid clogging the spray nozzle with undissolved cornstarch. Use liberally and happily. Smile.

For Those of You Who Are Into Videos – I Present … This!

We’re reaching a new audience here – yay!

So if you have tried this and love it, I would REALLY love to see some feedback in the comments. Also? Name? What is the name of this glass cleaner?

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Jenlynngermain

You are so adorable!
Erin

I made this months ago, and it seems to be keeping very well. No mold or anything I can see, still smells a lot like alcohol and vinegar, and still works like a charm!
http://www.lisaliseblog.com/ LisaLise

I agree with Jenlynngermain – you’re adorable. :)
Beignet

I made mine several months ago and it seems fine. My sprayer stopped working but that is what I get for using a cheap spray bottle. I’m sure it’s not the corn starch. I still like the name Alvin Corn though. . .
Melissa

I also made mine a couple of months ago and still seems perfectly fine. I don’t like the smell of vinegar, though, so I added some peppermint, lemon and lavendar essential oils :)
kira

That’s so weird.. I just looked up your original post for glass cleaner and I just was thinking I need to get rubbing alcohol.. and then you post this today! I think it should be called.. awesomesauce window cleaner.. or maybe crunchy windex?
- Anonymous
  
  Awesomesauce – i love it.
Kanke

I have been making this glass cleaner since you first posted it. I didn’t even bother trying the other recipes because hey you declared this one the best. My cleaner has lasted as long as 4 months without any problems. It also works well to remove the grime from my car windows. Word of caution though, if you use it inside you car make sure you wipe your dashboard AFTER as the cornstarch will dry and leave white spots. Sadly I am not creative at all and have no idea what to call it.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Hethyr-Helton-Pletsch/1384127634 Hethyr Helton Pletsch

I was just raving to my mom YESTERDAY about this! I gave her a couple of CB homemade gifts for the holidays and this recipe card was part of the package. She is in the process of making all new cleaning products since my dad’s return from the Gerson Clinic (he is doing GREAT, by the way!) and I told her that this was the best glass cleaner I’ve ever used – chemical or natural. And, of course, it’s WAY better since it’s natural. Thanks for another amazing recipe! =)
Peyton

I threw out all my cornstarch and switched to arrowroot powder. Could I use that instead?
Starletteskye

Corny alchy uncle Vinny looking polished like glass cleaner.
Sneuhaus

LOVE this. Can’t wait to try it. But unfortunately that means I’d have to clean my house. Meh. I love my dirty house as it is. =o)

Alvin Corn. I like it. I say leave it the way it is. (are you noticing a pattern here?) Alvin Corn is unique and original. Memorable. Thanks for the recipe!
Sandytrif

My homemade cleaner leaves nasty streaks in my mirror. I will try this one out.
OlympiaHandmade

Adam and Marcus both look great in that nice sparkly mirror! Alvin Corn is the best! :)
Cris H

How do you know when it goes “bad”. Does it smell off, get moldy?
Barbara Werner

I made this on Saturday and it rocks! I will never ever buy Windex again. Thank you xx
Me in NB

Will have to give it a go, sounds like it would be great to clean the shower enclosure walls also. I also think Alvin Corn is a great name (now that I know how it was derived after watching the vid) but if you are intent on changing it, how about Cloudy Clear? Cloud N’Clear? Cloud2Clear? you get the drift…..
http://www.makeitbakeitbuyitfakeit.blogspot.com/ Stephanie

“Chipmunk with a foot ailment”… too funny! I wasn’t fond of the Alvin Corn name in the beginning, but it’s grown on me since (and I can’t think of a better one)…
Alcovin… a little too “happy hour”.
Corvinal… faux-leather upholstery for your hot rod.
Cornex… back to the foot ailments.
Crunchex… breakfast cereal.
Crunchy Glass Cleaner… edgy but painful (and boring).

… looks like you may just have to stick with Alvin-Corn! :)

ps… Adam, you are such a sport!
Ann

Love it as well as the video! Care to consider (Kick Dirt In Its) Glass Cleaner?
Tiffany

Anxious to try out your recipe for “Alvin Corn”….what about “Squeaky Clean”??? I like the sound of that but I’m new to this sector:)
Monroe H.

Try using newspaper instead of cloth or paper towels! That’s the true secret of a spotless mirror.
Oni

I have to admit that I couldn’t bring myself to type out (or say out loud!) your original name for this glass cleaner. But I love it. I thought I would never see clearly in my bathroom mirror again. I don’t have a ventilator/fan installed in my crappy apartment bathroom, and the water is so hard that even the steam leaves hard water stains.

I do have to buff it dry with a dry cloth (maybe just because I’m really impatient and I can’t wait for it to dry by itself) but this cleaner makes my mirror look like it was just installed yesterday. It also works on shiny chrome by the way, I use it to shine the hard water stains off my bath tub, bathroom sink, and kitchen sink faucets as well as my chrome mixing bowl and french press (i’ve always been too lazy to wipe dry instead of air dry…)

My husband is working in a different state right now but when I call him to geek out about how SHINEY I’m finally getting things, I call the cleaner Happy Shine. That may be more ridiculous than the original name but it seems to work for us :]
- Oni
  
  to clarify my first sentence, lol – i have a major hate-hate relationship with corn. it was really really REALLY hard for me to bring myself to accept that anything good could come into my life that had a basis in corn. thanks for giving me a new perspective!
http://www.facebook.com/JesileeDennis Jesilee Jaslyn-Dennis Smithee

Would love to know if this works well with arrowroot powder? We don’t have any corn products in our house… Not even fresh corn in the summer which I am missing…
Erin R.

I’ve been using mine for a couple of weeks now and it works pretty welll! I like it and will make it again when i run out. But i love calling it my Alvin Corn cleaner! I still want to make the all purpose cleaner. Just haven’t had time. soon though!
WildOlive

I found Crunchy Betty as a result of the post. I thought, cornstarch, that is nuts. But castile soap in water wasn’t working, so I tried it. I LOVE THIS GLASS CLEANER! I actually went a cleaning frenzy and cleaned every mirror in the house. It even cleans after a gruby 5yo boy. I stopped after one window, because, in theory, it will rain again soon. How about “Beats the Pants off Windex” glass cleaner? No catchy, but descriptive…
Daisy1

So i already wrote Alvin Corn in permanent marker on my spray bottle from months ago when I first found the post and sprayed everything in my house with it (almost), which obviously means it can’t be changed. ;) I love it! But if you must, I vote for Superstarsauce.
leigha

although i take everything you say as pure wonderment and fact, as soon as you said “we’re going next door to see my neighbor adam” i was hooked. you know i fancy him, yes? thanks again for making my day bright!
Marian

I was going to suggest Cloudy Clear Glass Cleaner, but Me in NB got there first.
Laura

YES! I found this post a few months ago and gave it a whirl. It is by far the best glass cleaner I have ever used. Highly recommended. I ran around for days cleaning glass over and over and demonstrating to my no-so-interested husband about how AWESOME it was. Then one day he cleaned our car and asked for some glass cleaner. When he finished he came in and said “oh my god, do you know how great this glass cleaner is!”….. *sigh*

Thanks for such a great recipe! I also want to toss my vote in for awesomesauce…primarily because i laugh out loud every time I say it.
Anne Bickle

Yesterday I was telling my mom & sister about this glass cleaner (which I have not tried yet, but intend to) and the name ALVIN CORN helped me remember the ingredients as I was telling them, which is a definate benefit of the name since it’s a homemade potion and people could be like, “oh no! I’m out of glass cleaner, I need to make some… do I have the ingredients on hand? Let’s see… ALVIN CORN… AL-cohol, yes. Rubbing alcohol, yes, that too… VIN-egar, white, yes, on hand… CORN-starch, yes. Okay, then, good to go.” (Except for the additional distilled water and I can’t figure out how to get that into the name. But since you left it out of ALVIN CORN, I assume that’s not a problem.)

If you don’t like the “corn” – and some of the comments indicated that some readers don’t - then it could be CALVIN glass cleaner. Or, CALVIN’S BEST glass cleaner, which has a much better ring.

Anywho, that’s my 2 cents on the name question.
Rogaladriel

You should use old newspaper (or newspaper type adds and such that come in the mail) as your “cloth” when you wash windows. Trust me, it’s amazing!
Susannah

I love it… And I second the recommendation to use newsprint to wipe it off. It works really well. Rename it if you must but I’m sticking with Alvin Corn. :)
Bstan1950

i love this stuff i clean everything with it
http://ruthmem.blogspot.com/2008/02/non-toxic-cleaners.html Ruth C

Why do you put cornstarch in it? I’ve been making my own glass/surface cleaner with tap water, white vinegar and isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol for quite a long time, and it works great. The first time my husband took it out to use on the outsides of the upstairs windows, he came in raving about it. I would think the addition of cornstarch would make it streaky.

The stuff I use doesn’t smell good. I tried adding sweet orange essential oil, and the vinegar completely overpowered it anyway, so that was a waste. But the smell doesn’t last long, and anyway, it is a clean smell, if not a soothing or sweet one.
Cohippychik

I so want to feel the love for this glass cleaner, but I’m not. The first batch I made I poured out because I ended up with a hazy crusty mess on my windows. Then I decided to give one more try…and the same thing is happening. My husband thinks I’m crazy because I’ve been spending hours using this homemade glass cleaner just hoping it will work. All our mirrors look like I took a soap rag over them and did not rinse. I haven’t thrown out this batch yet in hopes it will begin to work. I too live in Colorado, Castle Rock to be exact…the water cannot be that different here than it is in Manitou. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I love your blog btw…
Aemeyer00

Alvin corn is so cute and memorable tho! To me it sounds more like a chipmunk in overalls in front of a field. But that could be because i’m a corn farmer’s daughter, so the word corn does not bring to mind any foot ailments for me.
angie

I love the name Alvin Corn!!!
Niki

I just wanted to add that I just made my second batch of this to take to some filthy windows. This is THE best glass cleaner!!
Marj

Thumbs up for Alvin Corn even from my 16yo son!
He isn’t that crunchy and always gets this scared look on his face when I come up with a new recipe but this time he was willing to give it a try.
He’s the window-guy in our household (and my parents’ and our neighbours’ as well) and as he’s so into it (and keen on perfect results in small amounts of time as he is being paid per window, not time) and really honest if it’s not good from his point of view, he is a good tester.
Big smile, both thumbs up, “this is really awesome, mom!”
so, I’m forwarding the kudos to you!!
Marj
http://twitter.com/MagnoliasWest Sue Kearney

So, have you tried this on coated eyeglass lenses? I want to make my own and I want to be careful not to make/use something that will mess with the anti-glare/reflective coating.

Thoughts?
http://twitter.com/Obapplepie Katherine King

Not sure it’s possible for you to be any more endearing.
http://wholenewmom.com/ Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

Love this. Two questions though:
1. Why boil the water if it’s all going to settle out anyway?
2. Why would this not last? I would think the alcohol and vinegar would keep it pretty stable. Thanks!!
http://www.facebook.com/alyson.wieczorek Alyson Wieczorek

I was so geeked to try this, but this left my mirror a streaky mess! Is this because I’ve been using Windex (until today)?? I want this to work so badly, I love every other recipe of yours that I’ve tried so far.
DejaVu

I am an obsessive clean freak & my idea of “cleaning” is from just “picking up” a room.i have tried just about every commercially made window cleaner, as well as a handful of homemade cleaners, & using various materials for wiping glass. With that being said, Alvin Corn is by far the absolute best window/glass cleaner. I have a squeegee that has a removable-washable cleaning pad, and with a paper towel to dry the rubber edge, my windows and mirrors all sparkle & look brand new. I also use Alvin on my faucets, granite counter tops, fronts of appliances and car windows. Simply amazing how well this recipe works and the inexpensive cost is just an added bonus!! Thank you to the genius who came up with the recipe!!
http://www.facebook.com/stephanielouise.saleem Stephanie-Louise Saleem

I can’t wait to try this recipe. And am wondering what the cornstarch is doing, can I replace it with arrowroot or tapioca starch? (Which is what I always have in my store cupboard)
http://twitter.com/itsolivialane Olivia Lane

I made this 3 times before I actually followed the directions word for word and got it “right.” I think the key is to make sure that water is warm enough to dissolve the cornstarch, but not boiling or super hot. Also don’t add the cornstarch to the water, add the water to the cornstarch in the bottle. If you don’t do that you’ll end up with film over your glass. (I def did the first time!)

After “perfecting” Alvin Corn, I added 2 extra tablespoon of alcohol (totaling 1/4 cup alcohol) to make Alvin Corn dry quicker (for less streaking) & make to it easier for it to pick up gunk.

I prefer club soda to clean glass and mirrors, but it was fun to try this. Thanks for sharing this green cleaning recipe! Clearly, it’s exciting a lot of people. <3
sarahsnana

I needed to make some more glass cleaner today. It will always be Alvin Corn to me because it’s so simple to remember.