Green Cleaners for the Home: Be a Super Hero; Save the Planet, Your Health and Money All at Once!

Have you ever read the ingredients in your house cleaners; if it reads like a chemistry book and you have a difficult time pronouncing the ingredients, you are not alone. You should be aware of every product you bring into your home as this directly affects your health. Especially if you have young children and/or the elderly who are more susceptible to absorbing toxic chemicals found in home cleaners. There are many ready-made products that you can find in a health food store in the organic section. Read each label carefully. Check for warning words like “danger” and “warning” and try to select products with no warning label. This means the product is nontoxic or less toxic. Anything labeled “Danger or Poison” can kill a person with just a few drops, with a warning label of ”Warning” it would take 1 teaspoon to poison a person and with a warning label of “Caution” it would take about 1 ounce of the cleaning product to kill a person.

What to do?

You can choose less-toxic products to clean your home or you can make your own. Making these two simple changes can make a huge difference in protecting your family and the environment. As well, you will be saving money by using some simple, safe ingredients to make your own cleaners.

The most effective cleaning ingredients can be found in your kitchen cabinet rather than in a laboratory. Things like baking soda, which absorbs odors and is a mild abrasive.

GLYCERIN: can be found in your local pharmacy or health food store. This water loving liquid has antiseptic qualities and moisturizes the skin.

HYDROGEN PEROXIDE: is a disinfectant and can be found in most grocery stores, pharmacies and often in the local corner store.

LIQUID SOAP: comes in many forms and the best is a vegetable based soap, sometimes referred to as a “Castile” soap. Dr. Bronner’s is one of the most popular and can be found in most health food stores.

LIQUID DETERGENT: Unlike vegetable oil based detergents, petroleum based detergents are a limited resource and its extraction and refining causes pollution. Most dishwashing liquids are detergents. Try purchasing environmentally friendly vegetable oil based soaps, which can be found in many health food stores and grocery stores with an organic section. Our local Hannaford’s carries a good selection of environmentally friendly soaps and detergents that are vegetable oil based in their organic section.

VINEGAR: Vinegar stands out as the most versatile of all organic cleaners. It removes soap scum, grease, and mineral deposits and acts as a deodorizer as well. You should use white distilled vinegar for most of these recipes. To add a pleasant scent to your cleaning routine you could use apple cider vinegar for your windows.

WASHING SODA (SODIUM BICARBONATE): This cleaner is slightly more caustic than all others but is a great grease cutter and wax remover. Do not use this on waxed, hardwood floors, aluminum, or fiberglass as it will remove the wax or finish. This can be found in the laundry section in almost all grocery stores.

ESSENTIAL OILS: Essential oils are mostly used for deodorizing and/or scenting cleaners. The most familiar essential oils are mint, eucalyptus, lavender, lemon, and tree tea. These can be found in health food stores or in herbal supply shops. Tea Tree oil is so effective as a disinfectant it is in the process of being registered as such.

AS WITH ANY INGREDIENT USED FOR CLEANING WHETHER IT IS ORGANIC OR NOT, CAUTION SHOULD BE USED AROUND SMALL CHILDREN. IN CONCENTRATED FORMS THESE MAY BECOME TOXIC.

LAUNDRY DAY

There are many commercially formulated laundry detergents on the market that can be found in the grocery store. Seventh Generation, Life Tree, Ecover, and Earth Friendly Cleaner are just a few. These are vegetable oil based, not petroleum based laundry soaps without synthetic fragrances and they provide concentrated cleaning for your dirty laundry. For an extra boost to heavily soiled clothes, try adding a half-cup of baking soda to the load. And to soften and deodorize try adding 1 to 2 cups of vinegar to the rinse cycle. And to whiten clothes add ½ cup of baking soda to the rinse cycle.

BLEACH: If you are a diehard fan of bleach like I am try using non-chlorine bleach or the following:

½ cup 3 % hydrogen peroxide in the rinse cycle OR,

½ cup baking soda to warm or hot cycle washes OR,

½ cup lemon juice in the rinse cycle OR,

ADD ½ cup baking soda in warm or hot water wash cycles.            

LAUNDRY STARCH: Combine 2 to 3 teaspoons of cornstarch and 1 cup of water in a spray bottle and use as you would a commercial spray starch. Remember to shake well before each use.

To be continued next week for more green clean recipes…