A simple way to support your goals for going greener is to change the way you clean your home.  You can eliminate smells, germs, and grime without introducing toxic chemicals or supporting the production of these products using simple, inexpensive methods.

First, easily make your own cleaning solutions- Buy industrial sizes of white vinegar, baking soda, and some orange oil. Buy a non-noxious liquid soap like Mrs. Meyers and some Borax.  Buy or reuse a couple of sprayer bottles. Lay in a supply of microfiber cloths (so you can keep bathroom and kitchen cloths separate), rubber gloves, and a pumice stone.  You’re ready to go!

 Kitchen: Mix equal parts vinegar and water in your sprayer bottle for cleaning surfaces.  Especially greasy mess? Add a few drops of the orange oil. You will avoid combining toxic chemicals with food preparation surfaces.  Use baking soda for cleaning the inside of the fridge.  Make a paste of vinegar and soda for baked on oven messes (conventional oven cleaners have some of the most noxious chemicals going, and you will inhale them and introduce them into your food if you use them), and for stinky sink drains areas.  Stainless appliances?  A few drops of the liquid soap and wipe down with the grain.  If you have to have a commercial grease fighter to be happy, try Holy Cow in a gallon size, and mix with water in your sprayer bottle.  Not only are you eliminating toxic chemicals in your home, but reducing the demand for highly toxic chemicals in plastic bottles and all the environmental damage that goes with that entire process.

 Bathrooms: Use your 50/50 vinegar water spray here for surfaces and mirrors as well.  Baking soda paste scrubbed into grout and tub and sink gunky areas works great.  You can use Borax, which is cheap and non-toxic, for mildew areas in showers.  Industrial cleaners typically contain glycol ethers, which are easily absorbed through the skin and have been linked to reproductive problems and birth defects in animal studies.  Not a good idea, and way overkill considering the simple alternatives! 

Baking soda and your scrub brush to clean the “throne”, and if it needs whitening, hydrogen peroxide works or try (gently!) scrubbing stubborn stains with a pumice stone.

 While we are on the subject of clean, fresh smelling homes, please consider reducing or eliminating the use of aerosol sprays, scented oils, plug-ins, etc.  Many of these have not been tested for health effects, and add to the number of particles we breath in our indoor spaces that may contribute to allergies, breathing problems, and generally poor indoor air quality.  Opt for sensible ventilation practices instead; an open window when climate allows and use of vent fans to pull odors out.   

 Our Stanberry and Associates wish for you is a healthier, safer, and more eco-wise clean home for 2010, and a Happy New Year. 

 For further reading: 

http://www.seventhgeneration.com/show-whats-inside/cleaning-products-ingredients-guide

http://www.womenandenvironment.org/campaignsandprograms/SafeCleaning/recipes

HouseLogic green cleaning articles: http://tinyurl.com/yl4u7ha