It's Spring! And a wonderful time to throw open the windows, air out the house and start spring cleaning. For some of us, spring cleaning is dreaded and for others it is an exciting time to purge, refresh and renew our homes and our spirits. Below we give you some great tips on healthy cleaning supplies and great ways to save money as you take inventory for your spring cleaning.
Stop for a moment and look at your cleaning supplies. First, you may notice you have a special product for everything - windows, kitchen countertops, bathroom countertops, toilets, tiles, floors, dusting, etc. Traditional cleaning products are a conglomerate of toxic, harsh chemicals adding to the buildup of toxins in our homes and affecting the health of our families. Allergies, asthma and skin conditions are often a result of chemicals in our homes and in the air we breathe. Not to mention, cleaning supplies can be really expensive. Did you know that some of our most common food ingredients are the best multi-purpose cleaners and cheap? Not to mention they are healthy, chemical free and environmentally safe.
Hands down, the best window and mirror cleaner ever is vinegar and water! Just mix half and half in a spray bottle and use newspapers or old T-shirts. Voila - streak free every time. And you can still recycle the newspaper. Vinegar is our favorite multi-purpose cleaner. Add it to a stinky load of clothes in the washing machine or run a cycle with vinegar alone to get rid of musty mildew smells. To remove build up on shower heads, remove the shower head and soak in a bowl of vinegar. Spray shower walls or shower curtains with vinegar to keep buildup at bay. Combine a little vinegar with another cleaning favorite, baking soda, to create a bubbly paste to clean countertops and sinks. Vinegar is great on coffee and tea stains - just poor some in or wipe on the cup. We could go on and on as the uses of vinegar in the home are endless.
Ever wonder why all those cleaners you buy say "with fresh lemon scent"? The acid in lemons is antibacterial and antiseptic making a wonderful cleaner. Rub lemon over cutting boards to disinfect and remove strong, lingering odors. You can also squeeze lemon juice over a counter stain, let sit for 10 minutes and wipe clean. To deodorize your garbage disposal, put some lemon peel in and grind. And if you just love that lemon scent, add it to your window or counter cleaners (the vinegar/water solution).
Other great natural cleaners include baking soda (as we mentioned above), tea tree oil, borax, corn starch and hydrogen peroxide.
And please, save the trees and your paper towels - use T-shirts and men's cotton underwear or purchase multi-use micro-fiber cloths or towels as all can be washed and reused. And if you don't have the 10 minutes to make the cleaners, there are some great eco-friendly and healthy ingredient cleaners on the market. Method, Seventh Generation and BioKleen are some of our favorite, reliable brands. In fact, the BioKleen Automatic Dishwasher soap is amazing for its whitening power and we not only use it in the dishwasher, but to soak really dirty dishes, grass or blood stained clothing (works every time and does not bleach), clean wine stains off the kitchen counter and makes our ceramic cream kitchen sink sparkle.
Do you have natural cleaning recipes and tips to share? Post them here on our blog or on our Facebook page.
Be Green, Be The Change.
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