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BANG FOR THE BITE
If 10,000 Biter households halve the amount of hazardous chems we use, we'll avert the weight of 568 oriental carpets (flying or otherwise) in dangerous waste.
COCKTAIL FACT
The genie worked its magic: The song "A Whole New World" from Aladdin is the only song from a Disney film to have reached #1 on the Billboard pop charts.
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home › tip library › Home Cleaning Products
Is it gonna take more than elbow grease to de-grime your place?
The Bite
Sounds like you need an eco-cleanie in a bottle. Our top picks for every kind of home cleaning will help freshen up your flying carpets and make your magic lamps shine, while helping you avoid rubbing grime the wrong way: with caustic chems.The Benefits
- Getting your third wish. After world peace and an end to global warming, an always-spotless house is at the top of our wish lists.
- Protecting kiddos. Conventional cleaning products are responsible for about 10% of toxic-exposure calls to poison control.
- Cleaner streams. High concentrations of detergents were found in 69% of waterways in a 2002 nationwide study.
Personally Speaking
We hate cleaning. But the Eco-Me DIY cleaning supplies kit almost made cleaning fun. Almost.Wanna Try?
- Eco-Me Home Kit - refillable, easy-measure bottles and natural organic oils make it supereasy to whip up your own cleaning supplies with household items like baking soda and vinegar ($26).
Carpets
- Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Carpet Cleaner - bio formula freshens up and gets odors out of your carpet, rugs, and upholstery ($7/22 oz).
Dishes
- Caldrea Dish Soap Liquid - concentrated and offered in six scents; we heart the ginger pomelo version ($8/16 oz).
Floors
- Method Omop Starter Kit - avoid Swiffer-like waste with a washable, reusable pad plus biodegradable floor-cleaning liquid ($30).
Surfaces
- Shaklee Get Clean Scour Off Paste - this paste works like your powder scrub - if not better - but avoids Comet-esque chem dust ($9/9 oz).
Toilets
- Seventh Generation Toilet Bowl Cleaner - chlorine-free throne cleaner in a partially recycled package; smells like the mountains ($4/32 oz).
Windows/Surfaces
- Ecover Glass and Surface Cleaner - get your windows and tile gleaming with this 2-in-1, no-streak solution ($4/16 oz).
Wood
- Method Wood for Good - gets grime out and brings the shine without petroleum wax ($5/12 oz).
- About.com - baking soda, lemon juice, and vinegar are great natural cleaners if you're into DIY.
Apr 14,2008
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All editorial suggestions in this tip are the result of testing and a preference for the tip topic. No advertiser has paid to have its company referenced in the tip. For more information, please read our Editorial Policy.
Spring Has Sprung
Here in San Francisco, the daffodils are definitely done, and even my lilacs are nearly past their prime. In much of the rest of the country, however, Spring is just starting to raise its head in shooting crocuses and melting snows and tiny buds. Makes me feel awake and alive and fresh and refreshed...
But I'm still not gonna spring clean my house.
-Heather... off to sniff my jasmine flowers...
Biter Comments...
My fave pet-friendly, non-chemical, grease buster and all-round good cleaning and good smelling product is Thieves Household cleaner made by Young Living Essential Oils. It contains a blend of EOs that power through even centuries old crusty baked on grease.
Oh, one more question...is there an eco-friendly carpet cleaner that can be used with Rug-Doctor type equipment for when the carpets really need an all-over clean vs. spot treatment...I've been trying to get by with just a steam treatment (no soap) but ... as my sister finally said..."have ya ever washed your hair without soap?" Yea, I guess sometimes ya need it...;)
RE: Spring Cleaning. Just a note although this info is widely publicized and scientifically documented, many cleaners are laden with masking scents or fragrances, so the "mountains" and "fresh flowers" that you are spraying into your air, drizzling on your carpet, swirling in the toilet and dusting the countertops are in many cases, neurotoxins, carcinogens or a chemical cocktail can cause allergic reactions in you, your family and pets.
Click on: www.naturalnews.com/022902.html
for more info.
Have a great and healthy Spring.
Roger
Thanks, Roger! That's exactly why our picks use truly nature-derived fragrances, 100% free of the nasty chems found in traditional cleaning products.
Drugstore.com has a sale on all "green & natural" products until April 25th! You get 10% back and up to 40% off.
Janet, YL Thieves EO is great for a lot of things, even a sore throat/cough!
Jill, why not use Earth Friendly's carpet shampoo or a soap or shampoo product from Seven Gen?
My new favorite line of eco-friendly cleaning products is EarthSavers Organic Home. I especially like the all-purpose spray cleaner which is made with organic oils including rose oil. It smells wonderful. Their stain remover works really well.
I must say, Spring is certainly welcome after our winter here in Central New York! My personal cleaning favorite, white vinegar. My wood-floor-refinisher-technician-person said it is the best thing to clean the wood floors. He was right! A one to one ratio of vinegar and water. Mist a small amount over the area to be cleaned, run your O-MOP over it a few time and ta-da, clean wood floor. Yes, the smell of vinegar is not exactly my favorite thing, but as soon as it drys the smell dissapears. Clean floors and you haven't exposed yourself, your family or your pets to any hazardous chems - and that truly is sweet!
yes! Bon Ami! I have been using that ever since i was a kid. and, best of all, it's like ONE DOLLAR. No need for fancy, expensive 'eco' cleaners. that, vinegar and baking soda pretty much get everything clean.
about carpet cleaning -- i know a guy who used to work for one of those carpet cleaning places. he told me you can't ever really clean a carpet. using soap makes it worse because it always leaves a residue, which in turn attracts more dirt. steaming is the way to go if you must have wall-to-wall carpets.
and by the way, yes, you can get your hair clean WITHOUT shampoo. Shampoo is horrible for your hair. Conditioner and rinses will actually keep your hair clean and clean looking with a ton less negative impact on the environment.
find tips for going 'poo-less' at:
http://www.naturalfamilyonline.com/go/index.php/3a89/why-you-should-go-no-poo/
http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/forumdisplay.php?f=28
There's a PROBLEM with Method OMOPS, the cloth's compostable because it's derived from corn. There's a hike in food prices worldwide with food strikes because of the increase in demand of corn for biofuels and other usages. At least 50 people have died already. Corn is used as an alternative source for too much and it's not the green answer.
Here's the easiest to read article I found regarding this with some quotes. It's mostly in refernce to biofuels but I think anything that uses corn as other than food is the same category.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1725975,00.html
"The grain it takes to fill an SUV tank with ethanol could feed a person for a year."
"Soaring corn prices have sparked tortilla riots in Mexico City" - that was the first of many food riots, this one took place in Jan 07
" using land to grow fuel leads to the destruction of forests, wetlands and grasslands that store enormous amounts of carbon."
A review of 8 green bathroom cleaners: http://www.grist.org/advice/products/2008/03/25/
I am personally a fan of vinegar and Borax. I was using disposable Method wipes, until someone pointed out that you still have to go through the manufacturing processes, even if they are biodegradable.
Oops.
PHOTO ALBUMS
Posted by: dottie | April 14, 2008 at 09:37 AM