Monday, September 26, 2011

Green Cleaning

Ever walk into the cleaning isle at Loblaws or Walmart and think “gee, there are a lot of green looking labels..how nice that everyone is offering more alternatives to cleaning products, tra lala lala”.

Wouldn’t it be nice if all those green labels actually reflected the quality of ingredients in those cleaners?! Sadly, the only thing that is “green” about those products is the colour of the sticker. It’s very unfortunate these days for large companies who think we’re stupid, as they go way down on my A-O-K list and on to the bottom of my Terra Plana shoe. Most companies who produce some of the most toxic ingredients, simply change their stickers and the wording of their ingredient labels (e.g instead of sodium lauryl sulfate it will say coconut derived surfactant). They change their name to say “Eco” or “Bio” to sound earthy and seem like they’ve turned a large environmental page in history; all the while in board meetings with their marketing team practising their evil laughs over a conference call with Monsanto.

There are very few cleaning companies that I like to support, as there are so many environmental claims that have no substance other than harmful chemical poop hidden behind a nice logo of a smiling tree hugging a distantly blue globe.

*On a side note- let it be known that most “eco certifications” or companies who have little icons on the product label claiming that a very important ground breaking company certifies their product is a load of dirty, stinky socks. Most of these companies do not even have a scientist or biologist who work for them, nor do they inspect any products or facilities. These companies make their money by getting others to pay for “certification”, meaning they pay to put a green looking logo and all the rights to advertise that logo on their product. Yep. Sneaky aint-it?! Most of these companies pay a fee of $500-$1200 a year just to have the rights to a little sticker that makes them “certified”. This is also true with most energy efficient washing machines. No one certifies to make something energy efficient. All it means, is that you use half the dose. The en*rgy st*r label itself, is the same thing…a finely tuned and incredibly smart and sneaky way to sell a product with no manufacturing cost except the rights to an image. Brilliant, but very dishonest.

Nature Clean
I support Nature Clean 100% for so many reasons. One, being that they listen to customer demand, are on the cutting edge and have really, really clean ingredients. As far as cleaning goes, I trust them because I know and understand what I am reading on their labels and their formulas are pretty at par with the old fashion methods of “natural works best”. It’s also an easy company to mention for cleaning products as they make a huge range of products from shampoo, laundry to all purpose and dish soap. I recently tried their pet stain/odour remover, which works really well (new puppy/carpet approved) and I’ve always used their dish detergent for all of the above reasons. They are also Canadian.

TKO Orange Oil
This stuff is supreme. It is all purpose from hand washing, floor cleaning, toilets to removing cat pee and skunk smell. Seriously. All it is, is orange oil concentrate. Concentrate being the key word, as the price often scares people away. But, you add the instructed amount into water and then use. Although the price may seem shocking to those who are used to spending $5-10 on a crappy product, this is magically wonderful and completely natural and biodegradable stuff. In my opinion, it smells wayyy better than any lemon fragrance you will come across and it will last you a very, very long time which is where the savings come into play. I especially like using this on floors, as it is safe for hardwood flooring and you don’t need to worry about pets getting it on their paws or into their system.

http://www.tkoorange.com

Dr. Bronner's
Getting sick of me talking about how I love this company? Too bad, cupcake. Their all purpose soaps really do mean all purpose. I love the idea that this is safe enough for my hair, skin and I can clean my shower with it too. There I am in the shower with my giant puffy sponge lathering my hair and then cleaning the tiles too. Splish, Splash, I forgot about the bath.

DIY
Here’s the thing about natural or organic cleaning products: if you are down with a little effort into making your own, it will be cheaper and more rewarding to just make your own. Most of the clean green products are made with the same ingredients you can find at the grocery store, or even in your cupboards. Less packaging is less waste, so it is better for the environment for you to make your own, and it will save you money for sure on top of your own self pride levels going up a few points therefor uplifting the overall positivity levels of the universe up to 2.6 notches.

Baking soda: powerhouse of cleaning and deodorizing along with 60 other multi purposes:

http://www.thefarm.org/

Cornstarch: Carpet and rug cleaner

Lemon juice: A natural enzyme brightener, gets rid of grease and stains on clothing and counter surfaces. Mix with olive oil for furniture cleaner!

Salt: great for scouring as it is abrasive and gentle.

White vinegar: A fantastic all purpose cleaner for removing mildew, grease and urine smell from cloth diaper laundry. Also great for washing windows and metal surfaces.

Grapefruit Extract: wonderful anti-fungal and disinfectants. Grapefruit seed extract and essential oils such as lavender, clove, and tea tree oil have antiseptic properties and operate as natural fungicides which is especially great in bathrooms and kitchens.

Club soda: Great for all kinds of clothing and carpet stains. You can even use this on windows if you find the vinegar smell hard to handle.

Also, get this book…it is also water resistant.

http://images.meredith.com/bhg/images/2007/06/p_100982880.jpg

1 comment:

  1. Love the one with the lemon and olive oil for furniture cleaner. I tried it and it smelled so good!

    knickgirl_3 at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete