Why Make Cleaning Eco Friendly?

Admin — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 12:20:08 +0000

We are bombarded with ideas, guidelines and instructions to make our lives Greener and reduce our Carbon Footprint. But should we be making our Cleaning Eco Friendly, and if so, why?

Green Cleaners Use Fewer Resources

It makes no difference whether you are a believer in climate change or not. There is simply no denying that the fact that there are far too many souls on our little planet to allow all of us to use resources at the rate the developed world has been doing so for the last fifty years. Now, we are used to having certain things, and using certain products it is difficult to give them all up. The realm of housework and domestic cleaning is something that has come a long way over the last century. I doubt there are many who would be happy to revert back to the days when looking after the home was a full time job, not just for the wife of the family, but also her daughters or staff. But, all that being said there is still plenty that could be done, if not to eradicate our impact on the planet, then certainly to reduce it.

Switch to Safer Greener Cleaners

Turning to Eco Friendly Cleaning Products and Methods is just one part of reducing the load our family is on the environment. But, there is a more immediate gain too. Many conventional cleaners are full of allergens, poisons and toxic chemicals. These are all problematic to store and dangerous to use. Read the instructions on any conventional cleaning product and you will see how we should use them in well ventilated rooms, not in conjunction with anything else, and avoid breathing in the fumes. This is all much easier said than done, particularly for the busy house husband or wife. Most accidental poisonings affecting American children are related to chemical cleaning products. In addition, many scientists now blame the surge in cases of childhood asthma, allergies and other respiratory problems on the chemical cocktail in the average home. Even if you are not trying to save the planet, switching to less toxic cleaners is a great way to help save your kids.

Now of course, the average Eco Friendly Cleaning Product is unlikely to be suitable for human consumption. But, the key thing is overall they give off fewer dangerous fumes and contain less toxic chemicals. Still reading the labels is a must. Simple things such as citrus extracts are often used in both green and conventional cleaning products. They cut through grease and give a wonderful perfume. But, be warned many of us are allergic to these citrus oils, so even though they are natural and obviously less dangerous than a bottle of bleach, they can still be a concern.

Avoiding Petrochemicals with Green Cleaning Products

In addition many are composed of petrochemicals. While I know not many of us wish to give up our cars just yet, using less oil is something we all need to try before it is too late. It is not just that oil is hugely polluting as both an industry and in itself, there simply is not enough of it to go around. Pretty soon we really will need to prioritize its use, and surely an oil based detergent is a whole lot less important than keeping emergency vehicles running?

Detergents are often the cause of many sensitivities and allergies to things such as laundry products. Switching to palm oil derived detergents or better still natural vegetable oil based soaps is far kinder to your skin and the environment.

So Why Make Cleaning Eco Friendly?

We should all make Cleaning Eco Friendly because it is one small thing we are all capable of achieving. Our household cleaners account for a huge volume of the pollutants our family is responsible for. Change those and we change a big part of our problematic behavior. Moving to less toxic products keeps ourselves and our families safer too. Avoiding petrochemicals is something we simply must do whenever possible as there are so many alternatives that are not finite resources.

Eco Cleaning Products – What to Look For

Admin — Sat, 02 May 2009 08:44:56 +0000

If you are switching to Eco cleaning products chose wisely. There is nothing to gain from assuming anything. Manufacturers are marketing savvy experts in selling us what they think we want, whether or not it really is what we hope for. Just because an item has natural ingredients, or fruit fragrances does not mean all the ingredients are safe. Eco cleaners should be entirely safe for you and the environment. If you are trying to make your cleaning Eco friendly chose your Eco cleaners with care.

The key points to look out for when choosing any Eco cleaners are:

Eco cleaners should state they are biodegradable
Eco cleaners should be phosphate free
Eco cleaners should be chlorine free
Eco cleaners should be bleach free
Eco cleaners should state they are scented with natural plant derived scents or essential oils
Eco cleaners should state they are non toxic

No matter how fantastic the credentials of the ingredients in your new green cleaning product, do not forget the packaging. Check for:

100% recyclable packaging, including bottle caps
Avoid aerosols
Look for concentrated products so you have to buy less packs and thus save on packaging
Look for vegetable based ‘plastics’ used in packaging more and more

Just because a brand is known as famous for making cleaning Eco friendly, do not assume everything in their range is a safe cleaning product. Certain types of cleaner are very tough to really make safe and completely non-toxic. Items to check more thoroughly are:

Drain cleaners
Tile cleaners
Toilet cleaners

All the above are still likely to contain lye or similar corrosive elements. They will undoubtedly contain less than the standard alternatives. But, do not be fooled into assuming they are 100% environmentally friendly. Any cleaner you want to tackle really tough jobs has to be tough and so is likely to be toxic to some degree.

For a full list of ingredients to avoid check out which chemicals to avoid.

Some other key factors to consider are:

If possible chose all natural cleaning products, but beware that people can still be as sensitive to natural ingredients (especially perfumes) as they are to synthetic ingredients.
Always avoid petroleum derived detergents and instead switch to coconut or palm oil detergents or natural, vegetable based soaps. This way you save oil and stop funding the petroleum industry with your housework.
Use less product. To really make your cleaning Eco friendly, use less. Even the most green cleaning product requires energy to produce, uses up natural resources and your money. The more you use, the more water needed to rinse it away.
Sometimes you need no Eco cleaners at all. Do not forget a good Microfiber Cleaning Cloths, simply dampened with water can clean an awful lot of surfaces. Using no cleaner is the most environmentally way of cleaning your home of all.
Avoid the temptation to dry your cleaning efforts with paper towels. These cause huge environmental impact in their production, transportation and disposal. Many paper towels use bleaches in their production. Even though many are now made from sustained forests the dry cloth will always beat them in the Eco friendly stakes.

Don’t forget about the simple green cleaners you already have in your kitchen.

A mild Eco friendly hand dish-washing liquid can be used as a general multi-purpose green cleaner throughout your home.
Vinegar and baking soda are both common household items which have a multitude of uses as Eco cleaners too.

Making your cleaning Eco friendly is more about a change in attitudes, than just buying your way to green cleaning.

Never assume anything, even the green cleaners are trying to sell themselves to you. Check labels thoroughly and wherever possible do a little more research on the Internet. Some green cleaning product manufacturers have really useful, open websites. Here you should be able to find out exactly what each ingredient is and the possible risks associated with it. If the manufacturer is not that forthcoming shop with one who is.

Good luck with making your cleaning Eco friendly!