Saturday, January 12, 2008

Clean and Green


I totally quit using chemical cleaners about three years ago. My house is just as clean and we don't get sick! Even without the 'industrial kills 99.9% of all germs" sprays. Simple old fashioned products is all you need. Not only is it much better for the environment, it's great for the budget as well. Even laundry detergent is easy to make and costs about .75 cents for two gallons. All you need is 1/2 a cup for each load. I'm not sure how many loads that is. I think around 40 or so.

I use a mixture of lavender essential oil and water for spraying my kitchen counters. Some things you should take extra care with. Such as, not using the same knife to cut the lettuce that you just cut raw meat with. Vinegar and water is all I use for cleaning surfaces, mirrors, glass, and my porcelain tile floors. I clean my bathroom toilets, tubs and sinks with a sprinkling of borax. Then I apply a little elbow grease to remove any buildup. Then I spray the entire area with lavender spray. I use a micro-fiber cloth to dust and old cut up bath towels and cloths for cleaning. To polish my furniture, A mixture of lemon essential oil and jojoba oil works beautifully.

Here's my cleaning recipes: Vinegar Spray-1/2 cup vinegar to 4 cups of water, Lavender Spray-20 drops lavender essential oil to 1 cup of water. For polishing furniture I just sprinkle a few drops of jojoba oil and lemon essential oil on a rag and rub.

Homemade Laundry Detergent:
1/3 bar Fels Naptha soaps (other bar laundry soaps may work, I buy Fels Naptha from SoapsGoneBuy.com)
1/2 cup washing soda (sodium carbonate)
1/2 cup borax powder
You will need a small bucket to hold at least two gallons

Method: Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups of water and heat until the soap melts. Add washing soda and borax, stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Add your soap mixture and stir. Then add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the mixture sit for 24 hours and it will gel. Use 1/2 cup per load.

For scent I add 10 drops of lavender essential oil and 10 drops of orange essential oil. You can add your favorite scent of essential oils.

The texture of the soap gel varies for me. Sometimes it is thicker and sometimes it is like egg drop soup. I keep a spoon in my bucket to stir it each time I use it. I have a very modern high efficiency washer and the laundry soap works fine in it. My husband just finished building me a wonderful clothesline. I will include a picture in upcoming posts.

I really believe most of the products we buy are unnecessary. Advertising does a great job of making us feel inadequate, so we buy their products believing it will make life better. In reality most of these products further complicate our lives. That could be another long, long, long, discussion!

4 comments:

rhonda jean said...

Hello Kristi. They're great cleaning recipes you're using. Yours is the first challenge badge I've seen on someone else's blog. Thank you for taking part in the challenge.

I'll be back to read some more later.

Daisy said...

Did you leave out an ingredient? You say to "Add 6 cups after and heat..." Six cups of WHAT?

Thanks!

Method: Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups after and heat until the soap melts. Add washing soda and borax, stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Add your soap mixture and stir. Then add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the mixture sit for 24 hours and it will gel. Use 1/2 cup per load.

Kristi said...

Oops! Sorry Daisy, I did leave out an ingredient. I will modify. Thanks!

Kristi said...

Thanks Rhonda for visiting my blog! I've been reading yours for a while now. Very Inspirational. A lot of new ideas for helping me along in my pursuit of a simple lifestyle.