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Posts Tagged ‘non-toxic’

To properly determine if you are purchasing non-toxic cleaning products you must first know what is toxic. First check the label of the products you use or plan to use. Do you see a warning on the label?

Are the words WARNING, DANGER or CAUTION present?  Is KEEP OUT OF REACH of CHILDREN present? With these words present a clear sign that danger lurks within the product exists.

Toxic substances have short and long term consequences of use and exposure. Products that contain heavy metals and are absorbed through the skin could cause liver damage. If repeatedly exposed permanent liver damage could occur or even death. This is not immediate but a cumulative effect cannot be ignored.

One of the most commonly used toxic substances that might be feared the most is pesticide. These are used in almost every household.  The local government agencies in America even spray whole communities with pesticides in an attempt to control the mosquito population.

Present in those aerosols are chemicals which their sole purpose is to stop nerve cells from communicating. Year after year the accumulative effect could have detrimental effects on your health. Just look at the dead mosquito’s and the danger is clear.

Our environment is the only one we have. It needs to be taken care of and treated with respect. When you decide to only use non toxic cleaners please dispose of the toxic cleaners that are presently in your house properly.

In 2002 the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a study of the percentage of contaminants in the streams across our nation. They found that 69% of the streams contained residue from detergents and 66 % had disinfectants present.

We at Way to Go Green suggest the following.  We all need this water to live. Please be responsible with your chemicals. The sooner people switch to non-toxic cleaners, the safer and healthier we all will be.

Check out another article on green cleaning products.

For Commercial or Industrial green cleaning products check out the Janitorial Products Blog.

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A natural carpet cleaner is what is advertised by many companies in our country claiming to have such products or services. It is a surprise to see the different approaches.

“Naturell” claims to be powered by nature. This sounds good. They have a patented cleaning product made from sea kelp and only natural occurring processes. The EPA has recognized this completely organic product. Naturell was the recipient of their SDSI Champion Award.

Some of the good points regarding the way Naturell cleans your carpet are encouraging. Their process uses 95% less water than most conventional cleaning companies. All the dirt from your carpet is collected in bonnets with no waste water to dispose of. With no detergents used there would be no sticky residue that would remain on your carpet. The carpet dries in less than thirty minutes.

“Naturalist” is another all natural carpet cleaning service. Their system utilizes the natural cleaning properties of citrus along with oxygen. This company also makes the claim of only cleaning with minimal water, but neglects to state how much. The non-toxic process dries in less than an hour without the use of detergents or soaps.

For the natural carpet cleaner that you can do yourself use good old baking soda and vinegar. A mild soap like dish soap will help with most common stains. Use a damp sponge and scrub. If the stain is stubborn add the baking soda and vinegar and let it bubble.

The combination of these two natural and common household products can do wonders. Most of their cleaning ability comes from the reaction between the two. When the carpet is dry you just vacuum away your dirt. Yes this is a little more work that hiring someone, but you get to control the ingredients and there is no waste water.

There are many other natural carpet cleaners but we believe baking soda and vinegar are the cheapest and eco-friendly to use.

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For the person wishing to have clean windows but tired of using those harsh cleaners loaded with toxic chemicals, I have the window cleaner recipes for you. Please remember that all cleaners, either toxic or non-toxic should be handled with care and always kept out of reach of children.

1) Non-toxic, non-ammonia window and glass cleaner: into a labeled spray bottle add ¼ cup of vinegar, ½ teaspoon of liquid dish soap and 1 ½ to 2 cups of distilled water. Place lid on bottle and shake to mix. For added cleaning strength and a fresh lemon scent add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.

2) Non-toxic window and glass cleaner: All ingredient need to placed into a mixing container before transfer to a spray bottle. Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to ¼ cup of ammonia, ¼ cup of vinegar and ½ gallon of warm distilled water; mix until all cornstarch is dissolved. The warmer the water, the fast the starch will dissolve. Transfer the solution to a labeled spray bottle and then cap the bottle.

Note: distilled water is used to eliminate dissolved solids in regular tap water.

Helpful hints:

1) Use your clean newspaper as the wiping medium. This is not only a useful reuse of your daily paper but for some reason it also reduces streaking.

2) Clean windows either in the morning or evening hours. If the window or glass is warm to hot, the cleaner could evaporate before being wiped off which would produce spots and streaking.

3) For windows, wipe each side in a different direction. This will make it easier to identify which side has a streak if any are present.

These are just a couple of handy window cleaner recipes and tips to help you do that chore that we all avoid. Stay seeing clean and green.

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