Cleaning | Prudent and Practical

January 13, 2010

5 Ways to Green Your Cleaning in 2010

Filed under: saving money — Tags: cleaning, DIY, health, home, natural — K @ 3:39 AM

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The following is a guest post by Marcy Tate.

Greening your cleaning is not only good for the planet, it’s good for your pocket. It’s pretty simple to green your cleaning and you’ll notice the savings right away. Clean better and feel better in 2010 by following some of these eco-friendly cleaning tips:

1. Natural Cleaning Products –You can reduce your exposure to harmful chemicals found in chemical based cleaning products by using inexpensive, natural cleaning products found right in your pantry. Using vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice is not a new idea, however it is often overlooked. Make a separate area away from your pantry to store vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice. It will remind you to go green when you clean.

Vinegar

Vinegar has many cleaning uses. Vinegar cleaning involves diluting vinegar with hot water in a bucket or in a spray bottle. Use it for washing hardwood floors, windows, toilets, tubs and more. Vinegar is great for removing hard water stains from glass shower doors. You can purchase vinegar in bulk from warehouse stores or buy it at your local grocery store for under $4 a gallon.

Baking Soda

Baking soda is a natural deodorizer and stain remover. It is great for removing stains from clothes. Just add some baking soda to a hot-water load of clothes. Other great uses for baking soda include unclogging drains and removing odors from a garbage disposal. Some baking sodas contain aluminum. Check the ingredients of the baking soda you select to make sure it does not contain aluminum. Some studies suggest that aluminum exposure is linked to diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.

Lemon Juice

Lemon juice has similar cleaning capabilities to vinegar. Also acidic, lemon juice can disinfect sinks and toilets.

Simple Combinations

Try these natural cleaning product combinations for quick, easy and eco-friendly cleaning:

Multi-purpose cleaner: Dilute baking soda, castile soap, water and a few drops of any essential oil.
Clog remover: Pour ½ C. to 1 C . of baking soda down the clogged drain. Then pour ½ C. to 1 C . of vinegar down the drain. Wait about 15 minutes and flush with very hot water.

2. Green Cleaning Products – Green cleaning products refer to products made from non-toxic, biodegradable and renewable resources. Green cleaning products are manufactured by companies that produce chemical-based cleaning products. Not all green cleaning products are as green as they claim to be. The EPA does not require manufacturers to list all ingredients in household cleaners. Check the labels of the products to be sure they are eco-friendly; mineral or plant-based ingredients are a sign that they are eco-friendly.

Choose refillable containers when purchasing green cleaning products to help you avoid the need to purchase a bottle each time. Tip: Don’t throw away your old cleaning products. It’s better to dispose of them at a toxins recycle center that accepts cleaning product waste.

3. Get Rid of Disposables – Disposable cleaning supplies are filling up landfills at alarming rates. All types of disposable cleaning products, such as dusting cloths, paper towels and cleaning wipes should be replaced with reusable rags and microfiber towel or cloths. An even greater cost-effective method is to cut up old T-shirts and undershirts and use them as rags. A great perk is that you can choose the size of the rag.

4. Water Conservation – Washing dishes with an open tap can use up to 20 gallons of water a day. Instead, fill the sink, dishpan or bowl with water. Closing the tap can save 10 gallons , which equates a few hundred dollars a year off your water bill. An additional way to green your dishwashing is to cut down on your dishwasher use by running the dishwasher only when it is completely full.

5. Hang Your Laundry – Hanging laundry is extremely eco-friendly. It can save you money by lowering your gas and electric bill. Hanging laundry reduces your gas and electricity usage. It also eliminates the need for dryer sheets, which cuts down on waste.

Marcy Tate is a blogger at Networx. She is also a featured author at Landscaping Networx.

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July 14, 2009

DIY Laundry Supplies Part 1: Detergent

Filed under: Headline — Tags: cleaning, DIY, home, saving money — K @ 8:45 PM

I frequently look for homemade household cleaning products and recently came across one for homemade laundry detergent. It looked like a more eco friendly idea, fun, cheap, and practical at the same time so I decided to give it a try.

You’ll need to gather these supplies before you get started:

1 bar of soap (whatever you have around: Fals Neptha, etc. I used Lever 2000 because DH bought a lifetime supply last summer)
1 box of washing soda (look for it in the laundry detergent aisle at your local grocer – it’s a bright yellow Arm & Hammer box and will contain enough for six batches)
1 box of borax (this isn’t necessary, but it’s easy to find so why not boost the cleaning power?)
A 4-5 gallon bucket (preferably with a lid if you want to store it in the bucket)
3 gallons of tap water
A big spoon to stir the mixture with
A measuring cup
A knife
A 2+ quart pot (for melting the soap)

Instructions:

Part 1: Pour approximately 4 cups of water into a pot. Place on stove and heat on high until almost boiling. While the water is heating, use your knife to SHAVE the bar of soap into the heating water. (SHAVE – do not cut chunks of soap into the water – I learned this the hard way that small chunks do NOT melt!) Keep the mixture just below a boil. Keep stirring until the soap is dissolved.
Part 2: Pour three gallons of hot water into your 4+ gallon bucket. I used a spare one gallon milk jug. Mix the hot soapy water slurry into the 4+ gallon bucket. Stir to mix well. Add one cup of washing soda and stir that in well. Add one-half cup of borax and stir in well. Leave overnight to gel up.
Part 3: In the morning check on your mix… it’ll be kind of like soft gelatin. My mix was white since that was the color of the soap bar I used. Dump one cup in the washing machine and wash your clothes!

picture 126 300x225 photo DIY Laundry Supplies Part 1: Detergent

Here, you can see its gelatinous texture

So, I plop one cup into the washing machine with warm water – no suds…hm. At this point I’m glad I tried the recipe with towels instead of clothes. Later, after I hear the washing machine stop, I run down to see the results. The towels look fine. I had tossed in a very dirty towel – one with stains that Era hasn’t been able to get out – and the mix actually lightened the stains, but not the towels itself. I like the smell – it reminds me of fresh hotel linens.

My only problem with the mix is the washing soda – the nearest store that carries it is 1 1/2 hours away. I purchased two boxes while on a business trip – Jewel Osco in the Chicago area carries it for about $3. You can purchase the washing soda on Arm & Hammer’s website, which will set you back about $10 just for one box by the time you pay shipping

The math has already been done…

Three gallons will clean about 48 loads of laundry. If you do this six times, you’ll have used six bars of soap ($0.99 each), one box of washing soda ($2.49 at our store), and about half a box of borax ($2.49 at our store, so $1.25) and make 288 loads of laundry. This comes up to a cost of right around three cents a gallon, or a savings of $70.

Thanks to Trent over at the Simple Dollar for this great idea!

Stay tuned for homemade fabric softener and homemade dryer sheets.

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April 29, 2009

What am I going to do with that junk? Reduce Reuse Recycle!

Filed under: General — Tags: bargains, cleaning, DIY, free, home, manage — K @ 1:00 AM

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Spring is HERE and with that, the inevitable spring cleaning. Before you throw everything away, remember this: each day Americans alone produce about 4.6 pounds of waste per day. While you may know what to do with certain items – items with the recyclable symbol can go to the recycle bin and spare items can go to Goodwill or Salvation Army.

Reduce

One important way to reduce is to stop drinking bottled water! Most bottled water containers end up in the landfill even though they can be recycled. They also take quite a few resources to create and research has shown that many companies falsely state their water is “pure” – meaning you can get comparable water from your kitchen sink. Invest in a BPA free water bottle or metal bottle and a water filter attachment for your sink. Many fridges now come with water filters already built in. This not only helps ease the environmental impact, but also the financial impact on you. For more ways to recycle based on the different rooms in your home, check out Reduce.Org.

Another big thing is to stop using plastic bags when you get groceries. You can purchase the cheap reusable bags or reuse the plastic bags you already have at home. You may also be able to find alternatives at Goodwill, Salvation Army, garage sales, or consignment shops. I’m more interested in this option – many of the cheap reusable bags are “Made in China” which kind of defeats the purpose. If you’re decent with a sewing machine, you can sew your own.

Reuse

I like to reuse stuff because I like to come up with new ways to use it. Towels you’re not using could be turned into a beach bag and clean jars (think peanut butter and jelly, pill canisters) can be made into small item storage. In fact, I reused my parents living room set – they didn’t have room for it and I had a new apartment, so I used them. The set they purchased to replace the previous is now ours too. Now that D and I have a house, one set is downstairs and one set is upstairs – it worked out great for everyone.

Gallon milk containers are reused during Christmas-time around here. A string of C9 bulbs are placed on the perimeter of the lawn and driveway. Holes are cut in the bottom of the containers and placed over the lights for a cool glowing effect similar to luminaries. This is a popular and cheap thing to do, especially if you drink a lot of milk!

My favorite is composting! There are a couple different ways to do this. Traditional compost can be created by throwing in leaves, grass clippings, fresh produce scraps, and napkins. The bin can be created easily by screwing together a few spare pallets or you can use a spare garbage can. Vermicompost is composting with worms. You can either buy a specialized worm bin or create your own from a common closet storage bin. The worm colony can eat up to two pounds of scraps (fresh produce, but no citrus, and paper) per day! Plus compost and worm “castings” (aka: poo) are fantastic for your yard and gardening needs.

Recycle

Ok, we all pretty much know about recycling, but what about big items? If you have mattresses or carpet in very good condition, you could donate to Habitat for Humanity. Other options would be to list the items on Freecycle or Craigslist.

If you have “technotrash” such as computer-related items, cell phones, rechargeable batteries, and printer cartridges, go to GreenDisk to find out where you can recycle them safely.

To get rid of hazardous waste or recycling, visit Earth 911 for the place nearest to you that can help out.

Resources (hm, a 4th “R”)

A couple of my favorite places to visit for RRR help are the MN Pollution Control Agency and IdealBite. IdealBite has an option to sign up for a daily tip – it’s a short and sweet email I enjoy every morning. Sam Champion’s Just One Thing on the Good Morning America website has many ideas for reducing, reusing, and recycling.

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April 24, 2009

Homemade Laundry Supplies Part 3: Powdered Detergent

Filed under: General — Tags: cleaning, home, natural — K @ 3:17 PM

: Image via Wikipedia

The last installment in the Homemade Laundry Supplies series will be covering powdered laundry detergent. Like liquid detergent, powdered detergent ingredients are pretty much the same across the board. If you don’t have the room for a big barrel of soap, I suggest the first or third recipe since they’re in a much smaller quantity.

Powdered Laundry Detergent #1

2 bars (aka: 2 cups) Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated – you could also try other bars of soap)
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Borax

Mix all ingredients well and store in a sealed container.
Use 2 tablespoons per full load.
Servings / Loads: 32 loads
Cost: $2.83
Dollars and $ense comparison ratio: This would be like a 96 load detergent costing $8.49.

Powdered Laundry Detergent #2

12 cups Borax
8 cups Baking Soda
8 cups Washing Soda
8 cups Bar soap (finely grated)

Mix all ingredients well and store in a sealed container.
Use 2 tablespoons per full load.
Servings / Loads: 288 loads
Cost: $19.02
Dollars and $ense comparison ratio: This would be like a 96 load detergent costing $6.34.

Powdered Laundry Detergent #3

1/4 cup liquid castile soap
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Baking Soda
1 cup Vinegar (white)

Mix all ingredients well in the order given and and mix after the addition of each ingredient. You will have a thick paste; keep stirring and it will turn into a powder.
Use 1/2 cup per full load.
Servings / loads: 6 loads
Cost: $1.73
Dollars and $ense comparison ratio: This would be like a 96 load detergent costing $27.68.

Dollars and $ense

Powdered Laundry Detergent #1 = 96 loads for $8.49
Powdered Laundry Detergent #2 = 96 loads for $6.34
Powdered Laundry Detergent #3 = 96 loads for $27.88
Cheer Powder = 80 loads for $16.18
Gain Powder = 80 loads for $12.29
Tide Powder = 80 loads for $14.35

The verdict: Homemade powdered detergents are much cheaper! The liquid castile soap and the amount used per load in Detergent #3 make it a much more expensive option. The benefit of the homemade detergents is that you know what’s in your detergent and you aren’t out there purchasing container after container of detergent that will probably end up in a landfill.

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April 17, 2009

What Does it Take to Remove Ink Stains From the Dryer?

Filed under: life — Tags: cleaning, home — D @ 9:18 PM

: Image via Wikipedia

Background

I have a terrible time leaving things in my pant pockets when they go down the laundry shoot. Money, candy, pens, pencils. Just about anything I can stuff in my pockets at work have been discovered in my pockets in the final inspection before the washing machine. Fortunately, my wife remembers to always check my clothes before she washes them. I am not usually very good at checking – I am more of a scoop and dump person when it comes to laundry; scoop up the clothes and dump them in the washing machine.

So last week, when my wife called me into the laundry room and pointed to the open dryer hatch with a scowl on her face, I knew something was wrong. I peered inside and this is what I saw.

I had left an ink pen in my pant pocket and it exploded all over the drying machine. Neither clothes nor machine were spared. After getting over my initial frustrations, I thought it would be a good opportunity to evaluate different stain cleaners and see how each one performed. I ventured onto the internet and looked at different recommendations for removing ink stains and picked 5 different methods to try.

The Test

The following products were tested following the manufactures directions or directions found on other websites:

Goo-Gone (1 pint)
Hair Spray (AquaNet and Suave)
Ink Stain Remover (8 fl oz)
Baking Soda
Bleach (96 fl oz)

See the next page for the specific results, or click here for the winner.

Pages: 1 2 3

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