Cleaning Week - Day 7 - The Smell of Success (Simmer Pots)

Today is the final day of Cleaning Week.  I have some remaining requests for topics including cleaning wood floors and composting.  I'll work on writing about those topics in the coming weeks since Cleaning Week is at a close.

Today's post is about simmer pots, to help your home smell as wonderful as it looks and feels after a thorough cleaning.
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Commentary:

Using natural and biodegradable cleaners will likely leave your home with less of a 'clean smell' than you are used to.  Many people, myself included, associate the smell of materials like bleach, ammonia, and chlorine with cleanliness.  Strong cleaner smells still remind me of elementary school and swirlies.

Natural cleaners often have little smell, or a less robust smell, than chemical cleaners.  I've enjoyed using simmer pots when cleaning, when it's cold outside, or just for a nice surprise when Amelia returns home from work.  I recommend starting the simmer pot before you start cleaning so it has time to work while you're cleaning.

Recipe 2: Orange (zest), cinnamon,
anise pods

Recipe 1: Lemon (zest), cinnamon stick,
cloves

A simmer pot is simply a pot of spices or other good smelling items simmered on the stove to produce a pleasant smell.  Below are a couple of my favorite recipes, and a couple of links to additional recipes.  I almost always use a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and anise and then vary the other ingredients including lemon and orange zest, vanilla extract, honey, and apples.

Directions:

1. Fill small pot with water
2. Add ingredients
3. Set burner on low



Hardware: Small pot, zester / microplane (optional)

4. Add water as needed

Suggested action steps:

1. Try one of the simmer pot recipes above (or try these or these) in place of chemical cleaners, aerosol sprays, plug-ins, or scented candles.
2. Experiment with a recipe of your own
3. Enjoy the fragrant smell (and humidifying effects) of using a simmer pot

Thanks for reading during Cleaning Week and if you have suggestions or questions on cleaning or other topics please let me know!

Cleaning Week - Day 5 - Toilets

Please clean me!

Today is day five of Cleaning Week and is about cleaning toilets.  Although cleaning toilets isn't a glamorous job, it is certainly a necessary one.
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Commentary:

Many toilet cleaners utilize bleach as an ingredient to help with whitening / cleaning, and to kill bacteria that may be present.  According to WebMD bleach is also a dangerous thing to have at home, especially if children are p

resent.

1. Because it's used so frequently, chlorine bleach is the most common cleaner that children accidentally swallow. 
2. When mixed with ammonia, another common ingredient of cleaning products, and acidic cleaners, such as toilet bowl cleaners, the mixture releases poisonous gasses. 
1. This is compounded by the difficulty in learning what ingredients are included in commercial cleaners since they're not typically listed on the label. 

If you want to avoid bleach in your home, like we did, you can use safer items that have similar properties to bleach.

1. For getting rid of mold and bacteria, vinegar or hydrogen peroxide are effective.  (I haven't used hydrogen peroxide since vinegar has worked very well for me.)
2. To clean and whiten I've had good success with a simple combination of vinegar and baking soda which I mentioned in a post on sinks and tubs, and utilize for many purposes.

In addition to being a health risk if inhaled or swallowed, bleach can also be absorbed through the skin.  Bleach is sometimes utilized to change skin coloration, with potentially disastrous results, as noted in this article from Ghana.  If you've cleaned with bleach before and not used gloves you've probably noticed the rough effect it can have on your skin.

Suggested action steps:

1. Put baking soda and / or vinegar into bowl.  (We have also used the Seventh Generation Emerald Cypress & Fir before if you want a pleasant odor after cleaning, but I think going forward we'll stick with the vinegar and baking soda.)
1. For stubborn stains try leaving vinegar in the bowl for a few hours or overnight.
2. Here are some more detailed instructions and options if my method doesn't work for you.
2. Scrub with toilet brush
3. Clean outside of tank with a rag and vinegar
4. Wait about an hour for vinegar smell to dissipate

Cleaning Week - Day 4 - Universities Setting an Example

I'm watching the KU vs. Missouri basketball game while writing this post (Rock Chalk) so thought a post on universities would be appropriate.

A number of universities have revamped their cleaning practices and/or providers in recent years, below are highlights from the University of Missouri - Kansas City (UMKC) and Harvard University.  UMKC was a winner of the 2011 Green Cleaning Awards (1 of 6 universities honored) and I selected Harvard since it's a premier university in the U.S. (and the world).

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UMKC - Notes about changes the school has implemented to their cleaning practices

1. A 5-year Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) study found concentrations of 20 toxic compounds 
   were as many as 200 times higher in the air inside homes and offices than outdoors.
2. This switch has halved the amount spent on cleaners, a reduction from $300,000 in 2008 to $140,000 in 2011 for the green cleaners and Green Seal-certified hand soap. 
3. Since the implementation of the green cleaning program, hundreds of toxic chemicals have been eliminated from use on campus and have been replaced with just three daily cleaners with environmentally friendly ingredients.

Harvard - Suggestions for green cleaning at home

1. Use cleaning products that:
1. Are phosphate free
2. Have plant-based and/or biodegradable products
3. Are not petroleum based
2. Use reusable micro-fiber cloths instead of disposable cloths
3. Minimize the use of anti-bacterial soap
4. Do not use bleach as a cleaning product
5. Do not use aerosols
6. Harvard also includes a list of hazardous ingredients to avoid.

Suggested action steps:

1. Consider implementing some of the suggested practices from Harvard
2. Ask your employer or apartment manager what cleaning products they use.  You have the right to know what materials are present in your place of work and residence.  Don't be surprised if your employer doesn't know.

Cleaning Week - Day 1 - Sinks & Showers

Happy Hump Day! 

 

I've received some requests to write about cleaners so the next week will be dedicated to this theme.  I'm still trying out different products and recipes and appreciate any additional information or experiences you would like to share.

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Yesterday, 2/21/2012, the U.S. government announced new rules to promote purchases of biobased soap and other supplies.  Although I'm not sure how these rules will be implemented I applaud this effort to move away from synthetic chemical based cleaners and use less (or non) toxic products for cleaning our hands and our public buildings.

Avoiding synthetic cleaners and opting for natural based cleaners is a good choice for avoiding adding harmful substances into your home when cleaning.  There are a number of brands available these days and I like Dr. Bronner's and Seventh Generation brands, which are widely available.  I also really appreciate the transparency these brands espouse by clearly printing all ingredients on their products.  This is something which most 'major' cleaning brands have been reluctant to do and have been taken to court to provide consumers with more information.  Cleaners don't have the same requirements that food products do to disclose their ingredients so it's largely up to voluntary disclosure by producers.

Many cleaners can also be made at home of common ingredients that you probably already have.  The following items can go a long way in cleaning your home easily, cheaply, and safely:

• Baking soda
• Vinegar (white)
• Lemons
• Salt
• Club Soda

If you need some lemons, don't forget to add your guess to last Saturday's post to get some for free.  Here's where the guesses stand to date.  Add your guess by this Friday, 2/24, for a chance to win. :)

Here is my method for cleaning sinks and showers.

Commentary:

• Drains
• Put 1/2 cup of baking soda in drain, add 1/2 cup vinegar.  Wait 10 minutes, then flush with boiling water.
• If you remember making volcanoes in grade school it's the same bubbling and fizzing action at work to clean out your drain.
• Sink / shower surface cleaner
• Make a paste of baking soda and water (approx. 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/8 cup water but varies).  
• Spread paste over basin and let sit for a couple of minutes.  
• Scrub with scouring pad (use a cloth / less abrasive pad for porcelain and tile, or a more abrasive scrubber for stainless steel).  
• Rinse with water.  
• If the basin looks a little filmy, use a little vinegar to run over the basin for a clear finish.

Hopefully these recipes work well for you!

Sidenote:

On a somewhat related note, I read James Altrucher's posts pretty regularly and really liked today's post on how to be more productive / positive.  In my efforts to be more healthy, be greener, etc. it's often easy to get discouraged.  So many small steps seem like a meaningless drop in the bucket - I put a banana peel in the compost bin and then walk out to the street and see a barrel of toxic waste being poured into the gutter, for example.

This post is a good reminder that there are endless negative thoughts we can think but ultimately they won't do much for us other than being a distraction to the good we can do.

No one is completely perfect, and no one is completely evil.  We're all flawed and learning as we go, trying to make it through life.  Our problems, and their solutions, are created by the collective 'us' and what the future is like will be decided by the accumulation of all our daily choices and actions.  A good act or decision, regardless of scope or size, is still a good act.  I think it's a good reminder and motivator to remember that doing the right thing in small ways can make a big impact over time.