Are cleaning products a feature of your shopping list? 
Are they ‘sustainable’? Did you know that ‘green’ cleaning is not only better for the planet and your health, it saves you a heap of money (and space in your cupboards)?
What’s in your cleaning kit?
Mine is very simple.
I use only five things for most of my cleaning:
- Water. Cleaning expert Don Aslett confirms what you probably already know : if something is damp (i.e. not dry and hard), it is much easier to clean. So…instead of spraying benchtops and stoves with ‘miracle’ cleaners, just wet the muck, let it soften then simply wipe it off
- Rags and Microfibre Cloths. Rags are free and very environmentally friendly if you use worn out underwear, sox and towelling…the final re-purposing. Microfibre cloths can be bought very cheaply at a $2 shop – I think I paid about $2 for 9. Try the car section if you can’t find them in cleaning. They clean almost everything when damp with cold water. (Use dry for mirrors.) Use a microfibre pad for cleaning floors quickly without detergent – and no hanging around waiting for wet floors to dry. The bright microfibre mitts with ‘knobbles’ on one side are fun and enable you to really get stuck into your job. Simply throw the cloths in the wash to keep them clean. BTW, keep one just for your kitchen fan…nothing will remove the grease faster than a cold, damp microfibre cloth.
- Pure Soap. Gentle, very cheap and effective cleaner. Combines with water and glycerine[I guess that makes item #6 ;)] to become my home-made liquid hand wash, which:
- costs less than one cent per bottle
- cleans almost anything
- removes almost all stains – simply squirt on the stain then put the article in the wash (cold of course). What more can I say?
- Bicarbonate of Soda. If you need a bit more scrubbing power. Great for bathtub rings and polishing kitchen sinks.
- Dishwashing Liquid. One bottle lasts a long time. As well as cleaning dishes, a dollop the size of an Australian 20 cent piece washes the clothes in a front loader – a fraction of a cent per wash. Use with a microfibre cloth to clean shower screens.
What do you use for cleaning? Do you have experience with ‘green’ cleaning? Post your experiences in the Reply box below.
Till next time…be gentle to yourself and our world!