Blog

July 14, 2010

Environmental House Cleaning

Toxic chemicals and poisons surround us in the home. It’s a shocking statement, but unfortunately, it’s a true one. When the label of a cleaning product says  that hazardous materials shouldn’t be poured down the drain or thrown away in the trash – this is a sign that said product is probably also not ok for exposure, ingestion, or inhalation to and by human beings. A common question is whether it is possible to truly clean a home without introducing toxic or chemical elements into the environment. Well, the short answer to that question is yes. As an Ottawa house cleaning company that specializes in the usage of environmentally sustainable and safe cleaning products when cleaning your home, we thought we’d share some quick tips for the every day stuff – the things you’d normally break out a bottle of Vim or Lysol for – with regular household items.

• Vinegar. It’s not just good on fries. Vinegar is a natural odor blocker. You can use it in a room with cat litter box and it will eliminate the smell.
• Vinegar and Baking Soda. Two relatively simple and common items in any household. Mix them together, and you have a powerful scrubbing paste that is both effective and safe.
• Water and Vinegar. Mixed together, they create a powerful surface cleaner, and it’s a great alternative to bleach when cleaning your kitchen floor.
• Lavendar oil! 1 cup water with 20 drops pure essential oil of lavender creates a powerful antibacterial spray that has an indefinite shelf life!
• Lemon or lime wedges and baking soda – halve a lemon or lime wedge, dab it in baking soda, and scrub your sink with it. This is one of the best ways to clean a stainless steel sink.
• Hydrogen peroxide. Use it as an alternative to brighten laundry instead of bleach!

Not everyone likes the smell of things like vinegar and not all of us want to transition into changes like this so quickly. Some of these suggestions require more work to be done. There are of course other alternatives. You can purchase cleaning products that smell good and don’t harm the environment.  There are certain seals and accreditations that indicate that a company has really done it’s homework in ensuring that a product is not only environmentally friendly or sustainable, but that it’s also non toxic and safe for your family. These include the Canadian Eco Logo, a seal that is applied to the concentrate Dustbane products that we use. You can view the entire list of Dustbane’s certified Eco Logo products here. You can also check out GreenerChoices for a rundown of the various credible logos and products that exists in the household cleaner and household disinfectant categories.

You can clean a home in an environmentally friendly and safe and non toxic way. Request a quote for an estimate on environmentally cleaning your home!