Clean & Green: Tips For Chemical-Free Cleaning

Cleaning is another chore on a long list of must-do tasks we generally have to force ourselves to engage in. Unfortunately, a lot of cleaners are hard on allergies and respiratory illnesses, they’re also not great for little hands (or mouths) or our beloved dogs and cats. If you have avoided cleaning in the past for fear of sneezing all day, your anti-bacterial spray wreaks havoc on your lungs, or you want to protect your kids and pets, chemical-free cleaning is the ideal answer. Here’s what you need to know.

Fewer Products

As you start your journey, you may want to streamline the number of products you use rather than getting rid of them altogether. This can help you narrow down a specific cleaning product causing problems and save you money. All-purpose cleaners like the Pink Stuff Essentials pack can be used in most rooms of your home, and they're vegan-friendly non-toxic non-hazardous cleaning products. It's a win-win… win.

Alternatively, you can make your own products. The majority of recipes you find online will contain baking soda, soap, and vinegar. A 50/50 white vinegar and water split in a spray bottle is also pretty handy for most things.

Check the Label

Just because a product says it's eco-friendly doesn't necessarily mean it is – so, make sure you read the labels when you're shopping for more natural products. And if there's a signal word like warning, danger or poison on the bottle, then that isn't what you're looking for. If you purchase a product that doesn't provide a full list of ingredients you can either stop buying it or contact them directly asking for the details. You shouldn't purchase from a brand that won't disclose all of its ingredients.

Safe Practice

If you practice safer techniques in the bathroom and kitchen, you don't need to rely on powerful chemical cleaners to get the job done. For example, you should have separate cutting boards in the kitchen, a meat-only board that can get tossed in the dishwasher for an extra hot cleaning cycle. And you should replace your sponges often to avoid cross-contamination. Make sure you have separate sponges and cloths for cleaning the bathroom and kitchen to avoid cross-contamination. You should also always wash your hands after using the bathroom or handling raw meat.

Storage & Use

It's worth noting that you shouldn't mix any products, even green ones, whether you made them at home or purchased them. Combining cleaners can produce poisonous fumes that seriously harm your health. Be sure you use cleaning products with the required PPE and dispose of them safely.

If you have asthma or allergies, then you may want to avoid synthetic fragrances as these can trigger issues. If you're trying to mask an unwanted odour, your best bet is to trace the source and deal with it rather than masking it with unidentified fragrances.

You don't have to go entirely chemical-free, some outstanding chemical cleaning products are still safe for you and your family. But, if you do want to go chem-free, the likes of Minky and Scrub Daddy ranges are excellent tools, more than powerful enough, to handle the task. Lucky for you, you can find both of them, and much more, on CleanHQ.