The more we learn about the planet and the environment, the clearer it becomes that our actions are having a negative effect on the world’s health and the health of humanity.

It’s not just the overuse of fossil fuels and other less desirable sources of energy, there are many everyday things we do that are causing damage without us even realizing it.

One of those things happens to be the way in which we keep our homes clean. It’s unsettling to think that our efforts towards personal cleanliness could have the opposite effect, but it’s true.

We take it for granted that we should just go to the store, buy popular cleaning products and use them in our homes, but when we do that we don’t really know what toxins we’re releasing.

The practice of green cleaning, is using eco-friendly, chemical free products in the place of the normal cleaning products you would use.

It might sound like more work, but it’s not actually as big of an overhaul as you might think. Here’s 5 reasons why you should try it:

1.    It’s Cost Effective

If you switch to green cleaning, you will be making most of your own cleaning products and potentially even some of your own cleaning utensils.

A lot of the stuff that you will need to make these products you will have in your house anyway, so it will really be cutting down the costs

Consider some of the cleaning products that you can make and what ingredients that you are going to need for it. You may have heard of us? MamaSuds? 

Take this list for example. While not everything listed here is entirely chemical free, there are a few things here that are pretty common to the various different recipes that are.

You’ve got white vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice and table salt. All things that you could probably find in your kitchen right now if you look.

Think about how much you actually spend on cleaning products, and then consider that you can almost cut all of that out of your expenses if you start making your own.

It’s a pretty worthwhile change.

2.    It Detoxifies Your Home

So many people are living in a toxic environment without even realizing it. They pump all of these chemicals into the air, unaware of the damage they could be doing to their health.

A lot of store-bought cleaning products, in particular antibacterial sprays and fabric softeners contain quaternary ammonium compounds.

This stuff can contribute to people getting asthma and it’s an especially dangerous environment for children.

It’s not just your lungs you need to worry about though, the spray cans that you use can often contain volatile organic compounds too, which are dangerous in many ways.

They can cause long term damage to your kidneys, your liver and even your central nervous system and leave you susceptible to a number of illnesses.

Cutting out those products and just using ones that you’ve made yourself can keep the air nice and clean.

3.    It Helps the Environment

This is probably the main reason why so many people want to switch to green cleaning and it’s definitely one of the biggest incentives.

All of those chemicals we discussed earlier? They’re just as bad for the planet as they are for your health, but the problems run deeper than that.

Think about the packaging of all these products. Plastic bottles and aluminium cans mainly, that stuff isn’t eco-friendly either.

Of course we are making an effort to recycle, but our oceans are full of plastic that people have thrown away and it’s a problem that’s getting bigger and bigger.

Do the recycling in your own home. When you make your own products, you can use the same bottles over and over.

You can minimize your ozone depletion and do you own part towards preventing the negative effects of climate change.

Of course, it’s not entirely up to individuals to stop global warming, but if everybody switched to green cleaning it would definitely be a step in the right direction.

4.    You Won’t Contaminate the Water Supply

Ammonia, phosphorous, petroleum, these are some of the chemicals that you’re using when you clean with store-bought products.

And they are also some of the worst chemicals for our water supply. That’s where some of this stuff ends up.

You use a rag or a sponge to clean and then you wring it out over the sink. Down the drain and into the water it goes.

If you use it to clean the toilet or the shower then your going to end up flushing it or washing it down the drain there too.

It will end up in the lakes and the rivers where it can hurt the wildlife and also can end up back in your drinking water.

That’s a scary thing to think about but you won’t be contributing to it if you switch to green cleaning.

Cleaning your bathroom is never going to be a fun job so the thought of having to overhaul your method is probably annoying, but it’s worth the effort.

Take a look a this guide from Complete Home Spa on how to clean your shower head, it would be a good place to start with.

5.    You Know Your Ingredients

It’s hard to know what exactly is in the products that you’ve been using. There could be a lot of chemicals in there that you’re unaware of.

Despite the ingredients list that you see on the back of the packaging, there’s no way of being certain what’s in there.

Sometimes there’s less than desirable chemicals hiding behind ambiguous names. You could see a word that you don’t recognize and it’s actually something you wouldn’t want in your home.

But you are entirely in control of the ingredients when you make the products yourself. You know exactly what’s in there.

And if there’s a particular ingredient that you don’t want for whatever reason, it’s as simple as picking an alternative.

You have way more control and that’s something that you should want considering it’s your home and your family.

Conclusion

And there’s many other reasons to switch too. Green cleaning is the healthier, safer option and it would benefit the planet in a big way if more people were putting it into practice.

Sometimes it can be hard to find the time that you need to give your home a good, thorough cleaning.

It can be a slow, sometimes tedious process and we often like to resort to the easiest methods possible to get it done as quickly as possible.

It’s hard to fault anyone for doing this, but the problem with the easiest route is that it does tend to be the least healthy one.

It’s a lot more convenient to tackle your house using all of the common store-bought cleaning products. And that stuff is packed with chemicals and ambiguous ingredients.

And the same applies to washing your clothes, cleaning dishes and spraying scented substances to enhance the aroma of your house.

You never know what kind of potentially harmful material you are releasing into the air when you clean like that. It’s detrimental to your health and the environment.

Green cleaning is the way to go. And with the right blends of essential oils, you can put together your own cleaning products that are way more healthy.

Here’s five essential oils that are great for green cleaning:

1.    Lavender

People have been using lavender for a lot of different reasons for many, many years now. It’s one of the most popular essential oils.

It’s good for your skin and hair, and it’s also good for fighting against nausea as well as things like the common cold.

It works against these because it’s antibacterial and antiviral. This makes it a great choice for cleaning your bathroom or your kitchen.

You want to use it in places where bacteria is prone to build up and also where people eat. If you mix it in a spray bottle with water and white vinegar it makes a great cleaning solution.

It’s also useful as an insect repellent as well as an air freshener that you can spray around your house.

2.    Peppermint

Much like lavender, peppermint is a popular way to deal with headaches and nausea, but many people don’t realize that it’s also a powerful disinfectant.

It makes for a great surface cleaner. If you mix this with some vinegar and water in a spray bottle you can use it to clean countertops.

You’ve probably noticed by this stage that vinegar, white vinegar specifically is something that you will need to have for a lot of these blends.

I know that the smell of vinegar isn’t necessarily popular but it’s useful in cleaning solutions and the oils will usually mask the smell anyway.

You can also use this particular mixture to clean the floors too. If you mix it with water in your mop bucket it should do the trick.

3.    Lemon

Lemon is a terrific oil for cleaning around the house because it’s got antibacterial properties but is also a low pH.

It won’t do any damage to your surfaces but is still effective in killing bacteria and disinfecting things.

Lemon is actually something that you could use to clean all of your appliances, and also ceiling fans and trash cans.

You could clean the microwave with it by just microwaving a cup filled with water and lemon oil and then wiping down the inside of the machine.

And if you want to treat the dishwasher with it, mix distilled vinegar with a few drops of lemon oil and place it in an empty dishwasher.

These are notoriously hard to clean but lemon oil gets the job done with minimal hassle.

4.    Eucalyptus

This is yet another oil that has antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial properties so you can use it in a lot of the ways that you can the others we discussed.

But it’s also very good at getting rid of grease and grime. Areas like the oven top, the kitchen sink and the microwave are places where this could be a problem.

Mix eucalyptus with water and, you guessed it, white vinegar in a spray bottle and then use that on these surfaces to get rid of all that grease.

It’s a good way to remove adhesive too so if there is any sticky residue stuck to countertops or windows then the eucalyptus mix will deal with that.

And on top of all that it’s good for keeping away pests and dust mites.

5.    Tea Tree

We can sing the praises of tea tree oil all day. It doesn’t smell particularly strong, it’s minimally invasive in terms of leaving stains or causing damage and there’s many uses.

You can use it to put together a multi-purpose, disinfectant cleaning spray which you can use on pretty much any surface.

And it makes for a very strong bathroom scrub because it’s a natural mold fighter. So it would also be great for cleaning the kitchen sink too.

Because it’s a disinfectant, you could put it to good use cleaning things like yoga mats or other pieces of exercise equipment too.

Conclusion

Put the days of letting all of those nasty fumes pollute your home and your body behind you. Give green cleaning a try, you won’t regret it.

If you want to find out more about green cleaning and how to implement it into your routine, check out this article from Groom & Style.

Written by Tony M. 

With sustainability being at the forefront of everyone’s minds in recent years, doing your part to contribute to a healthy environment is more important than ever. Luckily, going green has a wealth of advantages to offer every homeowner who makes the switch. From insulation to flooring (and everything in between), here are a few ways you can upgrade your living spaces to contribute to that bright, green future.

 

Beautiful Bamboo Flooring

One of the major problems facing our planet is deforestation; with demand so high and growth so slow, bamboo provides an excellent, sustainable alternative to traditional hardwood floors. It can grow at incredible rates without the use of fertilizers or pesticides: a bamboo grove can yield 20 times more timber than trees in the same location, and they release 35% more oxygen into the air than similar-sized trees. If you simply must have that hardwood floor look, consider ecological bamboo in place of expensive mahogany.

 

Wonderful Windows

A home’s windows are its first line of defense against cold and heat; they can also be its largest energy leech — if you suffer from extreme monthly energy bills, it may be due to your windows’ U-factor. Defined as the measure of how well a window insulates (and therefore how well it prevents heat from escaping), the U-factor rating system uses a scale of 0.20 to 1.20. The lower the number, the better insulated your window. Since energy leeches contribute to the size of your carbon footprint, installing well-insulated windows with low U-factors can help the environment and your wallet.

 

Laudable Lighting

With technology advancing every day, the emergence of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) has had a huge impact on modern society. And, best of all, they’re remarkably green! Residential LED light bulbs use at least 75% less energy and last an astounding 25 times longer than incandescent lights. Though the initial cost might be higher, they pay themselves off dozens of times over and reduce energy waste.

 

Impressive Insulation

After your windows, your attic is a home’s largest offender for heat and energy loss: the U.S. Department of Energy estimates that 44% of home energy use goes toward heating and cooling. Since an attic with poor insulation could be leaking air — and insulated buildings in the U.S. have been proven to reduce CO2 emissions by 780 million tons — one of the best ways to minimize your carbon footprint and save money on those energy bills is to ensure your attic is well-insulated.

 

Powerful Plumbing

Your toilet is the main source of water use in your home, sometimes using (and wasting) six gallons per flush. Making the switch to efficient, low-flush models can reduce your water usage by 20 to 60%. A toilet that uses less water will still provide equal or superior performance, and it goes a long way towards reducing pollution.

 

Best of all, you are not alone in these efforts: nearly 84% of respondents in a 2017 survey stated that living in a sustainable, eco-friendly home is important to them. If we are all able to commit to a greener future, both our personal lives and the environment will grow and blossom as a result.

 

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According to On The Move, "Becoming a homeowner can be one of the most exciting milestones you can achieve in your life. Although you should be proud of what you've accomplished, caution should also be heeded before you move into the home." Below are four things you should check before you move, as noted by professional home cleaners.

Don’t Forget About the Nails

The family who lived in your home before you likely felt the desire to decorate the walls with pictures, certificates, and other sentimental items. These items had to be secured to the wall by hanging on a nail. When you move in, those nails may still be in the walls. So few people think to remove them. When professional cleaners are hired to clean a home, they are not obligated to remove leftover nails from the walls. Before you move into your new house, it would be a good idea to do a cursory inspection of the rooms to remove any remaining nails and fill the holes with spackling.

Furniture Hides Dust

One of the most neglected areas of a home are the corners. Furniture that never moves from corners allows dust and dirt to accumulate in the carpet and on the baseboards. This dust can become difficult to clean after years of accumulation, so before you move into your new home, do a thorough cleaning of all corners and baseboards with warm soapy water and a microfiber cloth. While you're going through and dusting all the baseboards, you should take the opportunity to also inspect the outlets for underlying electrical issues. That way, if there are any issues, you can solve them before any more dangerous problems can arise. 

Under Refrigerators Is No Man's Land

Refrigerators are heavy and are rarely moved unless something falls behind it or the person is moving out. Layers of grime, crumbs, and old food can collect under a fridge, and when a person moves out, they rarely clean that area. Going into a home you've recently purchased with some cleaning supplies to tackle cleaning the floor where your refrigerator will sit is always a good idea.

You Don’t Have to Do Everything

It can be incredibly overwhelming to try and do everything by yourself when you are moving. You may think that you have to get everything packed and cleaned on your own, but you don’t! Even if you aren’t using their services to move, you can hire a moving company to help you pack everything up. Packing and moving can be stressful work, and a good moving company can help you take that burden off your shoulders.

When it comes to preparing for your move, there are a lot of things to do, but packing and cleaning are probably the ones that are at the forefront of your mind. Don’t hesitate to ask for help if you are getting overwhelmed.

Start off life in your new home on the right foot — get all the healthy, chemical-free cleaning supplies you’ll need in our shop!

Believe it or not, there are toxic chemicals that are found throughout almost all homes in the world. But what are these toxic chemicals and where do they come from? The most common place that holds toxic chemicals is dust. Dr. Ami Zota, an assistant professor of environmental occupational health, and her team divided toxic chemicals found in homes into different classes, testing these chemicals to be present in popular products owned by homeowners.

What are toxins?

A toxin is defined as an antigenic poison that causes diseases when present at low concentrations in the body. The main two toxic chemicals found inside home samples are phthalates and flame retardants. Phthalates are present in plastic, allowing them to reside in carpets, linoleum, vinyl floors, blinds, food packaging, etc. Flame retardants are chemicals that help products meet flammability standards set out by insurance companies and building codes. These are most present in paints and sealants. Moreover, environmental phenols are preservatives in personal care products, and fluorinated chemicals are used as stain repellent treatments for carpets and clothes.

Harmful effects of toxins

Toxins in your home have adverse effects on your health. Children inhale them crawling around and are constantly touching things while putting their hands in their mouths. Phthalate exposure can increase the risk of respiratory, neurodevelopmental, and mental problems in both children and adults. These toxins can also disrupt the hormones inside of your body, causing reproductive problems.

How to remove toxins with remodeling

There are multiple ways to remodel your home in order to create a safer, toxin-free environment. Instead of using toxin-containing materials to renovate your home, try using more natural materials. For example, instead of using carpet on your floors, consider using teak hardwood floors. Another example would be to use stone walls instead of paint. And lastly, having a home that contains bamboo will assist in removing unwanted toxins from the air. If you’re concerned about the costs of remodeling your home with stone and teak instead of getting carpet and paint, there are some government programs to help Americans live greener such as energy efficiency mortgages and cash out loans.

Furthermore, regularly dusting your home is a major recommendation in preventing toxins from entering your home. Additionally, you should avoid using a feather duster and instead use powerful vacuums to collect all of the dust. Houseplants may also help absorb the chemical compounds in the air. And lastly, keeping your hands clean as well as the surfaces of furniture can do wonders for the condition of your home.

References:

Low VA Rates

Fitness Foods

Wikipedia

Eicher Design Build

 

With many older RVs managing a mere 8 miles per gallon, frequent driving in your motorhome could impact negatively on the environment¹. However, if you live in one full time, you are avoiding the greenhouse gases caused by living in a large house. Therefore, an RV can be part of an environmentally friendly lifestyle, as long as you know how to care for your vehicle in the greenest way possible. Follow the tips below to maintain your RV, allowing it to last a lifetime while causing minimal environmental damage.

Pack light

It can be tempting to bring everything with you on your camping trip, considering the ample storage space an RV offers, but you really only need the essentials². The lighter your load is, the less gas will be required to get you to your destination. It will also put less strain on the tires and mechanical components of the vehicle. This ultimately means more MPG and a longer lifespan.

Avoid chemicals

Chemicals in everyday household products are a major cause of indoor air pollution³. Since your RV is essentially a home, it will contain much of the same household cleaners and paint, which can be full of toxins. Take time to replace any chemical-containing products with a natural alternative.

You can make your own cheap, non-toxic cleaner using baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice and hydrogen peroxide⁴. This will work just as effectively at maintaining the counter tops, without polluting the air. Keep doors and windows open during the day for extra ventilation to allow pollutants to disperse.

Use a carwash

Handwashing is the preferred method of cleaning for many people. It is cheaper and also seems to be environmentally friendly. However, it can cause more damage than you’d think. As you wash oil and gasoline off the RV, it will travel straight into the drain and contaminate the water. Professional car washing services, conversely, are required by federal law to send water to sewage treatment centers where it can be cleaned before it comes into contact with nature⁵.

Get regular checkups

Just like you don’t wait until your tooth hurts to visit the dentist, don’t let your RV’s warning lights come on before you get it checked over by a mechanic. This will not only increase the lifespan of your RV, but also ensure that it causes minimal environmental damage when it is running. Regularly tuning your vehicle can improve fuel efficiency by up to 4%⁶. Keep everything in top working order to reduce the energy required to keep your vehicle moving.

There are many ways in which downsizing to an RV can be a green and sustainable way to live. The tips above are a good start, but there are plenty more steps you can take towards eco-living. Switching to a more economical biofuel is one idea, as is installing solar panels. It really depends on your available time and budget, but the tips above are simple techniques that everyone should take to ensure green RVing.

 

1) Linda Baker, The Green RV, November 2008, Accessed June 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/07/travel/escapes/07RV.html

2) Mike Napier, RV Kitchen Essentials: What To Bring, What Not To Bring, March 2018, Accessed June 2018, https://kempoo.com/rv/kitchen-essentials/

3) US Environmental Protection Agency, Introduction to Indoor Air Quality, January 2018, Accessed June 2018, https://www.epa.gov/indoor-air-quality-iaq/introduction-indoor-air-quality

4) Madeleine Somerville, How To Green Your Home: Make Your Own Cleaning Spray For Every Task, November 2015, Accessed June 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/nov/10/green-home-make-your-own-all-purpose-cleaner

5) Frederic Beaudry, Eco-Friendly Car Washing, August 2017, Accessed June 2018, https://www.thoughtco.com/eco-friendly-car-washing-1203931
6) Nicole D’Alessandro, 8 Ways to Spring Into Better Gas Mileage, April 2014, Accessed June 2018. https://www.ecowatch.com/8-ways-to-spring-into-better-gas-mileage-1881890416.html

• Deep cleaning the house is a great way to get it looking pristine before Spring.
• To deep clean, start with decluttering the room by breaking it into sections and reorganizing shelves, cabinets and drawers.
• Dusting from top to bottom is essential as well as vacuuming/sweeping the floor and wiping down any surfaces.
• Cleaning with spray cleaners is one of the final steps, focusing on horizontal surfaces, windows and sticky spots.
• Completing these steps should make any room in your home look fresh and clean!

 

There is nothing quite as exciting (or as exhausting) as the last trimester of pregnancy. The baby is coming soon and there are so many tasks to do in those last few months to be ready for your baby's arrival. Even if you are adopting or making use of a surrogate, preparing your house for the changes a new child will bring seems almost overwhelming!

As you head into the last few months before your baby’s arrival, taking the time to prepare your home will help you better handle all the changes that come. Getting your home cleaned and organized before you are juggling the demands of a newborn and your other responsibilities will give peace of mind and help you be prepared to handle any new mess or clutter that crops up. Consider tackling some of these key areas as you clean to better prepare.

 

Kitchen

The kitchen is the center of your home, where food and family meet on a daily basis. Take a few hours to inspect and prioritize these areas in your kitchen.

Refrigerator

Dedicate time to cleaning out your refrigerator and freezer before your baby arrives. Check expiration dates on items and throw away anything past expiration as well as any food or leftovers that have been lurking in the back of your refrigerator. Wipe down the shelves with warm water and vinegar.

Pantry

Just like your refrigerator, dedicate a chunk of time to going through your pantry and throwing away food items that are past expiration. Unopened cans or boxes that are not at expiration can be donated to your local food pantry. Stock up on quick, healthy snacks that you can grab on the go when you are home with your new baby. Keep a shelf stocked with bottles or breast pump supplies and be sure to rearrange a little space for kid’s snacks and food as they grow.

 

Laundry Room

Babies produce an incredible amount of laundry, much of it stained. Be ready to tackle stains and higher volumes of laundry.

Cleaners

Stock up on baby-safe cleaners for your newborn's clothing, sheets, and towels. Take it a step further and purchase laundry cleaners that are both good for the environement and safe for your baby.  

Hampers

Make sure you have adequate hampers with distinct compartments to sort your baby's clothes separately from the rest of the family.

 

Baby’s Room

You’ve probably been in a nesting stage for a while, but now is the time to double-check, dust and clean your baby’s future room.

Changing Table

No nursery room would be complete without one of these. Stock up your table with extra diapers, wipes, power, creams, as well as extra clothes. Organize the drawers in a way that makes sense for you during changing. Or don't use one at all (I never did!). I kept a basket with changing supplies in the room we were in the most and just changed my babies on the floor.

Closet

If you’ve received any baby clothes, sheets, or other future supplies, take time now to organize them in the nursery closet. Clothing that won’t fit right away can be packed away or hung at the back. Extra crib sheets and pillows should be stored on higher shelves.

 

Tackling cleaning and organizing tasks as you prepare for your new baby is a smart way to spend those last few months before they arrive. Do some organization and be sure you have a plan for future cleaning and organization as well.

• Sammy Dolan of Home Clean Expert offers tips to get kids involved in helping with the cleaning.
• Age-appropriate chores should be assigned to each child.
• Use chore charts to organize the tasks and have children check off when completed.
• Incentivize kids by providing rewards for completing consecutive chores.
• Consistent cleaning habits and a good work ethic can be instilled in kids through their involvement in household chores.