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Nowadays, the idea of being environmentally friendly is everywhere. When you move into a new home or an apartment you just started to rent, you could consider this to be a new start, a way for you to live a more ethical life. But, nowadays, there are so many things out there that are bad for us, not least the chemicals in cleaning products. So, when we are looking at maintaining a clean home, but we are doing our best to stay away from chemicals, what can we do?
The Secret Ingredient
Vinegar is the go-to for any mother looking to clean their home without vile chemicals. Vinegar is so abrasive, that it gets rid of limescale, mildew, and almost any stain you can think of! Having this in the old-fashioned soap and water is, surprisingly, one of the best ways to get rid of any bit of dirt. This is especially so when you’ve got items in the kitchen that tend to stink a lot, such as sinks and dishwashers. While there are many products you can use to clean out your dishwasher and sink, such as this natural dishwasher gel, you can always benefit from having some vinegar in the cupboard. The great thing about vinegar is that it’s cheap.
Using Bicarb Of Soda
One of the biggest things we can do to help clean out an annoying stain is to have bicarbonate of soda in our store cupboard. As it’s cheap to buy in bulk and is an ingredient in many washing powders and cleaning products that create a fizz, it is an indispensable item to have in your home. Bicarbonate of soda is invaluable when it comes to cleaning, your grandma was right!
Providing That Clean Smell
The big issue with natural cleaning products is that there is usually no smell, and when we clean our kitchen surfaces, wash our clothes, or descale the bathroom, we want to smell the fruits of our labors. But this is where you can use essential oils like lavender or tea tree oil. For example, cleaning the bath can be done with a bucket of water, some washing up liquid, vinegar, baking soda, and a couple of drops of tea tree oil. Be careful with essential oils, because a couple of drops is all you need, as they are very potent! As time goes on, you can experiment with your essential oils to find the right one for you.
In addition to these, cleaning your house ethically can extend to more environmentally friendly approaches, such as using a steam cleaner for your carpets, or just getting out a dustpan and brush instead of the vacuum. Moving into a new house or apartment can signify a new start in life, and if you’ve been struggling with allergies before, it might be relating to how you clean the house in the first place. So if you use a lot of chemicals it might be time to go au naturale for the benefit of your health and the planet.
*This is a contributed post.