March 5, 2018

Green Spring Cleaning : 10 Favorite Products

Using green cleaning products is not only better for you and your family and the air you breathe in your home, it will simplify your spring cleaning as well. Why spend all that time cleaning with products that can potentially do more harm than good? With just a few key ingredients and hard-working products you can spring clean your entire home and I’m willing to bet that you’ll find some favorites too.

CLEANING SOLUTIONS

Choose ingredients with multiple uses and you’ll be able to mix and match to your heart’s content. One of the bonuses of DIYing cleaning recipes is that I have what I need on hand AND each batch costs pennies to whip up. Simple ingredients, nothing harmful for humans or pets.

BAKING SODA
Use it to freshen and deodorize carpet and mattresses and/or add a little water and soap for a scrub. Simple, yet effective, I use it so many different ways throughout the year but when it’s spring cleaning season it really shines.

WHITE VINEGAR
Think of white vinegar like a cleaning concentrate – you can use it in your carpet cleaning machine (equal parts warm water : vinegar), in an all-purpose cleaner, in an all-purpose disinfecting cleaner, as an stink eliminator, as a fabric softener. There are so many ways to use it – just keep it away from stone (granite, marble, silestone).

CASTILE SOAP
It’s amazing what you can clean with warm water and a squirt of castile soap. Baseboards, doors, and floors, you can even add it to water and a foamer for hand soap.

RUBBING ALCOHOL
Put a little rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad to wipe down remotes and door knobs. The rubbing alcohol effectively cleans and kills germs. I also use it in my granite + marble cleaning spray and window + glass cleaning spray – it helps dry the surfaces quickly while adding a little cleaning and disinfecting power.

HYDROGEN PEROXIDE
Put a sprayer on a hydrogen peroxide container and you have a powerful disinfectant at your fingertips. Great for sinks and areas that need disinfecting. You can also use it to whiten grout and get rid of minor mildew in the bathroom.

ESSENTIAL OILS
I love a little scent while I’m cleaning but I like to add it myself so I know it’s 100% natural and not synthetic or a fragrance. Enter essential oils. I’ve talked about them quite a bit and like these scents for the home and cleaning.

TOOLS

Just like my favorite cleaning solutions and ingredients, I find that simple tools with multiple purposes work the best. By choosing multi-tasking tools and supplies you’ll be keeping the clutter away.

GLASS SPRAY BOTTLES
Great for DIY cleaning recipes, keep a couple spray bottles on hand and you can mix up any solution for any cleaning dilemma.

BAR MOP TOWELS
Great for cleaning tasks that you don’t want to use microfiber for or if you prefer 100% cotton over the poly blend in microfiber – I use them in the kitchen and for washing baseboards and doors.

MICROFIBER CLEANING CLOTHS
Great for surfaces and windows – no lint, no streaks, just the best clean. New to microfiber? Here’s how to use it effectively.

HEAVY DUTY SCRUB BRUSH
If you’re scrubbing window sills or grout you need a heavy duty scrub brush or two. Wash in between uses with a little warm water and soap and allow to dry. I like this wood scrub brush for larger surfaces.

BUCKET OR CADDY
If you’re looking to keep things together and at-the-ready, put your supplies in a bucket or caddy to tote and carry through the house. Corral your supplies in a bucket while you’re spring cleaning so you can grab it when you have a couple minutes to spare.