Although we love the idea of making your own green cleaners, we know that some people neither have the time, patience of aptitude for such things. For those more comfortable with a retail option that's ready to go straight from the store, here's a few of our favorite choices that really send the kid-grime packing.
We believe that baby or childproofing your home goes hand in hand with green cleaners. Keeping your kids out of the cabinets is just as important as making sure they can literally eat off the floor without any adverse effects. We love all the products below and just as importantly, the other products by the same brand. Do you have a favorite that isn't listed here? Let us know below!
First Row, Left To Right
• Floors To Adore: from BabyGanics, this mixture is great for crawlers, toddlers and even adults.
• 2X Concentrated Baby Laundry Liquid: from 7th Generation. They also make other products for your home, but we're big fans on this detergent.
• Grapefruit & Green Tea Washing Up Liquid: from Ecover, one squeeze is enough for a sink full of dishes, without leaving any residue.
• Stone, Tile, Laminate Cleaner: from Bona. This spray will tackle floors, tile and more without any eco-guilt.
• All Purpose Cleaner: from Mrs. Meyers. This nationwide household staple not only works, but is priced well at grocery stores across the country (and not just the fancy ones).
Second Row, Left To Right
• Method Bathroom Cleaners: you can buy their products as a set or individually, but either way we love their ease, pricepoint and oh so pretty packaging.
• Stain Remover: from Dragonfly Organix. This magic bottle works wonders on tough grout, bathroom gunk and funk without blinking or leaving anyone in tears.
• Non-Chlorine Bleach: from OXO Brite. Although it's currently not available on Amazon, we have still seen it in stores. Do you have a better non-chlorine bleach? Let us know below!
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Eh, this stuff is so overpriced for what it is. We mostly use gallons of white vinegar, baking soda, lemons, and Dr. Bronner's for daily cleaning, plus washing soda and borax for our dishwasher and Country Save for our washing machine.
Our homemade washing soda / borax dishwasher costs $0.3 per load. We pay $15 *a year* using the Country Save detergent, and that's including a load of cloth diapers every couple of days.
None of this other stuff is necessary. Save yourself a few bucks and use the homemade natural stuff. It isn't any more of a pain, it's way cheaper, and you'll actually be able to identify what's in it.
Honeyhaze, how is it you only spent $15/year on Country Save? Do you do something special to stretch it that long?
honeyhaze, share, share, share!! Please let us know how to make our own homemade cleaner with vinegar, b. soda, lemon, and Dr. Bronner's soap. Please give exact amounts for a novice like myself. Thank you!!
Mrs. Meyers is natural? Well, I suppose anything that comes from planet Earth is "natural," including saccharin, gasoline, and correction fluid.
But healthy? I'm not a chemist, but there are an awful lot of "methyls and benz" in this list. Are these petrochemicals? Do I want my child or dog to breathe these? This stuff is absorbed through the skin and lungs, and there may be a cumulative effect from ALL the different products we use. Plus, why do we need to use petroleum products at all? My understanding is that methyl anythign of benz anything is terrible--endocrine disruptors? Maybe. Neurotoxins? Maybe.
Try soap, hot water and elbow grease.
ingredients in Mrs. Meyers' All Purpose Cleaner (from the Mrs. Meyers website):
Water, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Methyl 2-Sulfolaurate, Polysorbate 20, Sodium Citrate, Fragrance*, Ocimum Basilicum (Basil) Oil, Carum Petroselinum (Parsley) Seed Oil, Piper Nigrum (Black Pepper) Seed Oil, Betula Alba (Birch) Bark Extract, Glycerin, Caramel, Disodium Ethanoldiglycinate, Methylisothiazolinone, Benzisothiazolinone
Sorry for all my typos in the earlier post. But chemical free? Come now. Mrs. Meyers is one of the worst offenders for abusing the word "natural." Of course, that is their "right" to do so, but they must think we are all idiots to think we will see the word "natural," and like deer caught in headlights, not notice gnarly stuff on the ingredients label! Thank goodness they have the smarts to realize that can't put "safe" on the label--because they know that's pushing the envelope of truthiness.
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"Naturally-derived" means nothing in terms of assessing the health risks to you or your children. Petroleum is natural; it comes from nature. I would hope this website would stop shilling for companies that are contributing directly to the increased toxicity of our environment. You can't go into any store, school, or office without being overwhelmed by the off-gassing from plastic, cleaners, carpeting, markers, etc. That new car smell--that's not a "good" thing....