Honestly all of my sheets are white and I never use bleach. I give them a hot water wash if they start to look a bit dingy and dry them in the sun to "bleach" them. They look perfectly white after years of use.

Sorry, but bleach IS natural. People are quick to see "chemical" and think bad. Chemicals in their basic forms ARE natural. Here look:

"It breaks down to salt and oxygen/water entirely. Household bleach, used to whiten fabrics or remove mold from surfaces, is a 5% solution of a stabilized form of chlorine. Most of the chlorine that enters lakes, streams, or soil evaporates into the air or combines with other chemicals into more stable compounds. However do note that Chlorine-containing chemicals that seep through soil down into groundwater can remain unchanged for many years. The issue comes in from extreme overuse of chlorine. You really need a very small amount of it to do a job and people tend to use much to much thinking more is better."

from here: http://www.greenoptions.com/wiki/bleach

I use borax in each load of laundry...darks or whites...as well as washing soda. My whites look fine...for me that means mostly towels and socks. One reason that whites look dingy is soap build-up and washing soda will dissolve it and give you whiter whites. The borax will produce hydrogen peroxide in water and "bleach" stains.
If your shower is looking dingy, then I'm wondering if your cleaners are leaving residue behind that is causing discoloration. I'd tackle that issue before trying bleach.
Note: I think bleach has it's uses (doing away with mold is one), but normal household cleaning/laundry isn't one of them.

I agree with eclectorama above. It's not necessary for laundry. I use a borax/washing soda laundry powder and haven't had a problem with anything becoming dingy. For the shower, I have yet to find anything other than bleach that will get rid of mold and I've tried every single alternative method out there. Sun, hydrogen peroxide, tea tree oil, aspirin, cream of tartar... you name it, I've tried it. None of them work the way bleach does so I just use it very sparingly about once a month and use a non-toxic scrub for the rest of the time. Here's the scrub: http://bit.ly/a1KGqF. Works like a dream on soap scum and smells delish!

For the shower I use baking soda and rinse with vinegar.

Oxy-Boost, it's an oxygen based bleach so it's safe for both people and the environment (unlike chlorine). I'm obsessed with it- I soak my whites overnight in it and I've made a paste from it to clean my tile grout. It's amazing how well it works, it just takes a little extra soak time. I pick it mine at Green Depot on the Bowery, but there is a website too.

I use a 1:1 mixture of of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide to get rid of any greying in the armpits. Scrub it on with a toothbrush and leave it sit for 30 minutes. Takes out the oldest of stains!

For cleaning, I use just plain baking soda and it works great and makes things squeaky clean. Also they both aren't harsh and won't stain anything else.

For sheets, the best bleach is the sun - hang them on the clothesline.

The sun!

I agree with Clementimey re: oxygen "bleach" products for laundry - I've also used it to clean the shower with great results. I would also recommend Barkeepers Friend, a non-bleach cleaner in that familiar shaker can.

I still use bleach on occasion, but try to avoid it wherever & whenever possible. One thing that has helped is switching to a glycerine soap in the tub/shower. We've seen a HUGE reduction in soap residue and grime.

Another alternative like Barkeepers Friend in a shaker can is Bon Ami. This stuff works great, and is gentle enough to clean grease/fingerprints from the brushed steel appliances. I use it in the kitchen and in the bathroom.

Sometimes for the tub I'll scrub with baking soda, then add vinegar and scrub some more before a final rinse with a little more vinegar and water.

I do, however, use a bleach based toilet cleaner. That is about it for the bleach in our household.

I make my own cleaner using castile soap, vinegar, water and whatever essential oil I prefer when it's time to make it. I shake it up and spray it on and come back in a couple of minutes. A little elbow grease and the shower is all sparkly again.

-Catherine

Bleach is not environmentally safe. That's why the Union of Concerned Scientists* and pretty much every green group that works on toxic chemicals issues recommends it as the #1 thing to phase out of your home. Chlorine is extremely toxic, and frankly you don't need to use this in your home. It is a perfect illustration of the precautionary principle, why use this toxic and caustic chemical when safer alternatives work just as well?

Hydrogen peroxide is a great whitener.
Vinegar (full strength) and HP are great disinfectants.
Sunlight does both.
A soft scrub made of dish soap and baking soda will destroy most anything grossing you out in your bath/shower area.

* "Of greater concern to many is the presence of dioxin, a highly toxic carcinogen and endocrine disruptor, in disposable diapers. Dioxin is a byproduct of the chlorine bleaching process, and the Archives of Disease in Childhood reports that trace amounts of dioxin are present on disposables. Some diaper services use chlorine bleach to whiten their cloth diapers, but conscientious consumers can ask questions to avoid those services."
http://www.greenamericatoday.org/pubs/realgreen/articles/diapers.cfm

"SCOURING CLEANER - Many brands are made with chlorine bleach, which release hazardous gases when mixed with ammonia (found in glass cleaners). Try plain salt or baking soda instead. For a disinfectant version, mix equal amounts of baking soda and borax with a little hot water. You can also try a non-chlorine scourer such as Bon Ami."
http://www.mixitproductions.com/prjmisc/guides/greentips/tip10.html

"5. Use hydrogen peroxide to whiten. In addition to respiratory problems, exposure to chlorine bleach fumes can interfere with normal development of a fetus or child, can cause severe eye irritation and could potentially damage the liver, kidney, blood, heart and immune system. Use hydrogen peroxide to whiten and to sanitize. Clean your counters, table tops with peroxide to kill germs and leave a fresh smell. Simply put a little on your dishrag when you wipe, or spray it on the counters. After rinsing off your wooden cutting board, pour peroxide on it to kill salmonella and other bacteria. Fill a spray bottle with a 50/50 mixture of peroxide and water and keep it in every bathroom to disinfect without harming your septic system like bleach or most other disinfectants will (be sure you put the mixture into a bottle that filters out sunlight.) You can also add a cup of peroxide instead of bleach to a load of whites in your laundry to whiten them. Remember, though, hydrogen peroxide is a bleach, so use with caution around colors just as you would with conventional chlorine bleach."
http://www.healthylegacy.org/consumer_cleaning.cfm

I just started using Barkeepers Friend in my, it works like a dream. I have never seen my tile and grout so clean!

Borax is NOT an eco-friendly cleaner. Many sources warn to keep it out of the water supply because it kills plants and arthropods.

I don't know about the true environmental impact of it but I use Oxiclean. I buy the dry kind in the tub so I can use it as a paste on stains all over the house. I would definitely use it on the shower if I had a problem.
In the spring and summer (and sometimes fall) I will also take my clothes on a laundry day trip to a friend who lives in the 'burbs house and lay whites out on the lawn on a sunny day.

Also I have used vinegar for dealing with odor issues with laundry. I once got a musty smell in clothes from storage at my parent's house - they threw them in the garage :(

To my understanding the problem with Bleach is what happens when it gets the water supply. For me it's also a personal preference since the chlorine smell gives me a headache if I'm around it too long. I don't know about the safety of Borax but I only use it for carpet cleaning paste and to deter bugs in the kitchen I don't wash with it.

Also to clean the grout and the ridges in my bathtub I use Mrs. Meyers scrubs and Method's scrub. They smell yummy, don't irritate my skin (but I still use gloves since I try to keep my nails looking nice), and as a bonus have got the tile, tub, and grout cleaner than a lot of the other products I have used. Even better than my former love Scrubbing Bubbles - I used to really miss them just not the purple blotches they left all over my skin.