10 Eco-Friendly Tips For Cleaning Your Home

Many of the reagents used in traditional cleaning products tend to be less than kind to our environment. Wouldn’t it be grand if having a fresh and clean home didn’t come at such an environmental cost?

Luckily for you and, if you have them, your kids (even your four legged furry friends), there are green alternatives that are gentler to Mother Earth and also your pocket book. 

You can clean just about anything in your home with less than toxic solutions and often with ingredients you might already own. With only using plain oil white vinegar, there are a ton of ways to clean. 

And if you’re worried about not having a fresh-smelling home, don’t fret, you can swap artificial fragrances with all-natural essential oils.

Eco-Friendly Reagents

● Baking soda

● Essential Oils

● Hydrogen Peroxide

● Lemon Juice

● Salt

● White Vinegar

● Olive Oil

Using a combination of these easily accessible ingredients, you can create countless customized green solutions to clean just about anything in your home.

We’ve got 10 green tips for cleaning your home that is not only better for the environment but healthier for your body and also your pocket book.

A Green All-Purpose Cleaner

The key to this Swiss Army Knife of cleaning solutions is hydrogen peroxide; it’s economical, non-toxic, and readily available just about anywhere. And with stronger cleaning attributes than vinegar, hydrogen peroxide works a lot like bleach, except without any of the serious health and environment side-effects. 

Add a bit of lemon juice for a fresh citrus scent and to help break down any grime, and some water to help dilute the solution. And just like that, you have a green all-purpose solution to clean just about anything in your home.

Tile, Toilet, & Tubs

A simple 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water can routinely clean tile, toilets, and soap scum in the shower. If you need to get some tough stain out in grout, sprinkle a bit of baking soda and spray with hydrogen peroxide and scrub with a toothbrush. 

It works wonders. A personal favorite, The Grapefruit Tub Scrub. Ditch the Scrubbing Bubbles and try this! Cut a grapefruit in half and sprinkle each half with some salt, as you’re cleaning/scrubbing away, squeeze the grapefruit to release the all-powerful natural cleaning juice. Then, simply rinse and enjoy a clean tub and the amazing citrus scent left behind. 

Got Roof Stains?

Use a chlorine-free green solution when cleaning algae, mold, and lichen from your roof as any runoff from caustic chlorine bleach chemicals will kill the surrounding landscape and vegetation of your home. 

Be sure to hire a green roof cleaning contractor that uses a non-high-pressure washing method and absolutely no brushing or scrubbing or else you’ll damage your roof.

Improve Your Air Quality

Deodorizers and air fresheners are often used by many to cover up odors in their homes. However, many of these run-of-the-mill air fresheners can contain toxic chemicals like 2,5-DCP and 1,4-DCB as well as endocrine-disrupting phthalates.

Instead, consider using an all-natural essential oil of your choice in conjunction with a diffuser as your go to air freshener. As a bonus, many essential oils help reduce stress and offer a soothing environment.

You can also mix essential oils with baking soda and use it as a carpet deodorizer. Oh, and opening a window or two whenever possible does wonders.

Use A Bagless Vacuum

Minimizing waste goes hand in hand with being green. When vacuuming, be sure to use a bagless vacuum like this model from Hoover; which offers some of the best particle retentions in the industry for a truly dust-free vacuuming experience. 

Carpet Cleaning

As mentioned earlier, we know mixing your favorite essential oils with a bit of baking soda can be used as a deodorizer. But what about stains? A combination of white vinegar and baking soda or cornstarch can clear up most stains in carpets. You can also try some fresh club soda and salt as an alternative.

Hardwood

Black tea is a great morning beverage with loads of health benefits – turns out it’s also a great hardwood floor cleaner. 

The tannic acid in the tea acts as a natural cleaning agent helping dissolve away grease and dirt. And as a bonus, it’ll give your hardwood floor’s a gorgeous shine. Next time, consider brewing an extra bag or two.

Window Cleaning

Black tea doesn’t just work for cleaning hardwood floors; it’s also an exceptional way to clean your windows. As with the hardwood floors, the tannic acid does all the heavy lifting. 

Another option is to use white vinegar and wipe it off with crumpled up newspaper to get some of the shiniest, streak-free windows you’ve ever seen.

Furniture Polish

Try dabbing a bit of olive oil onto a soft cloth and rub into furniture, resulting in a shiny and polished piece of furniture – revitalizing the surface and life of the furniture.

And there you have it, eco-friendly alternatives to cleaning your home. 

Have you used any of these methods before? Have one to add? Let us know.