It’s Easy to Be Green, Week 10

This is another installment of Lichterman Nature Center's twelve week It's Easy To Be Green program that MLGW employees are participating in.

Modern household cleaning products may be fast and efficient but they contain toxic chemicals. Non-toxic “green” cleaning products are “earth-friendly” (biodegradable), less expensive, and you can make them yourself. Finding the ingredients is as easy as opening your pantry to pull out the baking soda, vinegar, salt, borax, and olive oil.

Action Items

• Floors: Add one-half cup white vinegar to a bucket of warm water. If the floor is really dirty, mix a small amount of liquid soap and wash the floor with this solution. Rinse afterwards with a vinegar and water solution.

• Furniture Polish: Mix a teaspoon of olive oil with one-half cup lemon juice in a bowl. Test it on an old piece of furniture with a soft cloth. Rub deep into the grain. Turn the cloth over and buff with a clean portion of the cloth.

• Glass Cleaner: Make a 50-50 solution of white vinegar and warm water. Pour it into a clean, empty spray bottle. Spray on windows and wipe with newspaper. You can also use this solution on your vehicle windshield to act as an anti-fogging agent. A tablespoon of lemon juice mixed in a quart of water removes fingerprints.

• All Purpose Cleaner: Dissolve two tablespoons of borax in one-fourth cup of lemon juice and two cups of water. Put into spray bottle and use like a conventional all-purpose spray.

• Drain Cleaner: Pour one cup of baking soda and a half cup of table salt down the drain, followed by a cup of white vinegar. The vinegar causes the baking soda to bubble away, and the salt acts as an abrasive on the clog.

• Toilet Bowl Cleaner: Baking soda and a brush.

• Household Disinfectant: Two teaspoons of borax dissolved in two cups of water.

In addition to these non-toxic homemade cleaners, use scoring pads and a little more “elbow grease.”

Important

• Do not mix homemade cleaning products with conventional cleaners.
• Keep all cleaning products away from children.
• Keep large batches of cleaning products in tightly sealed containers or reusable spray bottles.