I was out of laundry soap and I have decided it was time to find a good recipe to make myself.  Most recipes call for ingredients you already have in your house, and they are healthy and without harsh chemicals.  The recipe I made didn’t take long and there was plenty to last quite a while.

The first step is researching to find one that is doable.  You have the option of making a powdered formula or liquid.  I opted for a liquid option because I feel that it mixes in quicker than a powdered cleaner.  The recipe below I decided to  make a half batch because I wanted to try it out before I make too much.   I  have already washed 3 loads with it and I am very pleased.

Liquid Detergent

1 quart water (boiling)
2 cups bar soap (grated)
2 cups borax
2 cups washing soda

1. Add finely grated bar soap to the boiling water and stir until soap is melted. You can keep on low heat until soap is melted.

2. Pour the soap water into a large, clean pail and add the borax and washing soda. Stir well until all is dissolved.

3. Add 2 gallons of water, stir until well mixed.

4. Cover pail and use 1/4 cup for each load of laundry. Once it’s cool, add 5 – 7 drops of your favorite essential oil per gallon. Stir the soap each time you use it (it will gel).

It took me a while to find the washing soda.  I would have thought Target or Walmart would carry it, but I ended up finding it at a grocery store in the bleach aisle.  For the soap I wanted to go with a selection that was healthy so I picked Dr Bonner’s lavender castile soap.  Every time I open the laundry soap to use I can smell the lovely scent of lavender.  Please leave me your stories of making homemade laundry soap you love.

I really hate throwing away so much garbage just by purchasing products we use every day. Now, even more things are being individually packaged for our convenience. This packaging is taking over our landfills. I seek to find products and companies that reduce their packaging and reduces our waste in the end.

I did find one company in the home cleaning aisle of Target. Method, creates formulas that are biodegradable and derived from natural materials. They are also a very green company because their packaging is made from the most readily recyclable materials. They also offset any CO2 emissions with carbon credits. Their products are never tested on animals, which is something is very important to me when I search for products.

I really love the scent of the lavender one that I purchased. I purchased this product specifically because right next to it in the store was the refills that you would purchase. This cuts out the need to purchase another pump and a reduces the amount of garbage thrown away and plastic products that are manufactured. If you have any other comments about cleaners have reduced their packing leave it in the comments section below.

If there is one thing that I have learned about household cleaners this week that shocks me, it is how potentially dangerous they are.  Most household cleaners are full of poisons that are toxic, potentially cancer causing and all around nasty stuff.  It has become difficult for me to understand the logic in spreading a thin layer of poison over everything in the name of supposed cleanliness.  We have made some changes and will hopefully explore this topic even more in the weeks to come.

We took the remaining “bad” cleaners we have and gave them to people who may be able to use these items.  I don’t really like the thought of passing poisons on to others, but since these families will use the cleaners anyways, I would rather it go to use rather than be wasted.  So, we have given away most of our traditional cleaners.

We have begun using cleaners that are supposed to be green alternatives.   Ashley has been using cleaners that are green and has experimented with homemade cleaners prior to this blog.  I have stopped using the other cleaners and will try to work with what we have.  Also, I would like to try to make more of our own cleaners since that seems to be the healthiest and most environmentally friendly option.

Beyond the potential health issues, there is also an environmental impact to using these cleaners.  Poisons end up going into the garbage and down the drain.  This stuff ends up in our landfills and the ground.  The containers are also wasteful and end up wasting space in the landfills.  If we can start using more homemade concoctions, this will help reduce our waste.

It has been a good week once again and I have learned quite a bit.  Please let me know your stories or tips on household cleaners below AND stay tuned for next week’s task.

The dangers of household cleaners

1. There are many horrible chemicals in household cleaners that are poisonous, suspected or known carcinogens or otherwise bad for the environment.  These chemicals end up as a thin film around your house.  Does your child put his mouth where you clean?  Does your animal lick the floor? Do you touch places where you clean?
2. The air quality inside your home is generally worse than outside and this is partially due to cleaners.  It has even has been reported that housewives have a greater rate of cancer than their working counterpart.
3. The containers end up in our landfills.   We can reduce this by purchasing eco-conscious products or creating our own.  Ashley’s post yesterday gave some ideas for cleaner recipes.
4. The chemicals end up getting flushed down the toilet and our sinks.  This ends up in the environment.

What can you do?  Change out your cleaners to green cleaners like 7^th Generation, Greenworks or make your own!  Let me know your green cleaning tip in the comment area below.

Now that I have given away many of my cleaners, and I am starting to run out of others, I have been doing some research on green cleaners and other homemade cleaners.  From this research I realized we have all of the basic ingredients required to make almost all cleaners from flooring, countertops, dishes and laundry.  Specifically, I am running almost out of laundry detergent so I am going to ask for your favorite recipes.  I want to go through everything we have in our cupboard to see what specifically they do to keep our house clean.

White Vinegar dissolves dirt, soap scum, and hard water deposits from smooth surfaces.  White vinegar neutralizes odors, commonly known to cover-up pet odors.  The smell of vinegar disappears when it dries.  It also makes a great fabric softener substitute for people who have skin allergies.  I personally get sinus headaches when I am around a lot of fragrance.

Baking Soda has abrasive and natural deodorizing properties <that> make it a powerful replacement for harsh commercial scouring powders.  I use this sometimes if the composter gets a little smelly; works wonderfully.

Rubbing Alcohol provides the base for an evaporating cleaner to rival commercial window and glass cleaning solutions.  I also hear to use newspaper to dry, this creates less streaks and also you can recycle afterwards.

Lemon Juice:  acts as a natural bleaching agent. Put lemon juice onto white linens and clothing and allow them to dry in the sun. Stains will be bleached away. This also helps reduce the vinegar smell some people may not like.  Most people associate the lemon smell with cleaning products.  Lemon juice also cleans copper pots or fixtures.

Borax cleans, deodorizes, disinfects, softens water, cleans wallpaper, painted walls and floors.  I have tried using this product in a dishwashing detergent, and many of my dishes came out with a chalky residue on them.  I may be doing more research on this recipe.

So many of these ingredients we have use to cook with, clean wounds or deodorize our homes before way before we started using them as cleaner replacements.  If our grandparents have been using these ingredients for cleaning way back before we got chemicals added to our cleaners, they must be the healthiest and less toxic form of cleaners around.  If you have any great cleaner recipes, especially laundry soap, please share them in the comments section below.

Before I delve into the specifics of this green challenge I have found it fruitful to look at WHY I should investigate any given task.  This week’s green challenge is to look into the environmental impact of the cleaners most of us have in our cupboards.  The biggest reason this is important, and seems most obvious to me, is all of the toxic chemicals that are in cleaners.

A quick look at the ingredient lists of most cleaners reveal a long list of stuff that does not sound good for you.  Typically, there are poison labels and a label of what you should do if you ingest these chemicals.  These are not the kind of things a normal person would consider healthy. Most of us (or at least those of us that are alive) do not eat these things, but yet it seems perfectly normal to spray or wipe them all over our house?  I might be crazy, but it does not seem like a good idea to spread a thin layer of poison over everything we encounter through the day.

So the layer of poison all over our house does not sound disgusting enough?  What about all of the cleaner waste that ends up going down our toilets, sinks and in the garbage? Not only the packaging of these items, but also the chemicals themselves.  Although I do not know enough about it yet, I imagine that millions of households sending poison down the sink has some kind of bad impact on our potable water and our landfills. 

The way I see it, we need to change out the cleaning chemicals in our household for a few different reasons.  First, and most important, it seems to be the healthy thing to do.  The thought of poisons covering everything in my house disturbs me.  Also, these chemicals are ending up in the waste system via our garbage and down our drains.  Please let me know if you have any good information for me in the comment area below.

New week and a new challenge in my year long journey to learn about and make changes that will make me green.  Although I had asked Ashley to allow me to investigate phantom or vampire charges this week, Ashley ended up going through our cleaners this week and we both decided it would be a good week to look at cleaners.   The task for this week is to learn about cleaners and why they are, or are not, environmentally friendly.

Although I do not know a great deal about how cleaners effect the environment, I have a sneaking suspicion that all of the toxic stuff in many cleaners is bad.   My feeling is that many cleaners are not only bad for the environment, but also bad for our health.  Well, I guess that is a bit more than a feeling since most cleaners have clear warning about health hazards.

So, please join me this week in learning about the environmental qualities of cleaners and lend me any expertise or knowledge you may have on the subject.  If you have any information or comments for me, please let me know in the area below.