Spring Cleaning Goes Greener
Green living becomes more and more popular which is wonderful!Even we as a professional carpet cleaners in South Woodford realise this and now we are using only eco-friendly detergents. But eating good food and buying recycled accessories is just not enough! Here are some tips on how to set green approach to spring home cleaning and organizing.
Use Eco-Friendly Cleaners
This is one of the first things to do, if you want to live healthy life. There are plenty of commercial green detergents, that are now available not only in specialised shops, but I would recommend you to make your own cleansers using the power of natural ingredients like soda, distilled white vinegar, salt and lemon juice. You will be astonished how effective actually are these products! What is more, using home made detergents will lower the price you pay for cleaning.
Stop Using the Dryer
Drying your laundry in a gas or electric dryer isn’t just hard on textiles; it’s also hard on the environment. Washing with natural laundry detergent isn’t enough! Be green every all the way and install a clothesline in your garden. If space and aesthetics are issue, search for a retractable clothesline which takes up practically no space when you don’t use it. Weather permitting, dry your laundry in your backyard to reduce pollution, cut the energy bill, get more exercise, enjoy the warm sun, and prolong the life of your garments.
Add Real Greenery
Put alive air cleaners — houseplants! Some of the most efficient air-filtering plants are English ivy, Spider plants, peace lilies and rubber plants. You’ll need up to 18 medium sized houseplants for average 1,800 square foot house. If this sounds a lot to you, place just a few plants in the room which you use the most.
De-Clutter and Organize Your Wardrobe
Donate gently worn garments and accessories to charity, where they’ll have a second life, and leave the others – stained and torn ones to your rag collection, where they’ll replace wasteful paper towels (only if they’re made of suitable fabric). And while you’re packing your winter cardigans and sweaters, replace the stinky moth repellents with a natural and better-smelling variant: fill an unpaired sock (we all have at least one of those!) with bay leaves, cinnamon sticks and whole cloves and tie the end.
Green Renovation for Your Walls
If spring cleaning in your home means a fresh coat of paint too, take in mind the VOC content when choosing your paint and ask Capital Construction Contracting Inc for advice. Volatile Organic Compounds are chemicals that evaporate easily at room temperature. Some VOC’s, like these in most of the paints, contribute to indoor air pollution and can cause a short- and long-term health issues. The good thing is that many manufacturers nowadays make low- or no-VOC’s containing paints. Unfortunately, many of those manufacturers have just substituted VOC’s with other still toxic chemicals. Read the labels carefully. There are some paints, sold on the Internet, that don’t contain any toxic ingredients and are healthy both for you and the environment.
Clean with Reusable Tools
Instead of buying expensive single-use mops every time, invest in a reusable one. There are brands that are widely available in both health food and general stores. Some mop heads can be machine washed, hung dry, and used over and over. And they aren’t expensive at all!
Say goodbye to the Paper Towels
Save trees & cash. You have two options – to buy specially-made, machine washable cleaning and dusting cloths (in all types of natural or synthetic materials like cotton and microfiber). But better option is to use what you already got and give an old piece of textile (ratty sheets and pillowcases, stained towels, small T-shirts, etc.) a new life. Just cut or tear your old garment into small squares and voil?! Put them in the washing machine along with your other laundry to clean them, and use them again.
Cleaning and tidying up your home for spring doesn’t need to be dirty job. If you implement some of these greener ideas and products, you can be sure that you’re benefiting yourself, your family and home and the Earth all at once. Many of the most important changes are the small ones, but their impact on health and environment can really add up over the time. Happy spring cleaning!