No Chemicals Under My Kitchen Sink
Get rid of toxic chemicals in your home by greening your cleaning routine! Here’s how to assemble a natural, simpler cleaning caddy. You only need a few simple cleaning supplies to get most jobs done.
When you try to avoid health hazards in your food, it’s only natural that that mindset will flow into other areas of your life as well. That was my experience. Why would I assemble a pantry full of healthful ingredients yet ignore the toxic ingredients in my beauty products or cleaning supplies? A natural kitchen is no place for toxic chemicals, but I had plenty lined up under my kitchen sink!
One of my summer goals was to assemble a caddy of natural cleaning supplies, so as I’ve been using up old cleaners, I’ve replaced them with “cleaner” options. While there are some fun recipes out there for homemade cleaning products, I’m convinced that the simplest and most frugal way to go is with a few basic tools that get the job done.
My microfiber cloths are my best cleaning friends. Their myriad fibers trap dirt and bacteria, cleaning up surfaces with just water, and the cloths can be machine-washed and reused for years. I looked in to Norwex antibacterial cloths, but ended up purchasing some Real Simple recommended E-cloths instead, since they were more in budget.
It felt like my birthday when we went to Meijer and I picked out a brand-new cleaning caddy. Here’s what’s inside now:
- Microfiber general purpose cloths– use dry for dusting, or damp to wipe down counters, sinks, and appliances
- Microfiber glass and polishing cloths– use damp to wipe windows and glass
- Microfiber scrubber– use damp for scrubbing the bathtub and sinks
- Paper towels– for cleaning the toilet (basically the only thing we use paper towels for these days!)
- Old toothbrush and Pampered Chef pan scraper– for cleaning cracks and crevices
- Glass spray bottle of vinegar/water mixture OR OnGuard concentrate from doTERRA– extra disinfecting for toilet, floors, or counters
- Re-purposed empty Real Salt shaker of baking soda– extra cleaning/whitening for sinks and tub
- Oxygen bleach– sprinkle inside toilet bowl
Beyond that we have a vacuum, toilet brush, and Swiffer mop which we wrap with a damp microfiber cloth.
Further Reading
Of course, some messes require extra solutions. For giving your home an occasional deep cleaning, check out my expanded Deep Cleaning Arsenal, and check out this Deep Spring Cleaning Checklist.
For an article on the health hazards in commercial cleaning supplies, as well as natural alternatives, read here.
[question]What tools make your cleaning routine greener and simpler?[/question]
I’m going to have to look into getting some of those microfiber cloths and scrubbies, Elsie! What do you use to clean/disinfect the sink and counters in your bathroom? I use paper towels for that as well, but other than that and the toilet I don’t use them for much of anything anymore. I’d love to quit using toilet paper, too, but I’m not sure my husband would go for “family cloth”. 🙂 Maybe someday, lol!
However, baking soda and vinegar are pretty much the only things I use myself anymore, and I’m collecting worn-out socks, underwear and t-shirts to use for rags. That reminds me…I really should go clean out under my kitchen sink! 😀
Jaimie, for the bathroom sink/counter, I either use just the cloth and water, or some baking soda or vinegar. The E-cloths trap almost all the bacteria on their own, so the cleaning agents are just for extra abrasion or whitening.
We have old T-shirts, too, to clean up spills and stuff instead of paper towels. I used to use T-shirts for dusting, but they didn’t cut it, and that’s what goaded me to seek out microfiber. Have fun cleaning out under your sink!(:
This is like my cleaning cabinet. I also have a huge selection of rags under both my bathroom and kitchen sinks for easy clean up (in the bathroom I always have a pail of cloth diapers so I can quickly wipe something in between deep cleaning and then stick the cloth into the pail) and instead of a scraper I have found a old credit (debit, or gift) card to be much better. It is the perfect bend and thickness! It is amazing. On my cleaning day I have one very handy in my apron. Nothing beats in in getting soap scum out of sinks (as learned by my friend Stacy and Stacy Makes Cents). I also actually do not wet my microfiber often, i just wipe with it. I love that I can have my 3 year old help me clean, he could spray anything I use directly into his mouth, and other then tasting yucky, he’d be fine.
Thanks for linking up to Healthy 2day Wednesaday. Hope to see you back next Wednesday.
Norwex has AWESOME microfiber cloths (best you can find) AND they’re antibacterial too!! They also carry non-toxic cleaning supplies for when you need some added umph. It’s all eco-friendly and people freiendly! Check them out, http://www.norwex.com.