It's not easy being green. . . or is it?
Jul. 14th, 2008 07:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mellymellSo, the first stage of reducing my environmental impact has set in: I feel guilty every time I throw away a ziploc that could possibly be used again; or pour a pot of pasta water down the drain instead of giving my garden a drink; or stuff food scraps that could have been composted in the disposal, or walk out of the grocery with disposable bags yet again. . .
Well, yesterday as I was walking to the checkout with only a handful of things, I noticed the display of cloth bags at the front of the store and that they were 5 for $4 "with your Kroger plus card". So, I thought, now is as good a time as any, and grabbed 5 of them. Not only does it make me feel a little better, but I think it will make carrying groceries a little easier. They're not likely to fall apart like the plastic bags. They hold more than a plastic bag, so I can carry fewer bags. Since they're sturdier and have a nice insert to keep the bottom flat, the weight is more evenly distributed and I don't think will be so much of a strain to carry lots of heavy bags. If nothing else, it's a line crossed off on my to-do list.
Several months ago, I read House Works by Cynthia Townley Ewer. Maybe running an efficient household is just common sense to some people, but I was feeling like there was entirely too much of my time spent doing it and I was still way behind. I had just finished the Renaissance Soul book and worked out how I was going to spend my time, even allotting 40 hours to do my "job". But still, my "job" never seemed to be done enough for me to steal away some hours each day to work on my focal points. So, I browsed home organization/cleaning books on Amazon until I found one with a lot of great reviews that sounded like what I needed. She gets a little OCD in spots (as I would only expect from someone who writes a book and runs a website on organizing your home), but overall, it really helped me with some great ideas to try to stay on top of things around the house. I'm still working on it, especially since it all fell by the wayside with lots of consecutive vacations. But I feel like I've got more of a handle on things, at least in the routine cleaning department. Now if I can only work in the deep cleaning and the decluttering aspects of the plan, I'll be in great shape and can maybe get back to doing what I love without so much effort being needed to keep the house tidy. If I find I never get to that point, then I'm hiring a maid to at least do our deep cleaning. I'm sorry, but if it takes more than 40 hours a week to keep our house clean, then someone else is going to have to pick up the slack.
One of the most helpful things I found in the book was her "green cleaner" recipes. She gives several ways to combine household products (which are much cheaper than store-bought cleaners, by the way) to make most all of the cleaners you need for your home. I've been cleaning our kitchen counters with nothing but a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water for a couple of months now and it's been awesome. A gallon jug of vinegar is about $3 and about 2 cups vinegar plus 2 cups of water will fill my spray bottle and last me about 2 weeks (that's cleaning the kitchen 1-2 times a day, depending on how much I cook). At first I didn't like the smell of the vinegar and it did linger a little too long. But, I found I could add a drop or two of a complimentary essential oil and it completely neutralized the vinegar smell. So far, I've used lavender oil, but I'm out of that, so I was going to try some kiwi fragrance oil I just happened to have (and didn't want to burn as incense, kiwi as a cleaner might work but just to scent your home, not so much). The lavender has worked extremely well though. Anyway, I promised J-9 months ago that I'd post the recipes, since she's interested in them as well, so here they are:
First, of course, there's the 50/50 vinegar and water solution. This works just fine as a light to medium duty all-purpose cleaner for kitchens and bathrooms and you can even mop your floors with it, even hardwoods. The rest of these I haven't tried yet because I still have leftover store-bought cleaners I'm using up.
Glass cleaner
1 cup isopropyl alcohol
1 cup water
1 tablespoon white vinegar
Strong glass cleaner
1 cup isopropyl alcohol
1 cup water
1 tablespoon clear, non-sudsing ammonia
Strong all-purpose cleaner
1 tablespoon clear, non-sudsing ammonia
1 tablespoon clear dishwashing liquid
2 cups water
Other cleaning applications using household standbys (again, I haven't tried any of these):
I must say, I keep a bookmark in the page with all these recipes and tips.
Unrelated to "green" cleaning, but totally related to housekeeping: There's also a handy guide on what chores are appropriate for what age of children. She starts at ages 2-3. Jonah blows them out of the water! At 19-months-old, he's already helping me unload the dishwasher and pick up his toys. He likes to think he's helping sweep the floors, but he's still working on the dexterity for that skill. I'd be happy if he could just sit still long enough to hold the dust pan for me. We had a little bit of an adjustment in finding a way he could help with the dishes without getting his hands on the breakables. He was quite determined to help. I've found that I can keep him busy with the non-breakable items that go in drawers and cabinets he can reach. I give him one piece at a time while I quickly pull out all the breakables and set them on the counters where he can't reach. I can usually get at least the knives put away before he gets into the silverware. Then, as the dishwasher is empty I let him close it up while I put the rest of the dishes away in the upper cabinets. If we ever get around to child-proofing our cabinets, I can probably just open all the ones he'll need while we're doing the dishes. Or, maybe just child-proof the ones that are dangerous for him to be in. I've found I have to load the dishwasher while he's fully occupied though (i.e.: eating or sleeping). Otherwise he has a habit of pulling clean dishes out of the cabinets to put in with the dirty dishes as we're loading. Or, he pulls out dirty dishes I've loaded and tries to put them away in the cabinets. He's a great helper, as I tell him all the time and I'm glad to have him wanting to help. I figure I should take advantage of it while it's still fun for him. Soon I'll be pulling teeth to get him to do this stuff. Even now, just after wiping down his booster and the chair it's in from lunch, he went behind me after watching me do it, grabbed a rag and imitated my actions completely. I've even found him making messes so he can clean them up (e.g.: tipping his sippy cup upside down so he can go get a rag to clean up the drips). I might be raising a cleaning machine. Or it might just mean is that he sees me cleaning entirely too much. ;)
Well, I guess I better go. . . you guessed it, clean.
Well, yesterday as I was walking to the checkout with only a handful of things, I noticed the display of cloth bags at the front of the store and that they were 5 for $4 "with your Kroger plus card". So, I thought, now is as good a time as any, and grabbed 5 of them. Not only does it make me feel a little better, but I think it will make carrying groceries a little easier. They're not likely to fall apart like the plastic bags. They hold more than a plastic bag, so I can carry fewer bags. Since they're sturdier and have a nice insert to keep the bottom flat, the weight is more evenly distributed and I don't think will be so much of a strain to carry lots of heavy bags. If nothing else, it's a line crossed off on my to-do list.
Several months ago, I read House Works by Cynthia Townley Ewer. Maybe running an efficient household is just common sense to some people, but I was feeling like there was entirely too much of my time spent doing it and I was still way behind. I had just finished the Renaissance Soul book and worked out how I was going to spend my time, even allotting 40 hours to do my "job". But still, my "job" never seemed to be done enough for me to steal away some hours each day to work on my focal points. So, I browsed home organization/cleaning books on Amazon until I found one with a lot of great reviews that sounded like what I needed. She gets a little OCD in spots (as I would only expect from someone who writes a book and runs a website on organizing your home), but overall, it really helped me with some great ideas to try to stay on top of things around the house. I'm still working on it, especially since it all fell by the wayside with lots of consecutive vacations. But I feel like I've got more of a handle on things, at least in the routine cleaning department. Now if I can only work in the deep cleaning and the decluttering aspects of the plan, I'll be in great shape and can maybe get back to doing what I love without so much effort being needed to keep the house tidy. If I find I never get to that point, then I'm hiring a maid to at least do our deep cleaning. I'm sorry, but if it takes more than 40 hours a week to keep our house clean, then someone else is going to have to pick up the slack.
One of the most helpful things I found in the book was her "green cleaner" recipes. She gives several ways to combine household products (which are much cheaper than store-bought cleaners, by the way) to make most all of the cleaners you need for your home. I've been cleaning our kitchen counters with nothing but a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water for a couple of months now and it's been awesome. A gallon jug of vinegar is about $3 and about 2 cups vinegar plus 2 cups of water will fill my spray bottle and last me about 2 weeks (that's cleaning the kitchen 1-2 times a day, depending on how much I cook). At first I didn't like the smell of the vinegar and it did linger a little too long. But, I found I could add a drop or two of a complimentary essential oil and it completely neutralized the vinegar smell. So far, I've used lavender oil, but I'm out of that, so I was going to try some kiwi fragrance oil I just happened to have (and didn't want to burn as incense, kiwi as a cleaner might work but just to scent your home, not so much). The lavender has worked extremely well though. Anyway, I promised J-9 months ago that I'd post the recipes, since she's interested in them as well, so here they are:
First, of course, there's the 50/50 vinegar and water solution. This works just fine as a light to medium duty all-purpose cleaner for kitchens and bathrooms and you can even mop your floors with it, even hardwoods. The rest of these I haven't tried yet because I still have leftover store-bought cleaners I'm using up.
Glass cleaner
1 cup isopropyl alcohol
1 cup water
1 tablespoon white vinegar
Strong glass cleaner
1 cup isopropyl alcohol
1 cup water
1 tablespoon clear, non-sudsing ammonia
Strong all-purpose cleaner
1 tablespoon clear, non-sudsing ammonia
1 tablespoon clear dishwashing liquid
2 cups water
Other cleaning applications using household standbys (again, I haven't tried any of these):
- For tough stains, soap scum or hard water deposits, undiluted vinegar.
- For fabric softener, 1 cup of vinegar to a load of laundry during the rinse cycle (for top loaders I'm assuming, haven't researched if it would be the same for front loaders). Apparently vinegar dissolves detergents, which is why it makes a good soap scum remover and why it doesn't leave a residue on counters like some commercial cleaners do. It can even remove such residues.
- You can warm the vinegar/water solution in the microwave until barely hot and then spray tougher surfaces like shower and tub walls with the warmed solution. Let stand for 10-15 minutes and then scrub and rinse (I've noticed the vinegar/water solution doesn't evaporate as quickly as commercial cleaners, meaning you can let it soak on tough stains a little more effectively).
- For mineral deposits on showerheads and faucets, put 1/4 cup to a 1/2 cup of undiluted vinegar in a plastic bag and secure around the fixture with a rubber band. Let stand 2 hours to overnight then rinse.
- Baking soda can be used in place of harsh abrasive commercial cleaners (like Comet or Soft Scrub). Sprinkle onto a damp sponge for tough grime or stains in bathrooms and kitchens. For tougher grime, make a paste of baking soda and water, apply to surface and let stand for 10-15 minutes to allow deposits to soften, then scrub and rinse.
- To keep drains clear and clean, pour 1/2-3/4 cup of baking soda into the drain and dribble just enough hot water to wash the solution down. Let stand for 2 hours to overnight then flush thoroughly with hot water (not for blocked drains).
- Grind lemon rinds in your disposal to clean and deodorize it.
- To clean the toilet, dump a bucket of water into the toilet to force water out of the bowl and allow access to the sides. Pour undiluted white vinegar around the bowl and scrub with a toilet brush to remove stains and odor. Use a pumice stone to remove any remaining hard water rings.
I must say, I keep a bookmark in the page with all these recipes and tips.
Unrelated to "green" cleaning, but totally related to housekeeping: There's also a handy guide on what chores are appropriate for what age of children. She starts at ages 2-3. Jonah blows them out of the water! At 19-months-old, he's already helping me unload the dishwasher and pick up his toys. He likes to think he's helping sweep the floors, but he's still working on the dexterity for that skill. I'd be happy if he could just sit still long enough to hold the dust pan for me. We had a little bit of an adjustment in finding a way he could help with the dishes without getting his hands on the breakables. He was quite determined to help. I've found that I can keep him busy with the non-breakable items that go in drawers and cabinets he can reach. I give him one piece at a time while I quickly pull out all the breakables and set them on the counters where he can't reach. I can usually get at least the knives put away before he gets into the silverware. Then, as the dishwasher is empty I let him close it up while I put the rest of the dishes away in the upper cabinets. If we ever get around to child-proofing our cabinets, I can probably just open all the ones he'll need while we're doing the dishes. Or, maybe just child-proof the ones that are dangerous for him to be in. I've found I have to load the dishwasher while he's fully occupied though (i.e.: eating or sleeping). Otherwise he has a habit of pulling clean dishes out of the cabinets to put in with the dirty dishes as we're loading. Or, he pulls out dirty dishes I've loaded and tries to put them away in the cabinets. He's a great helper, as I tell him all the time and I'm glad to have him wanting to help. I figure I should take advantage of it while it's still fun for him. Soon I'll be pulling teeth to get him to do this stuff. Even now, just after wiping down his booster and the chair it's in from lunch, he went behind me after watching me do it, grabbed a rag and imitated my actions completely. I've even found him making messes so he can clean them up (e.g.: tipping his sippy cup upside down so he can go get a rag to clean up the drips). I might be raising a cleaning machine. Or it might just mean is that he sees me cleaning entirely too much. ;)
Well, I guess I better go. . . you guessed it, clean.
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no subject
on 2008-07-14 07:10 pm (UTC)allowed, as it is not real work, that's why you don't get paid
for it ... ohhh.
;-)
Sorry, I couldn't resist! ;-)
I'm a convert to those supermarket shopping bags. I'm just tired of having plastic bags all over the house, even though I know you can bring them back to store and recycle them, or we reuse them for stuff - but they use so many and they pile up! Those other bags fit so much more stuff and are so much easier to carry!
That's great that Jonah is helping you!
no subject
on 2008-07-14 07:40 pm (UTC)Here is a website for more information, links to more resources, and well... its part of where I work :P TDEC Environmental Assistance Education and Outreach
We still get the plastic bags from shopping centers, but we reuse them quite a bit for when we clean the litter boxes. With planning out of meals and it just being the two of us, we bring in just about enough shopping bags that we would use within the week so we don't build up as big a mass of them as there could be.
no subject
on 2008-07-14 08:06 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2008-07-14 08:46 pm (UTC)I love those grocery bags too. I have bought quite a few of them, but find I sometimes forget to put them back into the car or take them and bring some with me if I go shopping with someone else. Its harder to be green when your brain is really blonde sometimes. But like Arytemore said too, if I do get the plastic bags I definatly reuse them quite a bit and then recycle them.
no subject
on 2008-07-16 10:24 pm (UTC)nice green cleaning tips :D