Helpful Eco Tips
Always Test New Products
When you try a new product, always try it in a small inconspicuous place. Let it dry completely! If it's slightly damp, it can hide scratches.
Cream Cleansers
Look for a cream cleanser with calcium carbonate which tends to not scratch.
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MarbleMarble is dulled by acidic products. Do not use vinegar on it.
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Glass Cleaner
2oz. vinegar and 14 oz water in a spray bottle and shake. (Do not use this spray around marble.) (You can re-use your Windex bottle if you rinse it well.)
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Shower Doors
Inside the shower, I put vinegar on a sponge and wipe glass and metal parts of the shower door, then I clean the rest of the shower area, and I finish by lightly cleaning the glass with some cream cleanser on a damp sponge if needed (test on a small area first since some cream cleansers scratch). Rinse and dry.
Plastic Tubs
I like to use Nature Clean's All Purpose Cleaning Lotion. Don't dilute it, just use it out of the bottle on a damp sponge. It takes some elbow grease but I find even toxic cleaners require elbow grease on plastic tubs. It's been decades since I used a toxic cleaner on a plastic tub, but this cleaner impresses me and it works as well as anything I've used.
Hard Water Marks
In Toronto, the water is not hard compared to where I grew up, however even here hard water marks can accumulate on shower walls and taps over time. As long as you're not working on or around marble, you can use vinegar. Wipe it on. You can do something else to give it time to work. When you come back, use a cream cleanser if it's on tile or shiny metal fixtures. (Do not use cream cleanser on plastic unless you don't mind it losing some of its shine. I never use cream cleanser on brushed metal only shiny metal.) It may take a few such cleans, but you'll see a beautiful shine soon. (Vinegar also cleans glass vases nicely. Add some vinegar, fill with water, and leave overnight.)
Window Cleaning
When I clean windows, I fill a bucket with warm water and some dish soap. I use a rag which can be disposed of afterwards if necessary and wash the windows first with soap and water. Then I finish with window cleaner. Windows here in Toronto can get so dirty. This speeds up the process rather than trying to do it all with just window cleaner. Squeegees can also be used.
Cotton material makes the best rags. Old washcloths, towels, and dishtowels work great. Cut them to a comfortable size. (Most clothing now has elastic added to the cotton so it's not suitable. Sometimes old cotton sheets work well.) Don't wash your rags with fabric softener and don't dry them with dryer sheets. These add chemicals to the rags which streak glass.
I haven't used paper towel for many years, but back when I did, I asked customers to buy the cheapest paper towel they could find. The more expensive paper towel had something in it that streaked glass.
I haven't used paper towel for many years, but back when I did, I asked customers to buy the cheapest paper towel they could find. The more expensive paper towel had something in it that streaked glass.
Toilet bowl hard yellow buildup
A friend wondered what to use to clean his toilet bowl. I said anything. An all purpose cleaner or cream cleanser work fine, you don't need a special toilet bowl cleaner. He persisted and I eventually realized that he practices eco-friendly: "If it's yellow let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down." Vinegar is the answer to the stubborn build up urine will leave over time; vinegar will completely remove it. If you go away some weekend, or before you go to bed, put some vinegar in the toilet bowl. (I'm not sure how much, at least 1 cup.) When you come home or the next morning, give it a bit of a scrub and it should come right off. If it doesn't completely come off, repeat. (Cleaning the toilet weekly should prevent the problem.)
Kitchen sinks
My customers love the shine of their stainless steel kitchen sinks when I finish cleaning them. I use either Bar Keeper's Friend (found at Home Hardware) or Lagostina Stainless Steel and Copper Cleaner. Baking soda works okay.
Stoves
For electric stoves with the metal pans under the heating coils, stainless steel scrubbers that you can get at a dollar store or Canadian Tire work well and don't scratch. For glass top stoves, you can get a box at Canadian Tire which has the scrubby, scraper, and cream by Weiman. The Weiman cream is the most environmentally and health friendly that I've found to date.
Washing the Dishes
Some people wash dishes by adding dish soap to each individual item or a sponge and having the water running the whole time. This uses an immense amount of dish soap and water. Based on what I've observed, you may buy only 10-25% of the amount of dish soap you currently buy by putting the plug in your sink and adding some soap and filling with some hot water. Bonus: if you let the dirty dishes soak in the soapy water while you're drying the clean dishes, dried on food becomes easy to clean off. (If you have a single sink, try using a plastic dish pan for your dish washing which then in effect gives you a double sink for rinsing and putting liquid down the drain while you're washing your dishes. I found a good quality tub at Home Hardware.) Rather than a sponge, I use dish cloths which are easy to launder each week with no worry about bad bacteria. The sudsiest dish soaps I've tried are Eco Max and Seventh Generation, found in health food stores.
Stainless Steel
Depending on the water stain, sometimes vegetable oil can remove the water stain on stainless steel. For fingerprints, I usually just use dish soap directly on a damp dish cloth.
Vacuums
When a customer or friend asks me for my recommendation on vacuums, my reply is, "I've used many of them. There's no perfect vacuum." (and I'm not aware that any are more environmentally friendly.) It's worth saving up and buying good equipment because you will enjoy cleaning so much more with good equipment, get better results, and I believe ultimately it saves money and is better for the environment since well-made equipment lasts so much longer. Here are some thoughts to keep in mind for vacuums:
. A vacuum with a beater bar cleans carpet much better and raises the carpet pile. A heavier beater bar will get down into the carpet fibers and clean better.
. Make sure the vacuum has strong suction.
. A stick vacuum will not clean edges of the room well, nor go completely under furniture. I like canister vacuums myself for their versatility since they do everything: stairs, under furniture, corners and edges.
. You'll want the vacuum ends to be easy to put on and take off, and some need to click into place so they don't fall off.
. Make sure your vacuum comes with a floor brush which works much better on floors than beater bars.
. If you want to vacuum lamp shades, the vacuum end needs to have soft enough bristles to not harm the fabric.
. If you clean up plaster dust, for the health of your vacuum motor, change the bag immediately.
. A vacuum with a beater bar cleans carpet much better and raises the carpet pile. A heavier beater bar will get down into the carpet fibers and clean better.
. Make sure the vacuum has strong suction.
. A stick vacuum will not clean edges of the room well, nor go completely under furniture. I like canister vacuums myself for their versatility since they do everything: stairs, under furniture, corners and edges.
. You'll want the vacuum ends to be easy to put on and take off, and some need to click into place so they don't fall off.
. Make sure your vacuum comes with a floor brush which works much better on floors than beater bars.
. If you want to vacuum lamp shades, the vacuum end needs to have soft enough bristles to not harm the fabric.
. If you clean up plaster dust, for the health of your vacuum motor, change the bag immediately.
Grease
Years ago, I experimented to see what removed grease the best. To my amazement, baking soda worked better than either of the products I grew up using, Ajax and Comet. (Do not use baking soda on painted walls as it will scratch.)