Why You Should Make Your Own Homemade Cleaners #3

It is much better for the environment

Most household store bought cleaners have toxic chemicals that are not only bad for our bodies but are terrible for the environment. When you are using things like drain cleaner,  bathroom tub cleaner and laundry soap you are just pouring these chemicals down your drain.  They end up in the sewers and are sent back into our environment and sometimes end up in our clean drinking water supply.

Phthalates, are also known as "plasticizers" a group of the most dangerous toxins and are found in most fragrant cleaners and home fragrances. Phthalates have been known to cause a whole host of reproductive problems in test animals. Besides phthalates, cleaners are typically added with other chemicals agents. For example, antibacterial products contain pesticides; automatic dish detergents have phosphates; abrasive cleaners include butyl cellosolve, a neurotoxin; and other all-purpose cleaners contain a number of carcinogenic toxins.  These are just a few of the most toxic chemical found in our home cleaners but not all of them by a long shot. There is no regulation that requires companies to list and label what chemicals are present in their products.  So, we as consumers are left to wonder what exactly we are cleaning with. You can try to request an ingredients list but good luck...I didn't have much.

So, just remember that when you are cleaning your house with toxic chemicals you are not only possibly damaging your health and the heath of your family but the environment that we live in and depend on.

Why You Should Make Your House Hold Cleaners Part 2

Reason#2 Safety

I had successfully stopping using all store bought window cleaner and all purpose spray cleaners and switched to homemade. For those recipes you can click here.  It was a relatively easy switch and I was amazed that I never had streaky windows anymore. I was not yet convinced that bathroom cleaners and such would be nearly as effective as the stuff I bought at the store but in time I would realize how wrong I was.

One day I was cleaning my bathroom with my harsh tub and tile cleaner while I was two or three months pregnant with my son and after about 20 minutes I nearly fainted from the fumes.  My eyes were watering and I couldn't breath.  I panicked and headed to the doctor because at the time I had no idea or maybe just refused to believe that the fumes were the cause of my ailments.  Blood work was done along with an ultrasound of my beautiful baby boy and my doctor looked me straight in the eye and said " looks like no more cleaning the bathroom for you". Well, this was totally unacceptable for a nesting mama. I did some researched and found out that the toxic chemicals in my household cleaners contain chlorine, though it often masquerades behind aliases such as "sodium hypochlorite" or "hypochlorite." and that when inhaled in can cause terrible irritation in the lungs.  This is particularly dangerous for people with lung conditions or children.

Besides the obvious issues of being in a closed bathroom and cleaning with these toxic chemicals I also found that when you wash your laundry or dishes that when these machines go through the various stages of cleaning that these chemical are thrown in to the air through a process called "volatilization."and we are breathing them in. These chemicals are also found in toilet paper, paper towel, coffee filters and a whole host of items found in the average American home. The issues is not just in the initial exposure to the chemicals but the accumulation in the human body over time which causes a marked decrease in the immune systems ability to fight off disease and illness. It has been proven that women who work at home have a 54% higher death rate from cancer than those who work away from home. This 15-year study concluded it was a direct result of higher exposure rate to toxic chemicals in common household products. According to the EPA, this year alone some 11,420 people will die from indoor air pollution. Millions more will be sickened by their exposure to a host of toxic chemicals within their homes and offices.

Besides my desire to lessen the exposure of toxic chemicals to my family as I mentioned before I have a very curious son.  He will put nearly anything in his mouth or try to smell things.  Now I know exactly what he is trying to ingest or smell.  You should still lock away cleaning products even if they are made of vinegar and soap flakes. 

******Never mix bleach and ammonia...this will make toxic fumes that are very dangerous******

Why Making You Should Make Your Own Cleaners Part 1

No, I am not a hippie. I am just a mom who has a monthly budget, a three year old little boy who loves to get in to my cabinets no matter how many times I child proof them and a newborn baby girl who like my son was born premature.  I just want to give my family the best and protect them and those were the reasons I began looking in to making my own cleaners for my home...

Reason #1 Budget:

I used to spend hundreds of dollars on cleaners.  There were things for the bathroom, things for the floors, things for my window, things for my floors, laundry detergent and stain removers, home deodorizers and disinfectants for everything.  One month I looked at my grocery store bill and I have 60$ in just cleaning supplies.  I knew there had to be a better way to spend 60$ each month. My husband and I wanted to take a trip and 60$ x 12 months a year = 720$.  Now, I realize that 720$ is not enough for a vacation but hell it is a big dent in the cost. Diapers were 20$ a week and milk for the month was around 24$ a pedicure was 30$...Basically, I could find better ways to spend my money...

I began doing research and found out that I could make my own supplies for a tenth of what I was spending. The basic ingredients in most homemade cleaners were rubbing alcohol, borax, washing soda, soap flakes, and Castile soap. All of which I could buy at Amazon.com for next to nothing and yield a ton of product. So, my journey began pretty much just to save money.

Dishwasher Detergent

Dishwasher soap recipe

• 1 cup borax
• 1 cup washing soda
• 1/2 cup citric acid
• 1/2 cup kosher salt

 Mix all ingredients except the citric acid ( see below) in a container that you can shake up and has a tight lid. Shake it up and you are done!

****This recipe yields 24oz of soap. I recommend not adding the citric acid until you put the mix in your dishwasher because it causes the mixture to clump. You should add 1/2 teaspoon of the citric acid per load. You have to add the citric acid or you will have a white residue that most "green" cleaners leave behind.

Rinse Aid

Instead of spending 4$-8$ on rinse aids just use white vinegar in your rinse aid slot. It disinfects and will remove any left over soap residue leaving your dishes sparking clean!

Homemade Clorox Wipes or Spray

1 cup of water
1/4 cup of rubbing alcohol
2 Tbsp. Dawn dish soap (only use Dawn)
2 Tbsp. ammonia (optional)

I do not use ammonia and use a spray bottle.  Some people claim that vinegar and soap is a strong enough disinfectant but I ( and the local health department) disagree.  This is in lue of using bleach around the house.  Unfortunately, I still use it in my white laundry.  Some people soak rags in a diaper wipes box or a plastic baggie. I prefer the spray method.

Furniture Polish

Homemade Furniture Polish

Most of the old folk formulas for furniture polish ask for 1/4 cup of oil or so, plus a few drops of vinegar. I feel those folk formulas leave the furniture too oily, and in hot weather there is a risk of the oil going rancid.

Instead, I’ve found that reversing those ratios —using 1/4 cup vinegar plus a few drops of oil—makes for a much better wood cleaner and polish. The vinegar pulls the dirt out of the wood, and the few drops of oil lubricates the wood so that it doesn’t dry out.