Our bathroom was getting pretty dirty, so I figured it was a good time to write a post about green bathroom cleaners. Well, it’s actually such a long post that I’m going to have to split it into three parts. So this is part one, and you can read part two here, and part three here.
Bathroom cleaning products are some of the worst offenders when it comes to harmful chemicals:
- Butoxydiglycol: toxic for the reproductive system
- Alkyl C12-18 dimethylbenzyl ammonium chloride: Highly toxic to aquatic organisms, considered acutely toxic
- PEG Compounds: harmful to human nervous system and can harm development, potential carcinogen
- Artificial Fragrance: artificial fragrances can indicate up to 4000 ingredients, which can range from causing allergic reactions to being carcinogenic
- Isobutane: irritant to eyes and skin, may be toxic to human health
And that’s just to name a few.
Am I the only one who gets dizzy when I use commercial cleaning products? The fumes make me feel awful. When I use the cleaners I make myself, they just smell like lemon, sometimes with a hint of vinegar. Amazing. I love not feeling like I need to wear heavy duty gloves and a mask on my face to use my cleaners. No dizziness, no awful fumes, benefits for everyone. And don’t be fooled by all the commercial disinfecting products that make you think you can’t get rid of bacteria with gentler products- all these products are antibacterial.
Plus green cleaners are very inexpensive to make. The seven green cleaners in this three part series use only five different ingredients: borax, baking soda, liquid castile soap, white distilled vinegar, and lemon essential oil. And they all cost less than a dollar to make.
Here are all the recipes put together in one image. The post below goes into more details and has lots and lots of pictures, but this is the post at a glance:
So, first things first, let’s get started with an All Purpose Cleaner.
Green All Purpose Cleaner
This will be the shortest section, because I’ve already covered this awesome all purpose cleaner in a previous post. That post also contains a free printable label, so be sure to check it out!
So, here is the recipe for this green all purpose cleaner:
- 2 cups all purpose cleaner
- 2 tsp borax
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp liquid castile soap
- 5-10 drops essential oil (preferably an antibacterial oil like lemon or peppermint)
Here is how my sink looked after being cleaned with this cleaner. Nice and shiny. I love this all purpose cleaner.
On to our next cleaner!
Afton Warrick says
Thanks for the cleaning recipes, as I am not interested in toxic chemicals, but don’t want to live in filth either.
Marilyn Lesniak says
Great ideas and I love they are good for the environment. Hope to see you on Merry Monday next week.