If you want to contribute to the environment as an individual, then you must start from home. There are a lot of things that we can change while doing our daily chores by choosing green alternatives.
Once of the most prominent changes that you could make would be to switch to eco-friendly cleaning products in place of the toxic products for improving the quality of the air indoors and also contributes to preserving the quality of the environment too! Removing toxic cleaning products that contain neurotoxin chemicals will also go a long way in improving your health as well. Here are a few tips that can help you to clean your house in a green way.
1. Start by looking under the kitchen sink and get rid of the toxic products
The first thing to do before embarking on a toxic-free home would be to get rid of whatever cleaning agents you have stocked up on beneath your kitchen sink. We have unintentionally converted our kitchen cupboards with hazardous chemicals that come with a caution or warning. These poisonous chemicals are extremely threatening to the health of children so get rid of them immediately by disposing them appropriately.
2. Dispose hazardous cleaning agent in a responsible manner
Never pour the chemicals down the kitchen drain or throw it away in the trash as it can result in some serious pollution wherever it ends up. The best thing to do would be to arrange ‘hazardous waste pick-ups’ from your local community and do it in a responsible way. This would ensure that the chemicals do not end up polluting the environment, if not your home!
3. Find green substitutes for the toxic cleaning products
There are many alternative biodegradable and non-toxic cleaning agents that are available in the market, so always look out for those. Never buy products that have signal words such as danger, caution, warning or poison written on them as it indicates the toxicity of the product and ingestion of these can result in life-taking circumstances. If you read this article by Ideal Cleaning, you’ll be able to get some professional insight into the benefits of using eco-friendly cleaning products. This includes avoiding any harsh chemicals which can lead to respiratory issues and protecting the planet, as they can prevent air and water pollution.
4. You can also find ways of cleaning by using natural ingredients
Most of the toxic chemicals, we use, can effectively be substituted for natural ingredients and therefore our kitchen cupboards can serve as a great provider of such solutions! For instance, if you want to bleach your whites, you can use vinegar or lemon juice in place of bleaching liquids.
5. Use old rags in place of sponges and mops
You can use old clothing as rags for many different kitchen uses such as mopping, dusting and even as a kitchen towel. You can use kitchen rags in place of paper towels and contribute to the environment by saving trees.
6. Understand about the kind of water in your taps
It is important to understand whether the water coming from your taps is soft or hard and accordingly decide on which detergent would be appropriate. Hard water requires a stronger detergent, hence using a lighter product would be ineffective and you would require more of it. Using the appropriate product with the type of water would reduce the wastage of resources – which is the water and detergent!
7. Look for alternatives for disinfectants
Disinfectants seem to have the same effect as an antibiotic as they are resulting in drug resistance. Chlorine bleach is known to contain cancerous chemicals that can affect the fresh water stream when it flows out.
8. Learn to save water
Water is our most precious resource and although 70% of the earth is covered by it, only 1% is potable. It is important to minimize the wastage of water in our home and especially in the bathrooms. You can use soapy water from the washing machine for mopping instead of draining it out.
9. Control indoor air pollution by having plants in the house
Plants greatly improve the quality of air and keeping them indoors is great for reducing indoor air pollution and they also add to the indoor decor.
10. Attend to your cleaning jobs immediately rather than leaving them for later
If you are quick to clean the sticky doorknobs and smelling mattresses, then you would not require strong chemicals to help you complete the task. Allow your senses to guide you through your cleaning so that it is done before it worsens and this way you will be at the top of your cleaning chores!
By adopting these eco-friendly tips, you will never feel the need to have toxic chemical cleaning agents help you with your cleaning jobs.
About the author: Diana Maria is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on technology, Environment and luxury. Beside this she is a nature lover. Recently she bought a Wireless Laser Printer for her house. These days she is trying her hands on a totally different topic i.e. vertical farming.