Looking for easy ways to lessen your ecological footprint? One easy way is to clean your home using “green” cleaning products. It’s simply a matter of choice. You’re going to buy laundry detergent, stain remover, dish soap, dishwasher detergent, glass cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, tub/tile cleaner, all-purpose cleaner, floor cleaner and many more products anyway. Why not make them “green”? “Green” cleaning products are small purchases with the power to make a huge difference for your heath and the health of the planet.
A second easy way to be clean and green is maximizing water and energy use when using the dishwasher, washing machine and clothes dryer. Check out the following ten tips and take these small, positive steps to shrink your ecological footprint. You and the planet will be glad you did!
1. Use chlorine-free dishwasher detergent. The chlorine in conventional detergents is easily vaporized by hot dishwasher water and steamy, toxic chlorinated chemicals are released into the air when the dishwasher is opened. Breathing in chlorine fumes can irritate the lungs and is particularly dangerous for people suffering form heart conditions or chronic respiratory problems. Chlorine is also a highly corrosive substance, capable of damaging, skin, eyes and other membranes.
2. Choose colorless dishwasher detergents. Dyes can be contaminated with heavy metals such as arsenic and lead and may penetrate the skin during washing and leave impurities on dishes.
3. Choose products that do not contain phosphates. Phosphates provide nutrition to marine life. The overabundance of phosphates in conventional cleaning products causes algal blooms once they are washed into rivers, streams and the ocean. These algal blooms deprive fish of oxygen, thereby suffocating them.
4. Steer clear of dyes and fragrances. Phthalates help distribute dyes and fragrances and act as plasticizers. They are suspected of having adverse hormonal effects.
5. Use laundry detergents made from natural, biodegradable ingredients. Conventional detergents contain polluting surfactants like alkylphenol ethoxylates, or APEs. APEs are suspected hormone disruptors; they have been shown to mimic the hormone estrogen. APEs do not biodegrade easily after they are washed down the drain. Natural laundry products use safe, biodegradable ingredients such as vegetable oils.
6. Avoid chlorine bleach. It’s harsh on clothing, and can combine with organic matter in wash water to form toxic by-products. Instead, use a hydrogen peroxide-based bleach. These are far gentler on fabrics and much better for the environment.
7. Always run full loads in the washing machine and dishwasher. Running several smaller loads instead of a full load wastes both water and energy.
8. Wash your clothes in warm or cold water instead of hot. Approximately 90% of the energy used by a washing machine goes to heat the water.
9. Air-dry your laundry when possible. Clothes dryers are one of the most energy inefficient household appliances. If you do use a dryer, clean the lint filter and use the moisture sensor. Dry full loads. Do not overload your dryer. Air needs to circulate around damp clothes for maximum efficiency. When possible, dry loads back-to-back to take advantage of the machine’s residual heat.
10. Avoid using harsh insecticides to kill bugs. For ant problems, try using cayenne pepper or lemon juice. Ants taste with their feet.
~ Amanda Miller
