Cleaning with Less Plastic

I used to think that people who made their own soap and cleaning products were artsy-craftsy types with way too much time on their hands. Not being the artsy-craftsy type, I would spray down my entire bathroom with Scrubbing Bubbles, open a window, and hope that I could clean the tub before I passed out from the fumes. Invariably, by the time I finished, I would be lightheaded and would collapse on the couch to recover. Eventually, I began to associate the cleaning product dizziness with virtuous housecleaning. It seemed that dizziness and nausea were necessary sacrifices for a clean tub, and I would feel peculiarly satisfied with my labor. In my chemical fog, I concluded that the dizzier I became, the cleaner the bathroom would be. However, from this point forward, I renounce all vertigo inducing cleansers! I have given up my chemical dependence and am making natural cleaners that also drastically reduce my plastic consumption.

First, I would like to share this fantastic recipe for an all-purpose cleaner that works great in the bathroom. It is also very effective against any type of grime. I used it to clean the textured plastic on my refrigerator handles, which always get pretty gross, and was very impressed with the results.

All-Purpose Citrus Cleaner
1 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons Citrasolv Cleaner
1 teaspoon Castile soap (I really like the Dr. Bronner's Citrus Castile Soap)
3 cups water
10 drops of lemon essential oil

Mix it all up in an empty spray bottle and shake gently before using.

The Citrasolv and the Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap do come in plastic bottles; however, both products are highly concentrated, so I expect that these two bottles will last for months. We all need to consider the fact that when we buy ready-made products, we are mainly buying water, and it takes a lot of plastic to package all that water! As a bonus, the East Lansing Food Co-Op has big jugs of of the Dr. Bronner's that customers can use to refill their empty bottles, thus reducing plastic waste. The Dr. Bronner's is sold almost everywhere now, so it's not at all hard to find. Plus, the bottle is made from 100% post-consumer plastic. Another plus is that I'm no longer buying spray bottles. I always recycled the bottle, but I wondered if the spray pump qualified for recycling. I suspect that the metal spring inside the pump might be a recycling deal breaker. The Citrasolv may not be completely necessary for the formula, but I have hard water and decided that my cleaning solution needed an extra boost. Citrasolv is made from completely natural extracts of citrus fruits.

This cleaning solution smells wonderful. There is a slight scent of vinegar, but in a good way, like a big citrus salad.

One last consideration is that many ready-made cleaners contain petroleum products that do not biodegrade when washed down the drain. Others contain ingredients that are now suspected to harm human health. One of the scariest is phthalate (pronounced thal-ate). Phthalate is often indicated by the indeterminate title, fragrance. Recent studies suggest that it could act as a pseudo-estrogen in the body. Since my homemade cleaner smells so incredible, I never want to smell the synthetic stuff again.

Coming soon...

Mayday, mayday! I have run out of Pantene! I repeat, I have run out of Pantene! For those of you who don't know, Pantene is a hair conditioning product of great renown. It also comes in a big plastic jug. Making shower cleaner at home is one thing, but I can I fabricate a product that equals Pantene? More to come...