Eco Cleaning Tips For a Healthier Home: Where To Start

Keeping a clean home can easily feel like a daunting task. With the hustle and bustle of work, family, friends, and all our extracurricular responsibilities, sometimes our living spaces can just feel like the place where we come home to crash.

While time to relax and regroup is necessary, too much of it can facilitate a less-than-tidy home. So, to avoid that from happening, let’s take a look at some simple ways to help create a cleaner and healthier home.

1. Simple Tips For Cleaner and Healthier Homes

Simply put, some cleaning methods take more mindful steps for housecleaning. The ingredients being used, the packaging, and the product’s reusability all affect how much waste is being produced and what kinds of chemicals you’ll be exposed to. Opting for simple, household ingredients, repurposing or reusing tools, and choosing sustainable cleaning methods can not only be beneficial for your home’s overall cleanliness but can also help reduce overall cost and unwanted exposure to common chemicals found in traditional cleaning products.

1. Plant- and mineral-derived ingredients: vinegar, baking soda, and cleaning products made with plant-powered ingredients like our ECOS All-Purpose Cleaner are affordable, easy to find, and safer for your health.
   
2. Reusable tools: microfiber cloths, washable mopheads, and refillable spray bottles can reduce your carbon footprint while also reducing single-use waste.
3. Sustainable methods: consider drying your clothes on a clothesline, or using an electric dryer during cooler times of day when it will be less of a strain on the power grid. Sunlight can also kill mold and mildew.

2. Start from the Top

Starting from the top and working down is a practical way to approach home cleaning. Dust and cobwebs can collect in the upper corners of rooms and can carry contaminants, irritants, and other unwelcome elements that can affect the wellness of humans and pets.

Dust along the seams, joints, and doorways to eliminate any unsightly dirt. In bathrooms, consider using ECOS Bathroom Cleaner to prevent mold and kill germs. Using a towel or a squeegee to wipe down the walls, mirrors, or doors can also help prevent moisture build up after showering.

Starting “up” will also help you avoid doing double the sweeping or mopping should you inadvertently end up getting the floor dirty while addressing the ceilings, walls, and surfaces.

3. Counter Attack

From the walls and ceilings you can move onto cleaning the counters and surfaces. Shelves, countertops, and tables are prime locations for dirt, dust, and bacteria to collect. Using a reusable cloth to wipe these down with ECOS Surface Scrub in the kitchen can help kill bacteria and surface-dwelling viruses. Keeping these areas clean can also deter bugs and other pests looking for crumbs or any leftover food scraps.

Spraying and scrubbing down sinks and tubs will also help keep these areas clear of unsightly grime or spreadable germs. A solution of baking soda and vinegar can also be a useful method for keeping drains flowing smoothly, which can prevent water pooling and attracting bugs.

4. Put Bedding Mites to Sleep

If you’re getting your 8 hours a night, then the bedroom is where you’re spending most of your time. This also means that a clean bedroom is extra important for maintaining a healthy home.

Washing your bedding weekly in warm water, on 8-10 minute cycles will help kill dust mites that might be trying to take up residence in your bedding. Water above 55 degrees Celsius will kill dust mites, and utilizing plant-derived detergents such as our ECOS Laundry Detergent can ensure you’re using cleaner and safer ingredients.

Routinely washing your bedding and vacuuming any rugs and carpets, is also additionally important if you have pets, as pet fur and dander can collect in the cloth fibers and contribute to respiratory ailments and spread of bacteria.

5. Floor It

Your floors are the easiest place for dust and dirt to collect. Whether you have carpet, tile, hardwood, or a combination of everything, floors are just prone to being dirty. It’s important to regularly sweep or vacuum your floors and to mop hard floors with plant-powered cleaners to help eliminate germs and bacteria.

Taking your shoes off at the door or wiping off your pet’s paws after a walk are easy ways to decrease how much dirt you’re bringing into your home. Sweeping, mopping, and vacuuming regularly are necessary for taking care of everything else that might make its way inside.

You can also opt for longer lasting tools by choosing sturdy, eco-conscious brooms and mops with reusable, washable heads. Wooden mops tend to be built more durably than their plastic counterparts and will compost more easily if they should break. Buying bagless vacuums with washable and reusable filters is also a good way to be mindful of your cleaning habits and avoiding unnecessary waste.

Overall Sustainability

However you choose to tackle cleaning your home is entirely up to you. What feels and works best for you in terms of how to go about cleaning your home is exactly how you should approach it. You don’t need to go out and spend a lot of money on all new cleaning products or tools. Start small and figure out what works best for you.

Whether you like to do it all in one day, or room by room, the important thing is to pick sustainable practices that will help enable to keep you and your home healthy and happy.

Sources:

How to Unclog a Drain with Baking Soda & Vinegar
http://www.wikihow.com/Clear-a-Drain-with-Baking-Soda

Health Hazards When You Don’t Wash Your Sheets
http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/ss/slideshow-dirty-sheets-skin-problems