As the weather is finally warming up and we are able to open the windows up again, I have been feeling the itch to get some spring cleaning done. I didn’t feel the need to spring clean as much in Oklahoma, but then again, when we were in Oklahoma winter didn’t last for eight months out of the year! After being couped up in this little apartment for so long with no fresh air circulating through the rooms, it just feels musty and moldy and dingy.
I need to clean!
Soooo, my friend here at seminary has been talking about these cleaning products that she has been using for years. And the way she talks, these products are wonderful. The company is environmentally conscience and the products are made with natural, plant based ingredients rather than harsh chemicals.
I resisted for awhile because I felt like it would be just too expensive on our tight budget. But I decided last week that I wanted to go ahead and start using greener products. My first order arrived a few days ago. I bought disenfecting spray, all-purpose cleaner, stain/odor remover, and some other miscellaneous items. I’m planning to keep a spreadsheet over the next few months to see if using these products is really economical enough to fit within our tight budget…and whether I am satisfied with the products, but so far, I’m impressed.
A few things that I am pleased with are:
- In cleaning my kitchen today, I used both disenfecting spray and all-purpose cleaner — without gloves, because I despise wearing gloves. Normally, when I clean, my hands get really dry and irritated from the cleaners. Today, I finished cleaning and my hands felt like I had been using lotion all day. They are soft and not irritated at all.
My house does not smell like bleach or other harsh chemicals. It does, as my sweetie says, smell like an italian herb garden, but not like harsh chemicals. I feel better knowing my kids aren’t inhaling fumes.
Okay, this one’s going to sound cheesy, but everything seems to sparkle. When I use clorox wipes or pine sol or other standard cleaners, my countertops and such look clean. But when I use the new products, everything not only looks clean, it seems to sparkle. I feel kinda like I’m in a commercial. I assume it’s because of the plant oils, but whether it is or not, I kinda like having my countertops sparkle. And the bathroom sink seems to stay clean longer. I’m going to have to watch to see if that continues to be true, but…
I love that everything is super concentrated to save plastic. For all three cleaners that I bought, I also bought a separate spray bottle. Then, I mix the concentrated mixture with water. Even though some of the products seemed a bit expensive, like the window cleaner which was approximately $5 for a 16 oz bottle, that 16 oz of concentrate makes four – 24 oz spray bottles of cleaner. So, I’m really only paying about $1.25 per spray bottle full. That’s pretty comparable to name brands, and I’m not wasting 4 plastic bottles.
So, I’m definitely going to keep using them for awhile, and I’ll probably update ya’ll every once in awhile on how I like it…or if there’s things I don’t like about it. But so far, I’m a happy camper!
Oh, and if you’re interested in trying greener products, let me know. I’d love to tell you more!
