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Story by
mtraub
Published on July 14, 2009 in How-To |
Photo by |
Mainstream cleaning products have always made me uneasy. I never understand why detergents have to be electric blue or disinfectants must smell like green apple lollipops. The artificiality of most products leaves me feeling anything but clean. Natural methods, which are safer for our planet and our families, get me downright giddy about doing household chores. For this week's How-Tuesday, we have some refreshingly simple tips for cleaning your kitchen without those harsh chemical abrasives, courtesy of The Naturally Clean Home by Karyn Siegel-Maier.
To me, the kitchen is the hub and heart of a home. This room is more than a storage receptacle for culinary sundries; it's where we gather with cherished family and friends for mealtime celebrations. Unfortunately, it's also the room where the garbage is usually kept, where a bare floor endures the patter of muddy feet, and where the odor of grease and last night's fish stubbornly linger. In other words, it's a haven for germs.
Save for the loo, the kitchen is probably the most frequented room in the house and is most in need of daily cleaning. It's a pity that most of us grew up to think a clean kitchen is only evidenced by the overwhelming and pungent smell of a pine solvent. And little did we realize that our nervous systems were being treated to an assault of toxins. But you can create your own cost-effective, healthy alternatives to all the kitchen cleaners you're accustomed to using.
Buy a copy of The Naturally Clean Home
Helpful Hints for the Kitchen:
Wipe up food spills in the oven as soon as possible. Better yet, line your oven with aluminum foil to prevent spills from caking on in the first place. Enamel stove tops can sometimes get those hard-to-wipe-off stains that only get worse as time goes on. But if you sprinkle a few drops of your favorite essential oil the stain will wipe clean.
- Essential oils are readily available in health food stores and by mail order. Make sure that you're buying a pure, undiluted essential oil and not one that has been diluted in a carrier oil (such as aromatherapy or massage oils). Always practice caution when handling essential oils, and never allow children to handle the pure oils.
Sprinkle fresh grease spills in the oven with salt. When the oven has cooled, wipe clean with a soft cloth. Baking soda will also soak up the grease when applied this way.
Sanitize wooden cutting boards by rubbing with half of a freshly cut lemon, lime, or grapefruit. Or soak the board in a solution of 2 cups of water and 15 drops of a citrus essential oil. Then wash with a mild soap and hot water.
Electric can openers can collect a lot of gunk. Who wants to open a can of tuna for lunch after opening Fluffy and Fido's dinner the night before? Use an old, soft toothbrush dampened with 2 or 3 drops of any essential oil to clean in and between those small parts. Rinse, and the gunk is gone.
Keep garbage disposals smelling fresh by tossing in the remains of a lemon, grapefruit, or lime when available.
How about some ready-when-you-need-'em kitchen wipes? Instead of using paper towels to wipe up spills or to clean off countertops, store multiple squares of soft cotton cloth or cellulose sponge in a container filled with a mixture of 1 cup water, 1 ounce liquid castile soap, and 6 to 8 drops of your favorite essential oil. The cloths, made from old t-shirts or pajamas, can be washed and returned to the jar for reuse. Be sure to cap the jar between uses.
Keep a supply of 100 percent cotton cloths and towels on hand to use instead of paper towels.
Use cloth napkins and placemats whenever possible, to reduce your consumption of paper napkins.
Plastic storage containers can get heavily stained from foods such as tomato sauce, especially if they're frequently microwaved to reheat leftovers. For these stains, let the containers soak in a strong infusion of lemon balm, mint, or sage and a tablespoon of baking soda. After soaking for an hour or so, scrub the container with a little more baking soda if needed. The stains may not disappear entirely, but they're bound to look better than before.
Reduce your use of plastic wrap, aluminum foil, and brown paper bags by using plastic containers to tote lunches to work or school. That goes for plastic tableware as well. All are dishwasher safe; with proper care they can last for years. And plastic containers can always be used to store other materials when they are retired from kitchen service.
Thanks to Karyn Siegel-Maier and the good people at Storey Publishing for sharing these useful tips with us! Looking for more How-Tuesday posts? Check out our archive here.
Environmentally Friendly Gift Guide | Earth Tones Series | Slow Food Gift Guide
114 comments Login to add your own!
foamywader
JayBehrle
My German grandmother would love you! Thanks for reminding us that many ideas from the good ole' days still work.
jcrabbit
SoapScentsations
BabbidgePatch
Greenbriar
This was a great tool for me today! I am going through the process of doing a deep cleaning in my house. Don't want to make it more dirty with harsh chemicals!
cottonbirddesigns
Excellent article! Great finds -love those kitchen brooms!
aimeesarmoire
And don't forget the cleaning & deodorizing power of vinegar! Not only will it help with greasy messes, it removes soap scum and hard water stains. It's cheap, works great, and the "pickle-ish" smell evaporates and helps to deodorize, too.
enhabiten
my philosophy exactly. i love these sorts of articles in the storque.
teenyartist
These are great ideas! Cheap and safe...what could be better?!
JAdamsDesigns
All this talk of herbs, and lemons and such.... Those are some of my FAVORITE smells to have in the kitchen! They are good for cleaning too! How nice!! :-)
JulieMeyer
I agree with aimeesarmoire - I use vinegar to clean everything. I add a few drops of essential oils and my house smells wonderful after I clean.
FancifulForm
Great advice! I think I may actually print this article and tack it to my fridge.
BeadinBabe
Love this!! I'm always using vinegar to clean, my hubby hates the smell of it :P
Xenotees
Excellent article! I only clean naturally because I have cats & I'm concerned about their health, my health, & the environment. Vinegar is probably the thing I use most!
gloilocksandbody
edor
I concur! awesome tips. We should all live naturally wherever possible. It's better for the earth and your health and your wallet. Only caution with reusable plastic containers: Try not to microwave food in them!
beautifulbridget
odiliafu
ParadiseBodyShop
OMG, what great ideas! I will have to try a few of these out ASAP!
amoronia
Fantastic article!!!! I would like to add that I have found wine vinegar to be an excellent disinfectant, odour-remover and cleaner. It even gives a shiny look to all surfaces!
misspandi
Thanks for the advice! My boyfriend and I were complaining about "apple blossom scented" detergents... this is just what we were looking for!
1AEON
almapottery
Tea tree oil is a good thing to have on hand as an antiseptic and lavender and geranium oils work well as insect repellents.
stainless steel sinks can be rubbed with a lemon cut in two and you can eliminate odors in your dishwasher and washer if you run a hot cycle with a cup of vinegar.Green cleaning means a lot more scrubbing but is doable. I used and still use only natural recipes for cleaning for the last 5 years and I have to say there comes a day when you break down and get a bottle of Ajax so you can see the outside of your fridge white again for a change,other than that it's all good :).I'm still trying to find a natural dishwasher detergent that works
NenoBebo
Thanks for these eco ideas. I try to use soft soaps and vinegar instead of smelly detergents too.
nomadcraftsetc
There is nothing better than using baking soda and hydrogen peroxide on a lot of "White" Cleaning. I also like to use vinegar and those 1 socks that you have that the dryer ate its mate on our windows! This is one of the best etsy articles EVER! Thanks!
shanineal
KOALACaddie
Great article. When the kitchen is clean, the conscience is clean. My mantra is WASH YER HANDS!!!! Laksaware's kitchen scrubber is so neat and it's crocheted!
DeNovoStyle
sewjewcy
Wonderful article filled with great ideas that are easy to impliment.
bijougirldesigns
Yay! I'm all about natural cleaning! I didn't know how useful essential oils could be, though - my favorite is lemongrass - and I can't wait to use it to clean!
lilworkerb
BayMoonDesign
I just spent two hours deep cleaning my bathroom. Yuck! I can't believe I am know reading an article about cleaning. I should have done this in reverse order. Great tips for me to implement when I deep clean my kitchen tomorrow. No wonder I'm not getting lots of jewelry made.
kaylovesvintage
SweetwaterGifts
Thanks for all the great info. Anyone have a natural remedy for deodorizing smelling laundry in the wash??
whichgoose
Add a half cup of baking soda to the wash and it will remove odor and make your whites whiter!
EarthenTreasures
great tips, can't wait to use the plastic container stain remedy
shizendesigns
PipocaHandmade
Wonderful ideas and tips...perfect for any household, but especially those with kids in them!
Great collection!
juliepeach
i love this article!! i'm a total clean freak who has seen what rough commercial cleaners can do to your hands (yknow, take away your fingerprints... scary!)
i finally made the transition to a 100% cotton napkin, towel, and placemat home. i use all of the samples from my shop-- buh bye paper waste!
HibouCards
My French grandmother... and mother... would love that subject, good old fashioned cleaning tools! ;) But I barely need any of this because my kitchen is SUPER tidy already ;)
Love the brooms though!
yaelfran
asundrynotion
Glad to see this! As so many have already said, white vinegar is pretty much the answer plus baking soda and peroxide. All bio-degradable, non-toxic to environment & far more economical than essential oils, which are rather pricey. Since we're talking green, save energy by not using a dishwasher at all. Have never had one, don't want one and raised a family just fine w/out one. Besides, it's good for kids to have chores and help out w/ dishes. Watch your elec. bill shrink, too.
kunklebaby
It's amazing what you can clean with some baking soda & vinegar!! Nice article!
niTeBecOmEsdAy
Great tips!
I'd like to add that glass storage containers are a great alternative to those cheap, plastic tupperware containers that seem to collect grime. And they are safer for your food, too! They also look a prettier sitting on the shelf in your fridge.
SimpleJoysPaperie
TipsyTimeMachine
Does anyone have a suggestion for shower mildew? The cleaners are so toxic, and bad for the lungs.
KathyPanton
to clean polished (sealed) wooden floors, Brown vinegar is best. About a cup in a bucket of warm water.
corrnucopia
Great article ~ I've been returning to basics as well. Borax & vinegar have become my new favorites!
lovelygifts
earlybirdcreations
vaeda
This is a great article, I would love to see more articles here that emphasize a green lifestyle. It's very important.
capitalcitycrafts
mazedasastoat
TipsyTimeMachine... Baking soda mixed to a paste with white vinegar & left to soak on bathroom mildew will remove it. You may need to do it twice though, if your shower gets as mouldy as mine does! :-0
OnTheRound
themefragrance
Essential oils with antibacterial and antiseptic qualities that you can use in the kitchen are the essential oils of Tea Tree, Lemon, Oregano, Thyme, Lavender, Lemongrass, Juniper,Rosemary. Avoid direct contact full strength of these oils on your body-despite being natural does not mean they cannot be harmful!
shower cleaner-fill a bottle with half vinegar/half water add lemon essential oil. i also add some rubbing alcohol. avoid chrome fixtures.
Half a lemon and baking soda make a nice scouring scrubbie!
ArtWhims
Some great tips! Thanks for selecting my dishwasher buddies too!
Slowshirts
We save empty wrappers and bags from other items, like chips and tortilla wraps and use them for repacking opened food items. It saves us from buying plastic wrap and sandwich bags. We don't buy tinfoil, but if a piece makes it into the house it's gold! We treat it like the last piece on earth, wiping it clean and reusing it over and over. Pretty damn pathetic really, but i love the game of it all.
PomLove
i grew up in a family that used all of the harsh cleaners (more chemicals = more clean) & never really thought anything of it until i had kids. we pretty much only clean our home w/water & baking soda now. it's super cost effective and works..... wow.
slinkymalinkicat
stellaminz
This book looks interesting! Great ideas, safe for the kitchen and the environment!
PookieLovesOlives
Thanks for the great eco tips! Love the clothespins with words!
erinzam
I have this book and I love, love, love it! In fact, I used it to whip up a batch of eucalyptus laundry stain spray yesterday. It smells so good and keeps my sensitive skin happy. :)
BubblesVarietyShoppe
spacejam
Tina669
pogoshop
Such a bonus... feeling good about being clean and being green at the same time. Thanks for the great ideas.
evihan
MinceCo
great glass cleaner for bathroom...white vinegar and a few drops of dishwashing detergent.
silknparachute
These are all good ideas, another one is a spray bottle, and a thick white hand towel. Most stuff you are wiping just needs some friction, and water is the trick, when the towel looks dirty wash it. It will dry between wipes, will not smell like a washcloth, which just spreads germs anyway. I like to use plain water, that way you can always spray a little on your food, in helps in reheating it for leftovers, think macaroni and cheese.
You can freak out a luncheon guest this way.
AnniesWearableArt
Baking soda, lemon, cinnamon oil and vinegar have been my best friends in the kitchen for several years now. Once you go natural, you'll never go back! Such a wonderful article-way to spread the word!!!
breadandroses
SweetwaterGifts
Thanks for all the great info. Anyone have a natural remedy for deodorizing smelling laundry in the wash??
-----------------
While baking soda does work great for minor odors, for really strong odors, i.e. guy's stinky work clothes, etal, I use ammonia (the lemon scent is a bit easier on the nose). 1/2 cup or so per large load should remove stench. NEVER, EVER COMBINE ammonia & bleach. Scars lungs.
TipsyTimeMachine - Bleach is the only substance that will eliminate mold. If on shower stall ceiling, you may need to treat w/ bleach, let dry thoroughly then paint w/ Binz, a mold stain concealing paint. Try to do when kids, pets are out of house. Really old houses, like ours built pre-indoor plumbing, have this problem. Run fan to get more ventilation & dry paint quicker. Not as green as we'd like, but black mold is worse.
LoveForEarth
Nice article! Right up my alley of interest. Bread and Roses try adding a drop or 2 of Tea Tree Oil in your wash, it helps to introduce antibacterial properties and that might help with the smell. I've seen some great eco friendly dryer sheets on etsy, I plan on buying one soon
thebestvintage
BelleMereBelleFille
This is coming from a girl raised by a mom who owns two Health Food stores in Indiana since 1977: YES! YES! YES! Thank you Etsy! Let the education continue!
BeautifulSoaps
Great article. I never realized how harsh evil, chemical cleaners actually were until my body had detoxed from using commercial laundry soap and I suffered an allergic reaction to them. WHY would these companies do these things?$? It's as if they just don't care and to me it's a slap in the face and an insult to my intelegence :-) yes I know it's spelled wrong, just being silly.
Laundry Soap Recipe:
1 Bar Castile Soap
4 oz. Borax
4 oz. Washing Soda
1/2 tsp. essential oil (optional)
Grate the castile into small shreds and add your dry ingredients and essentials/fragrance if you'd like. I wear gloves and stir, stir, mash, mash, stir. The longer you work and smash it together like a madman the more consistent it will become. Enjoy!
poppyswickedgarden
these are great we make our own laundry detergent and abrasive soap.
we also don't use a dryer because it is wasteful to the environment and hanging clothes on a line can be a fun family time too;)
zucchiniandco
Great article. I definitely want to check out this book! And thank you for featuring my drawing!
Morado
beachhouseblues
It's amazing the simple changes that we can make that will impact our lives and our environment in such positive ways!
tldgrainwear
Very useful tips for having a tidy kitchen! I think I might be following some of them very soon...cheers!
TreeHuggerStudio
Great article. I just started making my owm laundry detergent,fabric softner, and glass cleaner. Not only it working the best part is when I go to the store and walk past the cleaning aisle. I love being self-sufficent.
missbatch
Great tips! I love that Etsy shops have so much to offer in the naturally clean home department!
StarsandRobots
Oh, you are singing my song! I have always used natural cleaners and (EGADS!) refused apartment pesticide services. Also, a tip for pet owners, we grow lots of plants and use organic fertilizers. my dogs ate some, and after a tearful night at the emergency vet, I found that it saved their life! They weren't even sick! Other fertilizers are toxic to animals (and they WILL eat it!) so it was a real red alert. So buy some clean stuff from these hard working etsy people and save a life! :)
steinschmuckdesign
glorygifts
PawPawsWorkshop
mrsjonessoapbox
Amen!
Here's another fun tip... Fill an ice cube tray with equal parts of vinegar & lemon juice (and drop in some cut up lemon rind bits if you've just used a lemon) and throw the tray in your freezer. Whenever your garbage disposal gets a little stinky, feed it one or two of your new ice cubes and voila! The "ice" will sharpen the disposal blades and the lemon juice/vinegar combo will clean & get rid of smells.
littlemoandfriends
looks like lemon is going to be my best friend in the kitchen! :)
orchardfarmsoap
we also have a suger green, natural cleaning home. thanks for the tips, always appreciated
voleurdebijoux
Fabulous article! love using basic household products to
green clean...it's so much better for your home and the environment.
tips:
white vinager is wonderful for cleaning mildew and
preventing meldew from coming back in the bathroom.
hydrogen peroxide is great for stainless steel sinks
and disinfecting your kitchen sponge.
club soda is a fantastic stain remover and polisher
Mymothersgarden
Great tips! I'll have to try the stove cleaning tip of using my favorite essential oil to remove stains, I never would have thought of trying oil. Thanks!
iLuvKOSHi
Hmmm... the salt in the oven thing & lemons on the cuttingboards are definitely worth a try. Thanks!
LilBlossoms
great ideas! We are trying to become a mostly paper free house. And I have helped my office to become GREEN, no more printing, paper coffee cups or paper plates (it was a huge improvement in a design agency, we often waste way to much paper)
Salt/Lemons and Ice are great trick for removing any unpleasant smells from a garbage disposal.
bellecamicie
janssendesigns
great article! we already use a lot of green cleaning techniques and don't use the dryer. Haven't found a homemade dishwasher detergent that works with hard water though so still use the pricey Seventh Generation.
girltuesdayjewelry
funkeyfinds
elvenhands
Wonderful article, I love the bit about the garbage disposal. But I have to caution everyone about lining your oven and electric cooking elements with foil. The oven says "SPANG!" when the active elements touch the foil, creating a short circuit in the currents. The element then catches fire. (Yes, it happened to my oven.) Don't use foil just because you want to avoid a little elbow grease.
What you really need is a plastic scraping tool to plane off any build-up. I use half an expired credit card. (The credit card usually has to be tossed after this.) Soften build-up with water or a dish detergent/water mixture if you need to. After scraping, the gunk is then reduced to a manageable scrub with baking soda and water paste.
There is nothing baking soda can't do. :-)
Above, someone said: "Thanks for all the great info. Anyone have a natural remedy for deodorizing smelling laundry in the wash??"
Borax and washing soda. Washing soda is sodium carbonate, and sold in the laundry aisle or section of your preferred grocery shopping venue. The musty smell comes from mildew. Borax and washing soda will help get that out. It also helps, if you have a front-loader, to take a holey sock for a rag and wipe out the inside of the rubber sealing ring. Mildew thrives there. Also, I may get shouted out of the comments, but a 1/4c of plain bleach on a linen load will do it, too, with minimal environmental and health impact. If you're really anti-chlorine bleach (which degrades into sodium chloride in the environment, or table salt), get industrial-strength vinegar (acetic acid, about 25%) for cleaning power. Table vinegar is only 10%.
Good luck. I HATE cleaning. But baking soda and snipped credit cards make it perversely subversively fun. Ish.
1crazybeadgal
After working a few years as a project monitor for HAZMAT-I am not surprised what I read about industrial household cleaning agents. Yikes!!!
I have this book, too and it is wonderful. Great DIY ideas for gift giving. Especially those with kids and pets.
As for plastic storage containers, I opt for good 'ole pyrex. I hear too much bad press about plastic. Plus pyrex can go from your fridge to the microwave without any scary toxins getting cooked into your food. I also use the bigger pyrex dishes to bake dinners, then when they come out of the oven and cool down, can be covered with their respective cover and popped on the fridge. Sure saves on dishes. And those suckers are tough! Havent broken them yet-even when dropped and countless trips to and from the house with school lunches and food outings.
whyte
Thanks for this storque article and for everyone who added such fantastic tips!!! I love conserving and repurposing and recycling.... my tip....dump the electric can opener all together and go back to the old fashioned hand-held. Doesn't require electricity, easier to clean and store. I've tried them all and the best for durability and ease is the good old SwingAway brand.
msddesign
Loving the dirty/clean magnets! Great idea. Can't wait to check out the book. Thanks for this article!
mrsjonessoapbox
::janssendesigns::
Try Method's Smarty Dish tablets for the dishwasher. I've tried EVERY kind of natural dishwashing detergent (even tried making my own) and this is the ONLY one that has worked! They were recommended to me by a friend and I've been hooked since.
mazedasastoat
I'm amazed no one's mentioned the old method of cleaning windows with half a bucket of water with a cup of distilled (white) vinegar added. If they're really dirty just add a cup of soft soap or a squeeze of washing up liquid as well. Wash with a cloth & dry with old newspaper that then gets recycled.
I NEVER dry my laundry anywhere other than outside. I'm lucky enough to have a lean-to for storing logs & I put up a washing line in the roof so it can be used in all weathers.
Also, I wash my car with regular shampoo, the same as I use on my hair. It gets rid of the dirt but leaves the wax intact, so the car needs polishing less often! (I hasten to add, I ONLY wash & polish the car regularly because it's a taxi!)
Lastly, for red wine spills on the carpet, sprinkle with a good layer of table salt, Leave till the salt goes red then vacuum up. Repeat until the salt no longer changes colour.
One last thing, antifreeze for cars is something there seems no way of avoiding, but keep it well out of harm's way. Cats just LOVE the stuff & it poisons them.
TheCraftyRagamuffin
Thanks so much for consistently including green articles on Etsy!
eva429
Quinnalicious
fromchaoswithlove
Jrisco
tinycharm
Celinasews
I love this article!
As a kid, it was painful to my sinuses to walk down the detergent aisle. I could smell the over-fragranced laundry detergent and my eyes would water...same goes for the perfume area in department stores. It's better now that I'm grown, but I still get a little wonky at the thought of cleaning with bleach and harsh chemicals.
Thanks for all the natural oil tips- I just bought some tea tree oil and now I know so many more ways that I can put it to good use!
TiaLiaLuv
I have a "Euro-Pro" steamvac and I love it! I feel like a ghostbuster with the little vac strapped over my shoulder and the best part is it disenfects with NO CHEMICALS! Which is especially great for places like in the tub and on the counters. It does take a few minutes for the water to heat up and you have to pause after using all the steam for it to heat again, but it's not a huge inconvenience and a small price to pay. I really recommend it, it's got attachments for floors and everything. Great for babies who like to crawl around.
Thanks for all the other tips!!!
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