Green cleaning. It's something I've always had an interest in, and had to learn about while I was pregnant. The smell of just about anything made me feel queasy for the first trimester, so I decided I couldn't keep cleaning with anything that had a smell, especially anything chemical. yuck!
If you google green cleaning,
bicarb soda comes up trumps for just about everything. I
had always used gumption (thanks Mumsie, which was, as I found out,
mostly made of bicarb) for the bathroom, and have never minded having to use a bit of elbow grease to scrub things down.
Then I started looking down the list and realised you can use bicarb in the washing up water to wash dishes, you can pop it into the bath to wash grubby kiddos (and their toys), you can use it as a face scrub, you can put it into smelly shoes to deodorise them, it even helps to remove stains off clothes!
We use it as a deodorant. Simply dab a couple of your fingers in water, (or lick them), and touch them into the bicarb box and rub under your arms. No smells, even after sweating!
We use it a lot on Max's modern cloth nappies, even the pooey ones. Just like magic, after a sprinkle of bicarb, and a bit of water & scrub, no smell, no poo stain.
You can say goodbye to toothpaste, if you use bicarb paste. Just wet the brush and dip it in the bicarb, and brush away! No chemicals, no nasties, just pearly whites :)
Make jewellery sparkle by making a paste with bicarb and water and gently rub with a clean soft cloth.
We don't have carpets, but you can sprinkle it onto carpet as a stain treatment and/or deodoriser (vacuum 15 minutes after adding bicarb).
If you make a paste, bicarb acts as anti-itch for a mozzie or ant bite.
Of course it's helpful in the kitchen as a rising agent in baking too. Use 2 teaspoons of bicarb to every cup of plain flour (or we use spelt).
Ever had indigestion or heartburn? Add a teaspoon of bicarb to half a glass of water, stir and drink immediately. Bicarb is really alkaline, so it helps to decrease stomach acidity. Please only use this remedy after or between meals, as having a good amount of stomach acid is necessary to properly digest your food.
Sometimes you might want your cleaning to leave a nice aroma. There are healthy ways to add fragrance to your cleaning, it is natural, and doesn't cost the earth.
Mould? Clove bud oil, tea tree oil, eucalyptus oil (about 5 drops of each) into a spray bottle with water. Spray onto the mould directly, and then scrub with a brush or toothbrush (dipped in bicarb) after 10 minutes. Then rinse with water.
Soap scum? Bicarb, then vinegar spray, then scrub.
Alternative to rinse aid in dishwasher? A handful of bicarb in the bottom of the dishwasher during the rinse cycle, and 5-10 drops of lemon or orange essential oil. Bliss!
Don't you just love it? I keep a box of bicarb on the kitchen window sill and another in the laundry. It costs about $3 a month to keep it stocked up, and as you can see from my list of uses, it gets used multiple times per day. Winner!
A warning about the not so nice guy cleaners...
The chlorine vapour from domestic mould cleaners has been linked to a large array of respiratory issues as it causes oxidative damage to the epithelial lining of the mouth, oesophagus and lungs. See this study to find out how toxic cleaners and swimming pools can be!
Remember to put bicarb on the shopping list this week, and throw out the chemicals. You might even feel as healthy and sparkly as your newly polished jewellery :)
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