Cleaning products

[TxZen]

I am between classes and just taking a break...

I have been experimenting with a 10% water 90% vinegar mixture for cleaning EVERYTHING and it's been quite effective. I am looking at ways to save $$$ of the small stuff that adds up. I just open a window to clean out the vinegary smell, though I don't mind it.

I still struggle with the laundry. I tried homemade and organic detergents and they did not work, at all. And I need that touch of bleach. The vinegar did not get my white nice and white. Any suggestions here?

[Ultralight]

I am between classes and just taking a break...

I have been experimenting with a 10% water 90% vinegar mixture for cleaning EVERYTHING and it's been quite effective. I am looking at ways to save $$$ of the small stuff that adds up. I just open a window to clean out the vinegary smell, though I don't mind it.

I still struggle with the laundry. I tried homemade and organic detergents and they did not work, at all. And I need that touch of bleach. The vinegar did not get my white nice and white. Any suggestions here?

I will sometimes add a few drops of dish soap to the water and vinegar mix. Not sure if this is psychological or not, but I feel like it makes things cleaner. And I use 7th Generation dish soap.

[ctg492]

I tried every recipe of homemade detergent on the Net, I found none that worked well enough to continue. This was the one area of green that failed. Ok a few others have too, but I plug on. Husband will have nothing to do with any of my homemade products, so I have reserved All for just me since I can not change the world or husband!

After the formaldehyde allergy incident I have been overly concerned again with every ingredient in everything. The best I think I have found for my own clothing is now Sals Suds, by Dr Bronner. I think this to be the best low impact product I have tried. I do use vinegar in the rinse. AS above post 7th Generation is the only dish soap I use. Their dish detergent however I found did not work for me.

Other tries and fails or keeps: Hair products, mostly all have failed. Yesterday I bought Burt's Bees hair care products and will try them as they seemed less filled with unpronounceable ingredients. Tooth paste products, I need sensitive teeth paste no homemade filled that void, I am now trying Tom's, again seemed like ingredients were better??. Deodorants, I am happy with the coconut oil recipe and use this daily. However it does not stop perspiration. I know everyone sweats, but when I go out for anything other than my daily routine, I use toxic filled stuff. I bought Tom's yesterday as I heard it was reformulated and thought I would try again. Can you see a pattern, Yesterday...Yes I went on a mission for new personal care products. I had for the last three years used Coconut oil replacement for every skin product. Then I had a sun spot removed and checked, I went back to Sun Screen out of fear. Shower cleaner, nothing cleans like the toxic stuff sadly. I had a new bath and spa built three years ago, I do not want it to get grungy or rust stains, so not sure what options there would be. Same with toilet. General cleaning Vinegar all the way.

[TxZen]

The struggle is real ctg492...Stuff just does not work.

I, too, have tried everything. I found myself going back to the toxic dishwasher packets because our dishes were not coming clean. And forget natural deodorant, I smell like I have been wandering the earth for 10 weeks within hours without the toxic stuff. I have tried every natural brand, including salt rock types, sprays, natural recipes, etc.

Coconut oil-I was using it on my face and then my face had a reaction that was awful. It felt like my skin was on fire. This is with the supposedly cold pressed, organic stuff. I now stick with it on my feet.

I used a homemade soap for laundry and stuff came out smelling moldy and I didn't leave it sitting too long before washing nor in the washer after washing it. I used vinegar as a rinse and it was terrible. UGH!!!!!

I will buy a small sal suds and give it a go. Oh and the whole save the Earth and your electricity bill, wash in cold does not work either (sorry Earth!!!) Nothing gets clean, I need to put most things in either warm or hot. If it requires cold, I put it on an extra long cycle to wash it. SO annoying but it's the only way it works.

Super frustrating all around.

[Ultralight]

The struggle is real ctg492...Stuff just does not work.

I, too, have tried everything. I found myself going back to the toxic dishwasher packets because our dishes were not coming clean. And forget natural deodorant, I smell like I have been wandering the earth for 10 weeks within hours without the toxic stuff. I have tried every natural brand, including salt rock types, sprays, natural recipes, etc.

Coconut oil-I was using it on my face and then my face had a reaction that was awful. It felt like my skin was on fire. This is with the supposedly cold pressed, organic stuff. I now stick with it on my feet.

I used a homemade soap for laundry and stuff came out smelling moldy and I didn't leave it sitting too long before washing nor in the washer after washing it. I used vinegar as a rinse and it was terrible. UGH!!!!!

I will buy a small sal suds and give it a go. Oh and the whole save the Earth and your electricity bill, wash in cold does not work either (sorry Earth!!!) Nothing gets clean, I need to put most things in either warm or hot. If it requires cold, I put it on an extra long cycle to wash it. SO annoying but it's the only way it works.

Super frustrating all around.

I think the best you can do is acceptance.

By this I mean, if you want to "save the Earth" and avoid toxins then you are going to smell bad and look like a crumb bum.

Or you can smell good and look well-kept simply by putting toxins into you and the Earth.

Pick one and accept.

[TxZen]

I think the best you can do is acceptance.

By this I mean, if you want to "save the Earth" and avoid toxins then you are going to smell bad and look like a crumb bum.

Or you can smell good and look well-kept simply by putting toxins into you and the Earth.

Pick one and accept.

This has made me laugh..crumb bum!!! ROFL I will accept it but I won't go quietly..never have!!! LOL

[Ultralight]

This has made me laugh..crumb bum!!! ROFL I will accept it but I won't go quietly..never have!!! LOL

I always like a rabble rouser. :)

[ToomuchStuff]

I have yet to try any homemade detergent, other then what one sibling provided once. You might find what Lessisbest posted before and see if it is the same. Laundry detergent is one of the things I have been getting from work, and don't produce enough laundry to need a lot.
She did post a list of cleaners somewhere. (I saved them on a computer whose drive crashed, still have the home directory, but the boot drive bit the dust)

[ctg492]

Today was hiking the trails by the river Nordic walking. I used Bug Oil Spray that is homemade by a friend, smells wonderful. I had zero bugs bothering me, but wonder were there just no bugs out?? I gave her five stars for her product she makes, time will tell though. I used Tom's deodorant that I bought yesterday. Though new and improved, it is sticky applying. I did not stink?? But sweated. We shall see how today goes after lawn work in the summer.

[pony mom]

Sal's Suds is great stuff and can be used for laundry, dishes, house cleaning, etc. Smells lovely and natural too.

For shampoo, I've been using Liggett's shampoo bar--https://jrliggett.com. The ingredients are all things you're familiar with. Sometimes I'll follow with a diluted vinegar rinse but my hair is really short so I don't have to worry about tangles. Before I colored my hair I used baking soda and vinegar for washing, but this will now strip my demi-permanent color.

Given up on commercial deodorant and am sticking with my homemade coconut oil/cornstarch/baking soda concoction. I had hoped Milk of Magnesia would work, but I stunk. The Tom's I tried burned my skin. Crystal sticks did nothing.

[SteveinMN]

I've been using straight white vinegar to clean the bathrooms for quite a while now. Even DW has noticed how much the hard surfaces sparkle. I used to use Bon Ami and elbow grease to clean the tub and shower tile, but I've gotten lazy and a little time-pressed so now use a melamine-foam ("eraser"-type) sponge for that, saving it between uses until it's used up. Ecover's toilet bowl cleaner has plant-based ingredients and works as well as the foul-smelling stuff.

In the kitchen, it's 7th Generation dish soap and dishwasher detergent. I've discovered that, for our dishwasher (an ASKO) the difference is in the water temperature and the rinse aid. The citrus-based rinse aid I buy at the co-op works well. But one week I needed rinse aid and bought Jet-Dry Finish and it's amazing. Scraped dishes in; clean dry dishes out. I'll have to check out further what's in it; there's an environmental cost to it, sure, but there's an environmental cost to re-cleaning dishes, too.

I've tried a million deodorants and anti-perspirants. I am hoping that, in a future life, I come back not sweating profusely. The only products that work for me are "conventional". So I've shrugged my (now-dry) shoulders and concentrate on using "better" products for shaving, moisturizing, shampooing, and bathing.

Just by living on this planet, one makes it less "green". Everyone will have an environmental impact; a carbon footprint. But we can have some say in the size of the impact. If a "green" product doesn't work well and the conventional equivalent is not comparable to U^238, I'll use as little of the conventional product as I can and just go on.

[Tenngal]

I've gone to vinegar and water in the extraction carpet cleaner. The room does smell until dry. Seems to work well.

Always been interested in the homemade clothes detergent but it seems complicated.

My list of cleaning products has lessened over the past few years.

[pony mom]

Deodorant update----lemon?

Has anyone tried using a lemon as deodorant? Last night I tried it after washing under my arms first. Note to self-don't scrub too hard and apply lemon. After the my tears dried and the searing pain died, I tried a bit of lemon essential oil diluted with water on a cotton ball. This morning, no smell. Then I was lazy and tried a bit of the lemon-shaped bottled juice from the fridge, which didn't smell too lemony but didn't burn either.

Went to the barn, cleaned, rode, bathed my horse. Sweat like a, well, a horse. Came home, walked my dog. Warm sunny day.

Result---no smell! My shirt didn't even smell. I had read about using a lemon slice as deodorant for a while but never tried it. This week I'll use an actual lemon instead of bottled juice.

Doing research online, lemon is great for cleaning around the house as well.