Every Resource You Need to Have a Clean, Chemical-Free, and Natural Kitchen
by
balfeo
-
Saturday, March 17, 2018
Of all the spaces in our house, we spend the most time cleaning up the bathroom. Every night, I spray and wipe off the counters, do all the dishes, and try to prepare the room for another day of food and chaos. In our house, the kitchen is definitely the center of our home, where we spend the most time as a family.
For that reason, it is important to me that it doesn't become the home to oodles of nasty toxins and chemical smells (you know what i am talking about- who wants to make food in a space that smells like a hospital?). Not to mention, the things we clean our kitchen with are the most likely to get into our food and bodies.
For that reason, wouldn't it be great to switch out a few of your old clorox-y cleaners for something a little more natural? If you want to help the Earth, cleaning your kitchen a little differently can make a big difference!
For that reason, it is important to me that it doesn't become the home to oodles of nasty toxins and chemical smells (you know what i am talking about- who wants to make food in a space that smells like a hospital?). Not to mention, the things we clean our kitchen with are the most likely to get into our food and bodies.
For that reason, wouldn't it be great to switch out a few of your old clorox-y cleaners for something a little more natural? If you want to help the Earth, cleaning your kitchen a little differently can make a big difference!
A Few Tips for a Green Kitchen
1. Use Reusables! Skip the wipes we have all gotten so addicted to and choose reusable towels, sponges, even swiffer wipes! It's an easy way to cut out a bunch of your waste, and once you have shifted, you start to notice it's a lot nicer!
2. Try Switching one Cleaner. Rome wasn't built in a day. Pick one cleaner you would like to change and start there. Maybe try a new dish soap or spray for your counters, but don't take it all on at once.
3. If something doesn't work, try something else. Some people complain that natural cleaners don't work as well. Well, in some cases that is basically going to be true!If those hardcore cleaners can effortlessly cut through grime, they can do serious work on your body too. So not working as well might be ok, but if it seems like WAY more work, move on to another recipe.
Here are some of my FAVORITE green bloggers out there and their best solutions for every cleaner you might use. If you are looking for sponges, dish brushes, or a mop, I have you covered here on this post.
If You Aren't About to Make Things...
Some of us just don't have time to whip up a bunch of cleaners ourselves. IT'S OK. You want to fight the battle in a way you can sustain in your own life, and there are tons of great options out there.Uncommonly Well has truly awesome lists of the best of green and natural cleaning products out there for every space. I was planning on writing something like this myself, but they have got it covered, so I am just going to point you there. This is their overall list, and this is the list for the kitchen. EWG's Cleaning List is also a really great and important resource.
We currently mostly buy our cleaning supplies (and honestly have not run out of a lot of these things since we started to live a greener life... maybe we need to clean more!?). I would definitely recommend Method and Seventh Generation cleaners.
Cleaning your Surfaces and Sink
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| from The Pistachio Project |
I LOVE the blog The Pistachio Project and I have been reading a ton of her posts on cleaners and their ingredients. If you are looking for starter information on cleaners you make at home and what the best materials are to use, you can't do better than this post and this one.
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| from Natural Soap Mom |
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| from Mama Instincts |
All-Purpose Cleaner
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| from Happy Mothering |
If you want to get fancy with it, you have lots of great options! I like this cleaner from Happy Mothering. All these recipes with vinegar kind of bum me out, because I don't love the smell, but I think those citrus peels would really smell amazing AND you get to reuse the peels!
I am obsessed with DIY and Kawa's cleaning supplies- so simple and smart, and she has a citrus all purpose cleaner as well. I love the citrus smell because it just seems so fresh.
Dishwasher Detergent
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| from DIY and Kawa |
DIY and Kawa has a recipe for detergent to try. I like that this is one where it isn't all mixed together, but the downside is you need the right kind of dishwasher to try it. This one from Rita May Days looks pretty good too, and I love that she reminds us that these eco-friendly solutions also save you money!
If you are thinking dishwasher detergent tabs, this one from Happy Money Saver uses lemonade packets, which is pretty darn cute (though you could probably get some with way less packaging.
If you want to clean your dishwasher in a natural way, The Pistachio Project has a helpful post on that as well. God bless green bloggers! People have thought of everything.
Dish Soap
This is the one I want to replace the most, because Dawn dish soap is made from petroleum products. Why do we rub this on our food surfaces? Trying to get as much of this junk out of my life as possible.
Weirdly, I didn't see as many dish soap recipes. But I do like this one from The Prairie Homestead, which looks pretty simple and effective. This one from Homestead Lifestyle looks even simpler- we have most of these ingredients at home now!
Alright! More cleaning to do and to do better! That's spring cleaning right? It sucks, but it leaves you with that good feeling of a job well done and a home you have taken care of. That's pretty similar to this whole blog- lots of changes that may not be fun at first, but once you see how good it feels, you want to keep up with it!
Want to make your home greener? No matter the size or location, you can limit your waste and make your house have a more positive impact on the environment. Check out the Green Home Page for thousands of ideas on how to do it.