What are you doing to your home?

Last time we talked about your effect on your body with the food you eat. This time, lets get into the world of household products. The stores have many aisles full of caustic products. Clorox causes damage to your lungs if inhaled, takes color out of your clothes etc if spilled, not a good thing to use. When you shop, go to the laundry section and find a LARGE box of baking soda , I think they are 4 pounds, and an equal size box of borax, then get a gallon jug of vinegar. Altogether this should run under $10.00. Your house can be cleaned from top to bottom with these and a few essential oils, a bit of dawn and some salt. To start, scouring powder is easy, equal amounts of salt and baking soda, mixed and used in a shaker can. I have old Parmesan cheese containers, from before I knew that it was cut with sawdust to make more money for the company producing it. Sprinkle on damp surface and scrub, stains etc go. Laundry soap, well that's equal parts of borax and baking soda with a bar of Fels Naptha grated into the mix. Store in air tight container, I use old plastic shoe boxes. A heaping tablespoonful does a load of clothes, and costs about 7 cents per load. To clean your counters, sinks, tubs, use a mix of half vinegar and half water with a good spoonful of tea tree oil, spray away. This will disinfect your surfaces as well as those caustic things, kills 98% of germs. I use this for shower walls, tough spots on the floors etc. If you have mold on the outside of your house, spray a mix of vinegar and water(equal) with a teaspoon of Dawn mixed in, spray on and leave, the next rain will take the mold away. If you have pets and have boo boos on your carpet, dampen well with white vinegar, sprinkle with baking soda and let dry, then vacuum. Soft scrub can be made by making a paste of Dawn and baking soda, keep in a tightly sealed jar. For ants, boil 1 cup of water, add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, stir well, cool a little then use cotton balls soaked in the solution to apply to window and door frames or anyplace you see ants. For air sprays, use distilled water and your favorite essential oil scents, just a few drops, and use to spray air, fabric etc. You can make it smell however you like it. We had a 13 year old cat that got sick, and had to be put down. I was upset as he was an inside baby, and asked the vet how he got so sick. She said she thought it was something I used in the house, turned out to be Febreze. Most harmful to pets. The internet is full of recipes for safe home made cleaners, and none are going to hurt your health or your kids or pets health. You can make a spray of orange peels or lemon soaked a week in vinegar, strained, and use that on surfaces too, or add citrus scents to your vinegar sprays. To clean your toilet, dump a cup of baking soda in the bowl, and add a cup of vinegar. Let set overnight if possible, then brush and flush. Hope this gives you some ideas about green living, and safe cleaners. Next time lets talk about your personal care items. Have a great week.