Consultant makes own cleaners
Ah, spring. Sunlight streams into the house, exposing corners that haven't seen the light of day all winter. Along with warmer weather, the cleaning season has arrived.
Yet the cleaner your home is, the more unhealthy it may be, depending on the products you use, said Jeanne McLaughlin, certified as a building biology and ecology consultant by the Institute of Building Biology and Ecology based in Clearwater, Fla. She gained certification by completing a correspondence course and attending three seminars.
"When you open the dishwasher and smell that chlorine smell, that's toxic," McLaughlin said.
"Lots of things smell but there are toxic things that don't have any smell. Sometimes we don't even notice all the chemicals around us because we're in olfactory fatigue; we're exposed to 60,000 to 80,000 chemicals every day."
McLaughlin has turned to natural cleaning products to lessen the use of chemicals in her Saxonburg home. It's still spotless, just less toxic to her, since she is sensitive to chemicals and allergic to dust mites.
"I have stopped using chemicals altogether. I can't even walk down the aisle of cleaning products at the store."
McLaughlin said companies aren't required to list all a cleaning product's ingredients on the label. According to literature supplied by the Penn State Cooperative Extension office in Butler, consumers can request a Material Safety Data Sheet from the manufacturer.
In the event that data concerns the consumer, McLaughlin said there are alternatives to cleaning most everything.
"I have been really working on this, really researching it," she said.
"You can buy some natural products at health food stores that don't use the petro chemicals — instead, they're plant-based," McLaughlin said. "Grocery stores are also carrying these natural products now. Or you can make your own."
The first step to spring cleaning, though, has to be removing clutter, said Carole Toubakaris, family and consumer science educator with the Extension office in Butler."Clutter becomes a barrier to cleaning a house and to keeping it clean," Toubakaris said. "Now is a great time to go through clothing and shoes. If you haven't worn it in a couple of years, get rid of it. That goes for kitchen cabinets, everything. Have a yard sale or give to charity."When you can see what you're about to clean, here are some ideas for alternative cleaners for specific household chores, and the great thing about them is McLaughlin has tried them all herself.• Wine stains on most fibers — A paste of equal parts baking soda and cornstarch are good for a wine stain, red or white. McLaughlin keeps baking soda handy by storing it in a grated cheese container with the shaker lid.• Ink — Salt the ink first, then use lemon juice, then rinse.• Grease — Soda water can be used to cut grease.• Clogged drain — Pour about half a cup baking soda in, then add half a cup apple cider vinegar. Wait 15 minutes, then pour hot water down the drain. This is a good clog preventive."Of course, you may get a clog, a lot of hair or something, when you just have to call the plumber," McLaughlin said."By the way, apple cider and baking soda added to bath water actually makes a wonderful detoxifying soak for people; it also keeps the tub clean and keeps the drain clear!"• Silver polish — Take a sheet or two of aluminum foil, put some slits in it, and put them in the sink if it's stainless steel, otherwise put them in a stainless steel pot. Add the silver items, some baking soda and boiling water. You could even simmer this on the stove if the tarnish is particularly bad, McLaughlin said."You will want to open the windows a little to ventilate when you're doing this. There is a reaction, but it's still better than regular silver polish. This is a lot cheaper and a lot safer."Let it sit for about a half-hour or so.• Furniture polish — Mix one part lemon juice to two parts olive oil. If you're using it on dark furniture, you can substitute sesame seed oil for olive oil.
• Fabric softener — Add vinegar or baking soda to the rinse cycle. McLaughlin prefers using baking soda as a fabric softener, but purely for personal reasons."If I've used apple cider vinegar on a blanket, when I use the blanket all I can think about is salt and vinegar potato chips!"• Disinfectant — Lemon and tea tree essential oils."I'm on the board of Lifesteps and by law day cares have to wash toys in chlorine water. I tell them to double or triple rinse at least or wash with soap and water after. It's better for the kids," McLaughlin said.• Antiseptic — Hydrogen peroxide. "When our basement flooded, we used a lot of it because we didn't want to use a chlorine cleaner," McLaughlin said."I used to be an owner of Conley's and when kids swim they say to take a shower before getting in the pool. I say shower after you swim in a pool to get all the chlorine off."• Fight flies — Grow basil. "And you have an herb to cook with, too," she said. Instead of moth balls, use cedar.• New clothes — To get the chemicals out of new clothes, soak the garments in a bucketful of warm water mixed with a cup of dry milk, about. "That's the great thing about a lot of these cleaners. You don't have to measure exactly. You can experiment with what works for you, McLaughlin said.• All-purpose cleaner — White vinegar, borax, hot water and a little bit of liquid soap. Because the combination does not contain preservatives, McLaughlin recommends mixing batches that don't need to be stored for long periods.• Tub and tile cleaner — Baking soda, vinegar, water and a little liquid soap.• Air freshener — Water and essential oil sprayed from fine mist spray bottle. The scent should last three to four hours, McLaughlin said. Scents like lemon and tangerine in morning. Use lavender at night because it's calming."That's another nice thing about making your own products: You can use the scents you like."The essential oils McLaughlin is talking about are available at health food stores.Although discount stores are beginning to sell similar oil products, the products are not pure essential oils like those sold at natural food stores.
• Vacuums — The filter or bags used should be HEPA (High-Efficiency Particulate Air) rated to keep the dust from escaping."A word of caution," McLaughlin said. "Find out where you can get the replacement bags before you buy the vacuum because the important thing is to change the bag when it's needed."• Dusting — A microfiber cloth is best because it traps the dust, or use a lamb's wool duster that can be washed in the sink.• Mopping — A dry cloth mop is fine, but not the wet version because of the chemicals in the cleaner. McLaughlin makes up her own cleaning solution for her spritz mop from vinegar, water and a little liquid soap.• Upholstered furniture — Vodka sprayed on the upholstery with a spray bottle• Weed killer — Soapy garlic garden spray, McLaughlin said enthusiastically, works great.To make it, boil a head of garlic in two cups of water, and let sit overnight. Add two teaspoons of vegetable oil and one teaspoon of liquid soap. Add two more cups water. Spray on weeds.• Window cleaner — Extension literature recommends a window and glass cleaner made from mixing one part water to one part white vinegar in a spray bottle. Note that if unusual streaking occurs the first time this solution is used on a window, it could be because of the wax contained in some commercial glass cleaners. The suggestion is to remove the wax with a little rubbing alcohol and then follow up cleaning with the vinegar and water solution.Now bring on the sun!For more information, call the Penn State Cooperative Extension office at 724-287-4761 or Jeanne McLaughlin at 724-360-0901 or visit the Web site www.lunginfo.org.
