Step Two: The Air You Breathe

Now that you've reduced the amount of waste products going into our environment, let's clean up the air we breathe. Many of my clients find the cleaners I offer to be lest costly, more effective, and better smelling than commercial--traditional, chemically-altered--cleaning products.

THE BAD

Take any cleaner bottle out of your stash and read the label. Does it worry you that words like WARNING, CAUTION, and POISON stare back at you? These products are supposed to make your home healthier, and in turn safer, and yet, here are these frightening words right on the bottle! I am not a scientist, but I do know that this can't be safe for our families. I won't bore you with details and unpronouncable chemical compound names. I will, however, warn you of some of the effects of using these cleaners: skin issues like rashes, eczema, psoriasis, and contact dermatitis; respiratory issues like asthma, as well as heart problems; eye irritation; hormonal imbalances; and death if ingested.

THE GOOD

After cleaning her home for the first time, a client told me that her house smelled great for a week afterwards. She also said that she was thrilled not to smell the terrible chemical odors that she was accustomed to. I told her that those chemical odors were causing her and her family harm and she immediately wanted to know what was in the cleaners I make. While the specific recipes are a my own special secret, I am glad to share the ingredients I love to use.

Baking soda, washing soda, and borax are excellent for scouring sinks, tubs, and other tough jobs. The combination of baking soda and vinegar has a wonderful chemical reaction that removes mold, mildew, and even unclogs drains. Hydrogen peroxide (or the powder form called sodium percarbonate) removes organic stains like urine, blood, fecal matter, and most food stains. Witch hazel is excellent for cleaning glass, chrome, and stainless steel without having the harsh effects of rubbing alcohol. White vinegar is an excellent degreaser, disinfectant, and overall gentle cleaner. Lemon and lime juices are wonderful degreasers, disinfectants, conditioners, and wonderful smelling additives to your favorite cleaning recipe.

Now for my favorite part! I love essential oils. I love the smells, but they don't just smell great. Many of them have specific properties that make our recipes even more effective. Here are my favorites:

Clove - antiseptic, ant-repellant

Citrus - grease cutter, deodorizer, flea-repellant

Cedar - anti-bacterial, disinfectant, antiseptic, flea-repellant

Eucalyptus - disinfectant, insect repellant; BONUS: relieves symptoms of upper-respiratory ailments

Lavender - antiseptic, disinfectant, deodorizer, moth-repellant

Lemongrass - antiseptic, insect-repellant

Neem - Insect-repellant

Peppermint - insect repellant, deodorizer; added benefit: inhaling the oil has been shown to relieve insomnia

Tea Tree - antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, disinfectant, antiseptic; BONUS: heals minor cuts, scrapes, and blemishes

Stay tuned for more specific information on creating wonderful, healthy cleaning products that are safe for your family and the earth.

Step 1: Reduce Waste

About halfway between Jacksonville and Little Rock, Arkansas where I grew up is a beautiful green hill. Just don't drive along I-40 with the windows down--it is a landfill and the smell is atrocious. I spent most of my childhood and young adulthood watching this mound of trash grow and grow until it no longer resembles a landfill, but a grassy hill.

Likewise, just on the St. Louis side of I-70 across the Missouri River bridge, driving with the windows down is out of the question. This particular landfill can't be seen from the Interstate, but it can be smelled.

Landfills such as these litter the American landscape. What a sad commentary on the "progression" of our society. A mere 80 years ago when my grandfather was born, trash was burned in barrels or composted to be added to the family garden patch, clothes were handed down from child to child until they were worn to threads. A lot can be learned from our grandparents. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the following statistics of the content of landfills:

Paper and cardboard - 28%
Food scraps - 14%
Yard trimmings - 13%
Plastics - 12%
Metals - 8%
Rubber, leather, and textiles - 8%
Wood - 6%
Glass - 4%
Other - 3%

One ton of this stuff creates about 127 cubic meters of methane gas. All that gas is being emitted into our atmosphere. Breathing high concentrations of methane gas can cause asphyxia, heart problems, and death.

How do we reduce the amount of methane gas emitted into the environment? By reducing our waste. Here is how you can do your part:

1. Recycle. This is such an obvious one, but it is shocking how many suburbanites still toss all their waste products into the trash bin. Glass, paper, plastic, and most metals can be recycled very easily. Many communities now offer recycling programs. If you do not have a separate recycle bin, contact your waste company and ask how to get one. BONUS: find an aluminum recycling center near you. You can get paid around $.50 per pound for aluminum. Other metals can be purchased by these recycling centers as well. We recently took some scrap copper, aluminum cans, and an old dishwasher where we got a nice pay-out for the metals.

2. Donate. Take all those outgrown clothes, household items, and furniture to your local charity where they will either be sold or used for shelters or low-income housing.

3. Re-use. So, what do you do with all those old t-shirts that are too stained or tattered for charity? Turn them into rags. We stopped wasting money on paper towels by cutting t-shirts into re-usable rags. We turned them into disinfecting wipes (recipe and instruction will come soon), dusting wipes, and glass cleaning cloths.

4. Compost. Of all the things found in landfills, the one that blows my mind the most is organic waste. Whether you enjoy small outdoor gardening or indoor potted plants, the best plant food on earth is other organic matter. Scrape all your unused vegetable and grain scraps as well as grass clippings into a compost bin and wait for nature to take its course. (Watch for a more detailed composting instructional coming soon.) Add this rich matter to your plants and watch them burst to life. BONUS TIP: Pour the water used to boil eggs into your plants for a boost of nourishment.

5. Reduce. Seriously, Americans are so obsessed with stuff. We've become so fascinated with our addiction to stuff that I've seen no less than three TV shows dedicated to the overabundance of it. If you carefully consider each purchase, you may find yourself eliminating unnecessary items. Additionally, you can reduce the production of stuff by purchasing used items instead of new. Before I was married, I furnished my entire apartment with items I purchased at thrift stores and garage sales. My mom and I spent many Saturdays perusing resale shops looking at piece after piece and imagining what it could be. These are some of my favorite memories as we laughed and, yes, even argued over potential purchases. In the end, however, I had exactly the home I wanted with items that I had rescued from landfills.

Now, share your ideas for reducing waste. I love to learn new ideas. Good luck!