How to Become an Eco-Friendly Cleaner

The first step to making your household cleaning routine eco-friendly and environmentally friendly is easy! First, get rid of all your toxic cleaning products!

If a cleaning product contains the words caution, warning, danger, or poison, it needs to go. Of the non-eco-friendly products that you'll have, they'll contain some important keywords you need to aware of:

• Products that contain the words "poison" or "danger" are highly toxic; ingesting just a few drops can be fatal.

• "Warning" is the term used for moderately toxic product. A spoonful of one of these could be fatal.

• "Caution" signifies a less toxic product; it would take two to three spoonfuls in order to be fatal.

• Some other keywords to look out for on non-eco-friendly cleaning bottles are "strong sensitizers" and "corrosive" products. Strong sensitizers can actually increase allergies, and corrosive products can damage skin.

Does this sound like the kind of stuff you want sitting under your kitchen sink, sending wafts of toxic poison through your air, into your lungs (and into the lungs of your family)? Well, if your answer is NO, there is a surprisingly simple solution.

Gather these products and store them somewhere safe. We cannot emphasize this point enough: you do not want to pour them down your sink because that is extremely unsafe for you, your system and your drinking water. What goes down the drain does end up back as drinking water. You also do not want to discard them in your trash or even in your recycling bin if they still contain cleaner because they will cause pollution. So what do you do? Look for hazardous waste dropoff sites. Most towns contain one Household Hazardous Waste Pickup Day a year, and you can call your local recycling center to find out when that will be.

The next step is to choose new, safe, eco-friendly products that do not contain any of those keywords above on their bottles. They should be biodegradable and non-toxic! These eco-friendly products are not only better for the environment, they are better for your health. In addition to changing the cleaning product, you should change what you clean with. Decrease the amount of paper towels you use by replacing them with old shirts and rags. Recycling unwanted shirts and cloths you are not only being environmentally friendly, but you are saving yourself from overspending on non-eco-friendly products! If you absolutely must use paper towels, there are some that are more eco-friendly than others. Look for ones that are unbleached and are made of recycled paper.

Some other important eco-friendly tips are:



• Conserve your water. Clean water is precious and should not be wasted! Do not leave water running when you are washing your dishes, and use minimal amounts of water to clean.



• Buy indoor plants. Plants can improve the quality of the air in your home, and can make the indoors feel more like the outdoors.



• Use a HEPA vacuum to purify your air while cutting down on your use of nonrenewable resources.

The Maids have been doing their part to be eco-friendly cleaners since 1995. Their methods include using environmentally safe cleaning products that are non-toxic, non-flammable, and do not contain irritants, carcinogens, sensitizers, or harmful chemicals. They also use the HEPA filtration system to clean the air and create a healthier environment. The Maids also use special tools and procedures to reduce water and paper waste such as reusable microfiber cloths. Cleaning materials and containers are washed and reused to eliminate unnecessary disposal.

Like The Maids, you can alter the way that you clean with just a few important steps. Becoming eco-friendly will make your home and the environment cleaner and healthier!