Making the most of your DIY green cleaners

Apr
30
2012
Each week, more Canadians try my favourite green cleaning recipes. (I'm flattered!) Here are my top tips for maximizing their effectiveness, gleaned from years of testing.
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Each week, more Canadians try my favourite green cleaning recipes. (I'm flattered!) Here are my top tips for maximizing their effectiveness, gleaned from years of testing.

Whiten whites without chlorine bleach
  1. Ditch dinginess while still enjoying the benefits of my less toxic laundry soap:
  2. Always separate whites from darks and colours
  3. Hang clothes outside to dry — sunlight is an excellent bleaching agent!
  4. Add ½ cup of baking soda to each load
  5. Choose eco-friendly oxygen bleach (it's diluted hydrogen peroxide)
  6. Treat stains with lemon juice
Forget dryer sheets forever
 
You can prevent static cling without using disposable, fragrance-filled dryer sheets:
  1. Always wash like fabrics together — don't mix synthetics with natural fibres
  2. Add ½ cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle (not the wash) of your washing machine
  3. Hang clothes to dry — over-drying causes static and shrinkage (and nothing beats the smell of sun-dried laundry)
Got streaks and smudges on glass and mirrors from your DIY cleaner?
 
It's likely there's a crucial step you've overlooked. Before you switch to eco-friendly store-bought glass cleaner or making your own, remove the toxic gunk left behind by conventional products with a five per cent solution of hydrogen peroxide to water.
 
HE washing machine and dishwasher tips
 
My liquid laundry soap recipes work in HE machines. Follow manufacturer's instructions for the correct amount, or experiment because it will depend on your water softness.
 
Boost the cleaning power of my all-purpose dishwasher powder by adding a teaspoon of citric acid (found at health food stores) per load and topping up your rinse dispenser with white vinegar.
 
What tips and tricks have you discovered to boost the cleaning power of DIY solutions?
 
Sincerely,
Lindsay Coulter, Queen of Green

David Suzuki's Queen of Green, Lindsay Coulter, answers your green living questions and offers tips and recipes to make your life easier on the environment. It's all about green living made easy.

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