Over the past several weeks, I have been evaluating my cleaning habits—the tools, products, and methods I’ve grown accustomed to using—and I’ve shared quite a few of these things in this column. I have subsequently noticed an improvement in how I clean and what I use to clean, but mostly, I’ve noticed that my attitude about cleaning has undergone a change.
For instance, I no longer use paper towels wantonly and indiscriminately—in fact, most of the time, I don’t use them at all. And, when I do use them, I’ve gotten into the habit of using one and rinsing it out and using it again, so that I often use just one paper towel for several jobs.
I’ve also stopped using those pop-up wipes as much, and I’ve become very frugal about when I do use them. (I am using up the ones I currently have, but after they are gone, I intend to stop buying them completely.) If I don’t absolutely have to, I rarely use harsh chemicals to clean anything—or any chemicals at all. Soapy water—my used rinse water from doing the dishes—works very well for a lot of cleaning jobs.
Instead of paper napkins, my husband and I now normally use cloth ones that cost about $2.50 for a package of four. I still use paper napkins for some things, especially foods with red sauce—like pizza and spaghetti—but normally, we are using the cloth napkins for all our dinner meals.
I also bought handkerchiefs—men’s, since I couldn’t find any women handkerchiefs. They were also very inexpensive—just a few dollars for about a dozen plain white handkerchiefs. I am carrying them with me, instead of paper tissues, and am gradually limiting the use of paper tissues at home.
For the napkins and handkerchiefs, I am keeping the soiled ones in a small plastic bucket I already had in my laundry room, and am then adding them—as appropriate—to other laundry as I do it. This way, there are always plenty of clean ones available.
For cleaning jobs, I’ve found an old sheet that doesn’t get used on the beds anymore, that will be cut into various sizes for cleaning cloths that I can use around the house for virtually every cleaning job I have. I’ve found a scrubby sponge that has a scrubby side that actually outlasts the sponge side, and I might stick with it. However, I am trying to use my actual dishcloths more—when possible—as well as a long-handled scrub brush The brush works pretty well on some tough jobs like pans, although I mostly use it on things that have lips or rims that are hard to get a sponge or cloth under.
So, that’s the summary of my journey—so far—to cleaning “green.” The next step is “spring cleaning,” which will be coming up soon and which is something we should all probably give some thought to.
For instance, I no longer use paper towels wantonly and indiscriminately—in fact, most of the time, I don’t use them at all. And, when I do use them, I’ve gotten into the habit of using one and rinsing it out and using it again, so that I often use just one paper towel for several jobs.
I’ve also stopped using those pop-up wipes as much, and I’ve become very frugal about when I do use them. (I am using up the ones I currently have, but after they are gone, I intend to stop buying them completely.) If I don’t absolutely have to, I rarely use harsh chemicals to clean anything—or any chemicals at all. Soapy water—my used rinse water from doing the dishes—works very well for a lot of cleaning jobs.
Instead of paper napkins, my husband and I now normally use cloth ones that cost about $2.50 for a package of four. I still use paper napkins for some things, especially foods with red sauce—like pizza and spaghetti—but normally, we are using the cloth napkins for all our dinner meals.
I also bought handkerchiefs—men’s, since I couldn’t find any women handkerchiefs. They were also very inexpensive—just a few dollars for about a dozen plain white handkerchiefs. I am carrying them with me, instead of paper tissues, and am gradually limiting the use of paper tissues at home.
For the napkins and handkerchiefs, I am keeping the soiled ones in a small plastic bucket I already had in my laundry room, and am then adding them—as appropriate—to other laundry as I do it. This way, there are always plenty of clean ones available.
For cleaning jobs, I’ve found an old sheet that doesn’t get used on the beds anymore, that will be cut into various sizes for cleaning cloths that I can use around the house for virtually every cleaning job I have. I’ve found a scrubby sponge that has a scrubby side that actually outlasts the sponge side, and I might stick with it. However, I am trying to use my actual dishcloths more—when possible—as well as a long-handled scrub brush The brush works pretty well on some tough jobs like pans, although I mostly use it on things that have lips or rims that are hard to get a sponge or cloth under.
So, that’s the summary of my journey—so far—to cleaning “green.” The next step is “spring cleaning,” which will be coming up soon and which is something we should all probably give some thought to.
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