Most of us use baking soda for baking and to remove odors from our refrigerator, but we never think to use it for other things. Did you know that baking soda is a natural cleaner and deodorizer that’s cheap and effective?

Many cleaners use artificial scents and harsh chemicals to cover up odor. These scented chemical products can be really irritating to your skin and your respiratory system. Baking soda is a safer alternative. Instead of covering up odors, it absorbs them and locks them away. So you know it can get rid of odors in the fridge with baking soda, try putting some in your garbage cans, shoes, diaper pail, litter box, drains and garbage disposal. It is a great way to safely remove offensive odors from pretty much anywhere.

Watkins lemon all purpose cleaner

Baking soda is a great abrasive cleaner to remove dirt and anything else that might be stuck on surfaces. Just sprinkle it on a wet cloth and scrub away. You can even use baking soda to get stuck on grease off your floors, counters and even pots and pans. For more cleaning power mix baking soda with Watkins degreaser or Watkins natural all-purpose cleaner. Remember to rinse all your surfaces well after you clean them to remove any remaining residue.

While baking soda can be used for general cleaning, it’­s also a great to remove stubborn stains. Just mix with a small amount of water to turn the powder into a paste. You can then apply this to stains in your kitchen, bathroom, and even your clothes. Just let sit for a few minutes and then scrub. It will make your stainless steel sink shine. This paste is also great for cleaning your silver.

You can even use baking soda to disinfect laundry, toys and diapers or other items around your home that get handled often such as door handles, light switches, and telephones. Washable items can be soaked in baking soda and water for half an hour or so. For other things simply cover the area and let it sit for a minute before wiping it off.

These are just a few ideas for you on how to clean and deodorize with baking soda. It is such a versatile product, the possibilities are endless. So why not pull your baking soda out of the cupboard and give it a try all around your house? You may find yourself buying a lot more baking soda on your next shopping trip.

Oh my! I have just realized that some of my choices that I make for myself and family maybe placing the both of us in harms way. To clarify, what exactly do I mean by “harms way”, when I bundle up our sweaters, blouses or slacks to be sent to the dry cleaners; the cleaning process that is used to clean my items (percholorethlene) called perc for short is used by at least 85% of all cleaners.

This process is toxic in a many ways, the chemical pollutes the air, it is a probable human carcinogen and it can cause symptoms from headaches, nausea, and infertility in men and miscarriages in women and it is considered toxic waste.

Watkins lemon laundry detergent

My exposure and my families exposure to this chemical doesn’t stop when I bring the dry cleaning home. When, we go to put the garments on the chemicals can bleed thorough our skin into our systems

Just thinking about that made me want to find a solution today not next week, I had to stop the exposure to my family. What I found was a natural home care product that is plant based and non-toxic that was important to me. JR Watkins Lemon liquid laundry detergent concentrate, can be used in cold water and is easy on the budget. You only need 1 oz per load, that is about 2 tablespoons!

It is also great to use on your hand washables and baby clothes for it contains a soy-based fabric softener that leave your clothes soft and clean.

There is no better time to “Go Green” than right now. The following tips will help you achieve cleaning in an environmentally friendly way.

BUY ALL-PURPOSE CLEANERS
You do NOT need to buy a cleaner for every cleaning chore. This is simply a tactic used by manufacturers to get you to buy several different products. Try Watkins Natural All-Purpose Cleaners. These chemical-free, biodegradable products can take care of most of your cleaning chores. Safe for your family, safe for the environment.

READ THE LABELS
If a product label states “caution” or “warning” that product will have less of an impact on the environment than a label that states “danger”. Try Watkins Natural Plant-Based Home Care. These products are 100% safe for the environment.

USE COLD WATER
Whenever possible use cold water for cleaning. When washing a deck or your driveway you do not have to use hot water. Or when you are doing laundry cold water sometimes will work just as well as hot water. Try it!

NO MORE PAPER TOWELS
Try to clean with reusable products such as rags or sponges. Disposable cleaning cloths or paper towels may seem convenient but they are not good for the environment.

USE CONCENTRATED PRODUCTS
By using concentrated cleaning products you will be using less packaging. Try Watkins All-Purpose Concentrate. This earth friendly, ultra concentrated all-purpose cleaner will save you money and save the environment.

CLEAN DAILY
Don’t let dirt and dust pile up before you clean. It makes the most sense to clean daily. In the long run you will use less energy and less products than if you allowed the dirt to accumulate. Also, pick up clutter as you go through your day. You will be surprised how easy cleaning day will be.

RECYCLE
One of the most important things you can do for the environment is to recycle. It’s also one of the easiest, simply rinse and recycle. Most cities offer bins for you to recycle your plastics, glass, newspapers, etc. Check with your local city office and see what day they pick up.

USE GREEN CLEANING PRODUCTS
Whenever possible, and that should be most of the time, use eco-friendly cleaning products. Not only are they better for the environment, they will be safe for your family. These products clean great, smell great and best of all you can feel good what you use in your home. Watkins Natural Home Care is the better choice!

You don’t have make all your changes at once. Try one tip at a time until it becomes natural for you to have a “green” house.
Good Luck, Tracey
www.VanillaGourmet.com

Using environmentally friendly cleaning products is healthier for you, your family and our planet. When choosing a household cleaning product look for non-toxic products that do not contain phosphates, chlorine, ammonia or petrochemicals that may give off harmful fumes.

Interestingly, household chemicals, including bleach, disinfectant and cleaning fluid, have been blamed for the huge surge in childhood asthma in Britain. A study of more than 7,000 children shows that children born into households which use them most are twice as likely to suffer persistent wheezing, often a precursor to asthma. A similar study was conducted in Austraila with similar results. Why take a chance with your children’s and your own health?

Multi-Purpose Organic Cleaner

Watkins Organic Multi-purpose Cleaner

Are you looking for a safe and effective alternative to the toxic cleaning products available in most retail stores? Watkins Organic Cleaner may just be the solution you are searching for! This multi-purpose household cleaner will simplify your life.

Environmentally friendly organic cleaner is non-toxic, completely biodegradable and phosphate-free. The concentrated formula is gentle, even for sensitive skin yet powerful enough for your toughest cleaning problems. Organic Cleaner has no scent, no added coloring and no fumes. It’s so versatile, it can literally replace dozens of cleansers in your home. Because this multi-purpose cleaner is concentrated a little goes a long ways, making up to 256 times it’s volume in cleaning solution. Watkins Organic dilutes instantly in hot or cold water, with no fuss and no mess.

Uses for Watkins Organic Cleaner

For general cleaning mix one teaspoon/5 ml of Watkins Organic cleaner to one quart/litre of water.

For mirrors and glass mix 2 drops of Watkins Organic cleaner to one quarter cup/60 ml of water.

For floors mix one half to 2 teaspoons (2.5 ml – 10 ml) of Watkins Organic cleaner to each gallon/4 litres of water.

• Dishes – gentle on hands and fine china yet powerful enough for pots and pans.
• Kitchen – cleaning kitchen appliances, counters and cupboards.
• Refrigerator – safe for cleaning inside and out.
• Floors – mopping and spot cleaning hard surface floors.
• Windows and glass – as a spray and wipe cleaner, prevents fogging.
• Dusting – as a spray and wipe or on a damp cloth.
• Perfect for washing walls, doors, and light switch plates.
• Laundry – pre-treats heavily-soiled clothes, soaks out stains, and washes delicate hand washables such as wool, nylons and other fragile fabrics.
• Bathroom – cuts through soap scum and grime.
• Bathing – safe for your baby and bathing your pets.
• Outdoors – washing exterior siding and decks, won’t harm your plants.
• Garden – use as an insecticidal soap to kill pests.
• Auto – clean the interior and exterior of your vehicle.
• Camping – one product does it all.
• Carpet – use to spot clean carpet and rugs or use in a steam cleaner.

You can use Watkins Organic Cleaner for cleaning just about everything. Are you wondering where you can find Watkins Organic cleaner? Visit the Watkins Online Store to learn more about Watkins and order your organic cleaner today. Or contact one of our authors, they’ll be happy to assist you.

Organic cleaning product review:

“We use Organic cleaner for all our day to day cleaning chores. It’s more convient to have just one mulitpurpose cleaner, and it also saves on storage space. We purchase the gallon size about once a year so it’s very economical. The best thing is my hands used to be rough, dry and sore but since I switched to organic I haven’t had this problem.”

Willa Mae, TN

Environmentally friendly or green housekeeping is not only good for our planet, it’s also healthier for you! You will be minimizing air pollution inside and outside of your home. We can all have a impact on air pollution and global warming with out having to sacrifice comfort or convenience. Personal health and environmental sustainability aren’t the only reasons why consumers across the nation are making the change toward earth friendly housekeeping, it’s also more frugal.

All Natural Non-toxic Plant Based Cleaners

What can you do?

The Three R’s Have It! Every time you reuse an item, recycle or use a recycled product, and reduce your consumption, you make a real difference to our planet.

• Reusable products are better for our environment and will save you money. Use reusable products rather than disposables.
• Recycle your used items. Use recycled goods whenever possible.
• Reduce your consumption of energy, resources and goods. Use energy efficient appliances, lighting, heating and cooling systems.
• Use nontoxic, natural based household cleaners that do not contain chlorine, ammonia or petrochemicals.

Did you know that there is a cleaning product that’s safe and all natural, cleans, disinfects and deodorizes, and doesn’t cost a fortune? And that you may already have it hidden in your refrigerator door!

So, what is this magical cleaning product? It’s plain old lemon juice. You can use lemon juice instead of bleach to clean your house safely and effectively. In fact, you can use it in places you wouldn’t consider putting bleach.

If you’ve even tasted lemon juice, it’s pretty obvious that it’s a strong acid. Have you ever tried using lemon juice to clean a penny? The beauty of an acid is that it dissolves things water can’t. This includes dirt, grease and also parts of bacteria vital to it’s survival. Next time you clean, ditch the sponge, bleach and chemical cleaners and pull out a fresh lemon. It’s easy to hold, packed full of cleaning power, and can be thrown away when you’re done.

You can mix lemon juice with water and put it in a squirt bottle. You can use it along with your all purpose cleaner to scrub the kitchen, bathroom, and even clean walls and floors. The acid will cut through mineral deposits on bathroom fixtures.

Instead of adding bleach to your whites, add lemon juice instead. After washing, hang your clothes in the sun to dry and you’ll see how white your laundry can be without the smell and dangers of bleach. You can mix lemon juice with cream of tartar and rub into stains.  Just don’t leave them out in the sun to dry as it may fade the spot.

Lemon juice can also be used to polish, shine, and remove tarnish from the copper, chrome, and other metals in your house. Simply add a little salt or baking soda to a freshly cut lemon and rub it onto the metal’s surface, rinse well and polish dry.

Try mixing lemon juice with baking soda to make a great natural drain cleaner. It works just as well as vinegar and baking soda, but leaves that lemony scent.

Have you noticed lately that most disinfecting products have an version that smells like lemons? That’s because lemons naturally have a fresh, clean scent. Instead of cleaning with lemon scented chemicals, what could be better than getting your fresh lemon scented kitchen from actual lemons?

Leave it to Watkins to improve on mother nature! We are pleased to introduce a new line of non-toxic plant-based cleaning products that harness the power of lemons naturally. You’ll can choose from all-purpose cleaner, liquid dish soap, automatic dish washing detergent, toilet bowl cleaner, furniture polish and liquid laundry detergent concentrate all scented with natural lemon oil.

These are just a few of the many uses of this powerful cleaner. Cleaning with the power of lemons not only removes dirt, it also disinfects to keep your family safe. What a great way to leave your house looking and smelling great.