Green Thursdays: Green Cleaning

You probably think carefully about what you eat, reading labels to avoid trans fat, hydrogenated oils, high sugar content, and high fructose corn syrup. When given a choice, you probably opt for products with ingredient lists we can pronounce. Maybe you even buy organic foods to limit the chemicals you put in your body.

But do you think about all the chemicals you use to clean your house? Think about all the places you spray or wipe chemicals every day: kitchen tables and counters, bathrooms, mirrors, wood furniture, probably even your kids' toys. Then you touch them, put food on them, your kids put them in their mouths. The thought of it definitely made me think about what I choose to clean my house with.

There are a variety of greener products you can use to clean your house that are non-toxic, biodegradable, and widely available. These are every bit as convenient and ready made as conventional cleaners, but won't leave the chemical residue around your house.

You can also make your own cleaners cheaply with household ingredients. Water and white vinegar can clean just about everything. You can find recipes here and here.

The newest option I'm intrigued with is Activeion's ionator. This rechargeable battery powered spray bottle uses only water. It basically charges the water molecules which, according to the company, is as effective as other cleaners at killing bacteria and viruses.

Skeptics of the device say water alone is actually an effective cleaner, that the charge doesn't last long enough to actually hit the surface being sprayed, and that plain water would test the same. We really don't need to use anything else to clean with, we've been conditioned to think we need more that just water to get things clean.

I'm working on getting one of these things to try out. I'm fascinated by it. I'll let you know if I do how it seems to work. Plus, it's like a gadgety power tool, so maybe my husband would get in on the cleaning.

What do you use to clean? Do you have any great homemade cleaning recipes? Anyone try or have an ionator?