Top 5 no-chemical cleaning supplies
You know you’ve officially hit peak adulthood when you find yourself passionate enough about kick-ass cleaning supplies, that you feel compelled to write a blog post solely on the topic.
But I guess if you’re here reading this, it can’t be that odd to get a little jazzed up about easy and chemical-free ways to get a little shine in your house.
Since moving to a house with a septic system, getting pregnant and becoming a mom, I’ve become hyper-aware of the use of chemicals in cleaning products, and have attempted to make a shift towards chemical-free cleaning alternatives. So far, I have loved using five products in particular, and I am actually so excited to geek out and share them with you here.
My top 5 chemical-free cleaning alternatives
1. NORWEX ENVIROCLOTH
This little cloth is by far the best cleaning tool I have ever used! It is the only cloth that doesn’t leave streaks on our quartz countertop (which drove me absolutely insane), and can be used all over the house. I haven’t found an alternative that even remotely compares and doesn’t require the use of cleaning agents at the same time. All you need is to wet it and go to town.
It also claims to remove more bacteria than bleach, so sign me up!
2. FLOOR STEAMER
When we moved into our house from the apartment, we were looking for a way to maintain our new hardwood floors and give them a deep clean at the same time. I always thought floor steamers were only for really fancy people, but it’s so much easier than mopping and gives a really great clean.
We purchased ours through Airmiles, and had actually bought it as more of a vacuum, realizing afterwards that the vacuum part of it was quite crappy (maybe I am just not using it right). But since all our floors are hardwood with just a couple area rugs, it didn’t bother me about the vacuum part.
The best thing is that you just add water to the unit and that’s it! No soaps or chemicals and it gives your floor an amazing clean. I especially love that with a baby running around.
3. ECO SCRUBBY PAD
This little scrubby pad is awesome for hard to clean dirt, caked on food, and even for scrubbing root vegetables. They don’t leave any scratches, so you can really go to town on whatever you’re cleaning. I find myself always grabbing for this when my blue Norwex envirocloth isn’t quite up for the challenge.
So far, all my scrubbies have been very long-lasting and don’t seem to wear out. I am not entirely positive that the one I linked to above is the actual one I am using, but they are popular items in kitchen stores, so I am sure you won’t have trouble finding them.
4. DOG HAIR MAGNET
This thing actually is the best invention for dog hair. When Oliver was still with us, he loved lounging on the couch, and even for a short-haired dog, he shed a lot. His short hairs were so hard to get out of the fabric of the couch and no matter how much I vacuumed or washed the cushion covers, I still wouldn’t recommend sitting on our couch with black pants.
So when I heard of the Petmate Pet Hair Magnet from a Buzzfeed list (of all places), I had to give it a try. It’s only $12, so you can’t really go wrong. It was a good gamble and really worked. You do have to dig into the couch a bit and brush the hair towards you in smaller strokes to get the best effect, but once you get the hang of it, I do swear by it. Unfortunately since Oliver is no longer with us, I wasn’t able to get a good shot of me using it on our couch, but I do promise it works!
5. NORWEX WINDOW CLOTH
Now, I know I’ve already included a Norwex cloth in here already, but this window cloth deserves it’s own space. I first used these when I was pregnant and needed a chemical-free solution to all our dirty windows. It was a gift from my mom who swore by it. I instantly fell in love (pure geek moment!).
I use it with my Envirocloth to clean the windows (wet Envirocloth to wipe down mirror/window, dry window cloth to polish up), and it’s my favourite way of cleaning windows and mirrors. I love that I don’t use chemicals or even have to fuss with a spray bottle and vinegar, and that it’s not messy at all. Seriously it’s just wax on, wax off – or rather wet on, dry off.
The birds in the neighbourhood can attest to how clean all our windows are afterwards…
And there you have it! My wonderful list of chemical-free cleaning supplies.
The one thing I desperately need a recommendation on is dusting! It’s my nemesis. Please please PLEASE give me your best chemical-free recommendations for dusting in the comments below. Me and my dust-bunnies will be forever grateful.
