Mamas & Papas-
Stumbled upon this product in the cleaning aisle. Its like AJAX or Comet, int hat it is a powder cleanser for hard surfaces, but none of the harsh chemical smell etc. Apparently its been around with an unchanged formula since 1888. Cleans well too. Did better at lifting greasy water proof crayon from our tile than baking soda alone.
Now for the question-
for those of you who are aiming for a greener clean, have you found some everything old is new again type of products that tread lightly, and really work? I'd take Bon Ami over the more expensive Myers stuff anyday.
Thanks for your tips.
F. B.
Bon Ami is my favorite scrubbing cleanser, has been for decades!
I also discovered old but effective "clean" cleaners when I crashed with chemical sensitivities many years ago. White vinegar, baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, borax, are all amazing cleaners for different uses. I have not had to buy a commercial liquid, other than green detergents, for many years now. I clean as well and easily, or better, on a budget!
I love Bon Ami, but I've gone one step further to using almost exclusively vinegar, microfiber cloths, baking soda, and mild dish soap -- avoiding as many chemicals as I can. I'm shocked at how well vinegar works on just about everything and it makes me realize how powerful the cleaning companies have become. They can sell anything and make you believe you absolutely need it!
ETA: I stopped using the chemicals because I have had so many bad reactions in recent years, including accidentally inhaling comet and ending up with pleurisy and subsequently pneumonia from it. Awful!
Instead if using the far more expensive Clorox 2 or Oxyclean as a laundry booster, I discovered that Borax works just as well. It's a completely natural product that has been around forever, and costs much less than the more chemically complex products out there. And there's no weird smell!
I adore the Fels Naptha laundry bar. You can buy them for 89 cents in the laundry aisle at Walmart. It's THE BEST stain remover (just wet cloth and rub it with the bar until some of the soap is worked in).
I also use it to make my own laundry detergent for my HE washer. You can find all of these in the laundry aisle.
1 bar of grated Fels Naptha
1 Cup of 20 Mule Team Borax
1 Cup of Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
Mix well and keep in a plastic container with a lid. Use just 1 tablespoon per load, 2 for heavily soiled loads. It doesn't get sudsy and doesn't leave any film behind. Clothes smell and look great. AND, best of all, it's SO much cheaper than buying detergent.
Bon Ami is awesome. Its what I've always used on stainless steel and other scratchable surfaces (glass, etc.). Its what my grandmother used on her stainless steel kitchen, porcelain, etc. its what every restaurant I've worked In has used on their stainless.
Only downside is that it needs to be rinsed & dried. :)
Love, love, love bleach. :) 10% bleach is the single most effective antimicrobial on the planet (safe for people). Its best concentration is 1:10 / 10%. Its far less effective at 50% (or even 15%). Looooooooove 10% bleach.
Murphey's Oil Soap = what I use on all leather & wood. Like Bon Ami... It requires rinsing, though.
Oh, yes...
white vinegar and baking soda are also great. We use those and Bon Ami (which is pretty much reserved for the bathroom). I can't stand the smell of the Mrs Meyers line or Method or some of the other newcomers-- they are too perfumed. I'm not saying they don't work--they just don't work for my nose.:)
I got frustrated with the bon ami marketing "never scratched yet" well . . . um yeah it did scratch my sink so . . .
I use baking soda if I need a grit to help clean.
other than that, I tend to be of the same mind of Veronica P.
I use white vinegar and baking soda for all surface cleannig - toilets, floors, counters, glass.
I don't do bleach, ammonia, or cleaning agents that contain either.
I used to use Murphy's on my laminate floors until my neighbor, who installs floors for a living, told me that's one of the worst things you can use on wood or laminate. And no, he doesn't sell floor cleaner. He suggested vinegar and water for cleaning and Weiman floor polish (sold at the grocery store) for shine.
I haven't tried making my own laundry detergent.
My favorite scrubbing cleanser, by a mile, is Bar Keepers Best Friend. Nothing has come close to the cleaning power that stuff has.
My mom loves it so much she took it over the nasty rust stained sinks at our local park one afternoon and scrubbed them clean.
My favorite product on earth, is Method "le scrub bathroom cleaner." $5 at the store. http://methodhome.com/shop/le-scrub-bathroom-cleaner/
