Green Your Clean Series! The Bathroom

This week we venture into the great abyss... otherwise known as the bathroom. I HATE cleaning the bathroom. I loath it. I used to pay people just to come dust and clean my bathrooms because I hated it so much.

The bathroom is a place where you can find lots of "specialty" chemicals. But really its is simple and you don't need them.

Here are some great options:

Clogged Drain? I hate liquid drain cleaners. They just scream kill me now. I do love the action of seeing things fizzle. So here are the two ways I clean my drain.

1. Fill the drain with baking soda. Maybe a cup or so? Get it down in there as much as possible. Then pour vinegar in the drain and plug it up immediately. The fizz will force the clog down and clean the drain too.

2. A hand held plunger is an powerfully awesome way to remove a tough clog. I found one at the local hardware store about a year ago and wanted to shout from the roof tops. It was the best thing since??? well. I loved it anyways. I did find if you have an overflow hole in your sink you need to cover it with your hand to create a good suction. But it works on the really tough stuff. No chemicals needed!

Cleaning Paste: use baking soda and water to make a paste. Works great for cleaning the sink, toilet, shower, tub. Anywhere you need a little scouring power. Add in some extra power and a great scent by using essential oils. 

Some common oils used for cleaning are: 

• Lemon- kills bacteria and will uplift your mood :)
• Thieves- antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic, antiviral, antiparasitic and antimicrobial.
• Purification- antiseptic, antibacterial, insecticidal, antifungal, antiviral and purifying!
• Mel-A- antiviral, antiparasitic, antimicrobial, antifungal, antiseptic, bactericidal, and insecticidal
• Citrus Fresh- antifungal and antiseptic
• Lavender - antiseptic, antiviral, bactericidal, and fungicidal
• Peppermint- antiseptic, antibacterial and antiviral

Daily Shower Cleaner Spray: this is for in between cleaning. To help keep it clean and reduce build up. Mix in a bottle and keep it in your shower for daily use. I like to write the recipe right on the bottle for easy refill.

1.5 cups water

1 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup rubbing alcohol

1 teaspoon liquid dish soap

15 drops lemon essential oil

15 drops melaleuca (tea tree) essential oil

Toilet Bombs: this is my newest venture in the bathroom. I had a silicone mold to make bath bombs and decided to try this out. My son loved the smell. Way better than breathing in toxic fumes- even from the natural stuff from the store.

1 1/2 cup Baking Soda 
1/2 cup Citric Acid
essential oils

Mix the citric acid and baking soda in a glass bowl. Slowly add approximately 80 drops of essential oils (your choice from list above). I personally love the smell of Citrus Fresh, Lemon and Mel-A together. Mix well. Push mix into mold. It should be slightly wet like damp sand. If needed you can spray a couple spritz of water to help it dampen but remember any water added will take away some of the fiz later. Leave in mold to dry for approximately 24 hours then remove from mold and store in a glass jar. When ready to use drop into toilet! (I use 2 because I have small molds) I drop it, clean the rest of the bathroom while it fizzes. Then I use my scrubber to scrub anything. Then I leave it to soak in the toilet- until it gets used anyways. I do the same with the gel from the store and have noticed no loss in cleaning power and only have been happy to enjoy the pleasant aroma and know my kids are safe.

All Purpose Cleaner: As I mentioned previously in this series. The All Purpose Cleaner is a must. This is one area where you can go crazy and spray away. Spray your mirrors, sinks, counters, toilets, even floors.








There you have it. Some fun new and natural ways to clean your bathroom.

Blessings!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.

How to Make Simple Foaming Soap

This is so easy you will laugh! One of the first things I made when I started my journey to cleanup our house was a foaming soap. It's so easy!!!

First you want to use a good liquid soap. I prefer Dr. Bronners Liquid Castile Soap. It's all natural, no yucky stuff. It can be expensive so it's good to know where to go. If you want unscented I have found its best to stock up during Earth week at Target as they always put it on sale that week. Otherwise you can get peppermint at Trader Joes for $11.99 for a 32oz. bottle. (If you have any hot buys, I would love to know where you find good deals on castile soap. I use it for so many things around the house!)

Second you need a foaming bottle. I have purchased the empty bottles from various companies and found it is not worth it for me to buy the empty bottle. You can buy Method foaming soap on sale at Target or buy a foaming soap at the Dollar Store and dump it out.

Finally the super easy part....

Pour approximately 1 part soap to 5 parts water into your bottle. But this is not exact, you can make it thicker if you like. I like the soap I use in the shower thicker (2:5) than the one I use for hand washing. 

So, if you have a small medicine cup- fill it once with soap then 5 times with water. Done!!

If you don't want to use the medicine cup every time, you can mark your bottle after you add the soap then again after you add all your water. However this method requires you to use all your soap before refilling.

Super easy? I know!!! Don't spend money on a new bottle every time! Save your money and make your own.

Now the fun part.... If you want to use essential oils, just make sure you use unscented soap. Once all the soap and water have been added, add your essential oils. I would recommend starting with 15 drops of essential oils. Shake gently and enjoy. You will love it, I promise!!!

Finally, some people find that castile soap is a little drying. You can add a small amount of almond oil to the recipe to make it a moisturizing soap. This is something I generally do in the winter when I notice my hands are dryer. Here is an example:

To make a Moisturizing Thieves Foaming Hand Soap combine in a 10 oz bottle:
7.5 ounces of water
1.5-2 ounces of liquid soap
1/2 ounces Sweet Almond Oil
15 drops of Thieves Essential Oil

Blessings!!

If you enjoyed this post, I’d be very grateful if you’d help it spread by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Google+, Twitter or Facebook.