Healthy House Cleaning (Long but food for thought)

by **MuttsMom** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 10:14 am

Antiseptic Spray:
Fill a 16 oz. spray bottle with distilled or filtered water (less minerals, cleans better)
Add two tablespoons of liquid castille soap (I like almond or eucalyptus)
Add 20-25 drops of tea tree oil
Shake up the mixture really good. You can use this spray for anything. I use it to wipe down counters, clean muddy paws off and the floor when they come in, cleaning toilets, disinfecting the garbage can, and cleaning my own hands!

Just wanted to say THANK YOU for posting this! I have been slowing trying to get into switching to more natural cleaners for a while, first by buying Method products and now I'm using those up so starting to make my own cleaners. I finally found a health food store yesterday and got some oils and some castile soap and mixed this Antiseptic spray last night. Oh my goodness it smells so good (I used peppermint castile,mmm) I have been a cleaning fool!!! I love it! If anyone was thinking of trying it and hasn't, do it! It smells awesome and cleans wonderfully!!

My library doesn't have any natural cleaning books, so I am off to Amazon now. Can't wait to get some more recipes to try.

By the way, Trader Joes is one awesome store! I wish so bad we had them here!

by **jaygirl** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 2:15 pm

I just started using the Trader Joe's peppermint castile soap as a body wash. Works great.

by **Brutus's Mommy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 5:53 pm

Where do you buy the oils you were talking about?

by **Linariel** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 6:14 pm

Health food stores should carry essential oils. Sometimes GNC has tea tree oil, or even a drugstore would carry it. You can buy them all online, too.

by **Brutus's Mommy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 6:22 pm

Linariel, how much should I expect to pay for it?

by **pitgrrl** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:09 pm

Essential oils vary hugely in price based on quality, scarcity, etc. Anywhere from $5.00-40.00.
In Canada Tea Tree oil will set you back about $8, but lasts a really long time because you only need a few drops at a time.

One thing to keep in mind if you're not using essential oils on or in your body, is that quality isn't as important, ie go for the cheaper brand if there is a choice, and that some oils will have a few different kinds, lavander being the most common, and you just need the cheapest.
If you were going to use it on yourself, you would need to pay attention to which lavander type you use for example.

by **concreterose** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 8:53 pm

Brutus's Mommy wrote:Where do you buy the oils you were talking about?

These are the brands most widely sold here:
Auria Cacia
NOW

I get them from the co-op or health food store. If you have a store that sells like incense and candles and stuff sometimes they'll have essential oils too.

by **mom2bennientiny** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:38 am

Along these same lines, can someone (concreterose maybe) recommend a good doggy shampoo with no chemicals or junk in it? Is there a recipe for that too? I bathe the pups weekly because they get pretty dirty from playing with their buddies, we live in the city and I figure they pick up a lot of airborne pollutants on their coats and also Bennie has seasonal allergies so I want to make sure nothing irritating stays on him too long.

by **concreterose** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:44 am

mom2bennientiny wrote:Along these same lines, can someone (concreterose maybe) recommend a good doggy shampoo with no chemicals or junk in it? Is there a recipe for that too? I bathe the pups weekly because they get pretty dirty from playing with their buddies, we live in the city and I figure they pick up a lot of airborne pollutants on their coats and also Bennie has seasonal allergies so I want to make sure nothing irritating stays on him too long.

Dr. Bronners soap is great for bathing them...in the summer the lavender or eucalyptus scented ones will also help repel fleas and mosquitoes as well. You can dilute the heck out of it...it doesn't take much to do the job! Cloud Nine herbal shampoo is also great; it's the only shampoo I've been able to find without sodium laurel sulfate, and it smells yummy!
After I give my dogs a bath, sometimes I do a final rinse with a 50/50 solution of warm water and white vinegar...it restores the ph back to their coats and skin. You can do this if you bathe often because of allergies, showing, etc.

by **Kirstan** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:55 am

I use this one for dry skin and allergy skin as well. Once every couple months.

http://www.jason-natural.com/products/dandruff.php

by **mom2bennientiny** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:23 pm

So, the Dr. Bronners castille soap?

by **concreterose** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 2:20 pm

mom2bennientiny wrote:So, the Dr. Bronners castille soap?

Or if you have a Trader Joe's near you, you could get that...a lot of people seem to like it and it's cheaper!

by **concreterose** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 2:22 pm

Kirstan wrote:I use this one for dry skin and allergy skin as well. Once every couple months.

http://www.jason-natural.com/products/dandruff.php

I use their toothpaste and mouth rinse (my molars are wicked sensitive and I won't use fluoride) and I love it!

by **mom2bennientiny** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 3:10 pm

Wow! Thanks! What CAN'T you use this stuff for? :yay:

by **Brutus's Mommy** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 3:59 pm

Well I just got back from the natural foods store and picked up some lemon oil and some Dr. Bronner's 18 in 1 Hemp Tea Tree Pure Castile Soap. I figured since you were all talking about tea tree oil I would save $8 and just pick up the castile soap with it already in it :oops:

I'm going to be cleaning all weekend!

Healthy House Cleaning (Long but food for thought)

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