Spring is just around the corner, which means it’s time to start our spring cleaning. Earlier this year, I reviewed a book titled Home Detox by toxicologist Daniella Chace. In this book, she shares that the triggers of disease are found mostly inside our homes, especially in our cleaning products.
For some of us, we rely of single-use items and harsh chemicals to get our house clean and sparkly. But did you know that you achieve even better results with eco-friendly and non-toxic alternatives? Not only are we making better choices for our planet, but for our health as well. Here are 6 spring cleaning tips that are better for you and for the planet.
1) Reusable Cloths Instead of reaching for paper towels or disinfecting wipes, use reusable cloths. I personally love using microfibre cloths for spring cleaning because they’re absorbent and easily pick up dirt, dust, and grime. They’re also great for polishing and cleaning almost any surface.
2) Natural Cleaners Protect yourself and our planet by ditching toxic cleaning products. You may be surprised to learn that some of these natural cleaners are already in your household. This includes white vinegar, lemons, baking soda, etc. These natural cleaners pack a powerful punch when tackling odors, tough water stains, and more.
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3) Skip the Dryer A great way to save energy and money is to hang dry your clothing. I typically do this with laundry that I don’t need right away. You can hang your clothing outdoors, where the sun acts as a natural disinfectant, or on a clothing rack indoors.
Did you know? It takes about 30 minutes for the heat from the sun to kill surface bacteria on clothing.
4) Reuse and Repurpose Before you send old items that you find to the landfill, see if you can repurpose them. A few examples include,
• Using old clothing/bedding as cleaning rags
• Reuse glass jars to store food or as a vase
• Bottle caps or toilet paper rolls for DIY crafts
• Plastic bottles for DIY cleaning solutions
5) Create Piles It’s very important to create proper piles when you’re spring cleaning. This ensures every single item ends up where they belong and not accidently in the landfill. Create piles for recyclable items, compostable items, and items that you can donate to local shelters.
Did you know? Household items such as batteries, charging cables, and old electronics can be safely recycled at City landfills and places like Best Buy and Staples. It’s also free of charge! Check your city’s website and see if any local businesses offer these recycling programs as well.
6) Clean Appliances When your household appliances are dirty, they are less efficient and end up using more energy. This not only impacts your wallet, but the environment as well. Keep your household appliances clean and check that they’re working properly. For example, ensuring the seals in your fridge are tight, removing ice build-up, clearing dust/lint from your dryer, etc.
It’s possible to achieve a clean household without compromising your health. These simple yet effective tips also benefits your wallet and the planet. Do you have any eco-friendly spring cleaning tips to share? I’d love to know! For more eco-friendly posts, visit my tag here.
I loved your tips for using reusable cloths. I recently switched to using microfiber towels specifically designed for washing windows. Not only do I save a bundle by not using paper towels, but cleaning my windows has become so much easier!
I agree, it’s an eco-friendly swap that gets the job done better! Thank you reading Heidi!
I’m in the midst of starting spring cleaning atm, I love getting the house cleaned out after Autumn/Winter. I do enjoy seeing what we can repurpose, last year we had an old set of drawers that I sanded down and painted, now they are at the top of the stairs and perfect for keeping bedding sets in!
These are fantastic tips!
That’s great Jordanne! Paint is such an effective way to refresh furniture. Thank you reading!
These are some great tips to help you clean without harming the planet. I try to use reusable cloths. However I am a sucker for antibacterial wipe. But we have signed up for SMOL, the tablet disinfectant spray, so much better for the planet. Thank you for sharing your tips and suggestions.
Lauren x
I love antibacterial wipes too, but I’ve been using them sparingly. SMOL sounds incredible and I’d love to look into that. Thank you reading Lauren!
What a helpful post. I use vinegar and baking soda often while cleaning. I’m at my sisters house and she uses these reusable “paper” towels that are awesome and I’m going to start using them as well.
That’s awesome Wendy! I’ve heard great things about those reusable paper towels. Thank you for reading!
It’s really good to have reuseable cloths for cleaning. You don’t have to spend money on and it will keep cleaning for as long as possible.
Yes, reusable cloths make such a big difference! Thank you for reading Fransic!
This is such a great resource. Thank you for sharing!
I’m happy to hear that! Thank you for reading Kristen!
I am currently Spring cleaning now and these tips are great reminders for me. Thank you for sharing.
That’s wonderful Lanae! Good luck on your spring cleaning. Thank you for reading!
Thanks for these wonderful tips. We need to get started with our spring cleaning and we plan to recycle or donate what we don’t need anymore.
That’s a great idea! I already have a few bags ready for the donation bins. Thank you for reading!
These are great tips to use when spring cleaning. I love finding ways to repurpose items. Have a great weekend!
Me too, repurposing old items can be a fun activity. Thank you for reading Jodie. I hope you enjoy your weekend!
These are all great ideas. We’ve switched to using white vinegar as a cleaner and it works better than we expected.
Isn’t it great? It’s affordable, natural, and effective. Thank you for reading!
After cozy winters it’s tough to so spring cleaning but it’s necessary. Sorting in piles is a great way to separate reusable items from totally useless items. A well-timed post. 👌
Creating proper piles makes the entire process much easier! Thank you for reading Ranjana.