Favorite Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products

I hate cleaning.  Let me just get that out of the way.

But since it has to be done...I decided to get some advice from the smart women I keep in touch with from the Green Moms Carnival and on Twitter.  I asked them "What's your favorite eco-friendly cleaning product."  Here's what they had to say:

Jenn from The Green Parent:  "I pretty much use vinegar and baking soda to clean the whole house.  But one product that I do like is Seventh Generation toilet bowl cleaner.  Its thick, so it gets into places that my vinegar and baking soda combo can't reach.  It does a sparkling job...and considering we have a potty trainer in the house, that's saying something!"

Mary from In Women We Trust:  "I’m a BIG user of ¼ cup of old fashion vinegar in every dishwashing load. It makes everything sparkle. I pour it into an upright glass on the top layer and somehow it splashes around and does it’s thing."

Beth from Fake Plastic Fish:  "Well, it WAS Vodka until I realized I was drinking more than cleaning with it.  Seriously, Vodka is a great disinfectant and doesn't smell like sauerkraut, or anything else really.  I also love to scour with baking soda and a Skoy cloth.  (Okay, I don't actually love to scour.)"   "I put the vinegar in the slot where the rinse agent is supposed to go.    And I use a combo of 1/2 baking soda and 1/2 borax as dishwasher soap." (that tip originally came from The Green Phone Booth)

Diane from Big Green Purse:  "My favorite store-bought product is Bon Ami. Cheap, in a recyclable cardboard container; contains no synthetic fragrances or toxic chemicals of any kind whatsoever, just pulverized calcite & feldspar minerals, and biodegradable detergent. No chlorine, or dye, either. Works great on the ring around the bath tuband in the toilet, too. Gentle enough for Corian countertops, hardworking enough for fingerprint grime build-up on the wall. It's my fave!

In place of paper towels, I use the kids' old t-shirts and sponges. I also like the new loofah cleaning sponges being sold at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. Their rough surface is great for cleaning pots and pans without scratching."

Maryanne from Not Quite Crunchy Parent:  "I'm on the vinegar and lemon bandwagon for green cleaners though I use simple green and 7th generation too!

Michelle (Green Bean) from The Green Phone Booth:  "I too use vinegar and baking soda for the whole house with a little borax for toilet bowl cleaning.  I had great success with unclogging drains with baking soda, then boiling vinegar followed by boiling water once the fizzing stops or in five minutes."

Ruchira from Arduous Blog:  "I just use one bottle of Ecover for everything. It kinda sucks actually, but I think that has more to do with the fact that I don't use sponges, I use rags for everything." 

@treehgr: "my favorite green cleaner is seventh generation's tub and tile cleaner"

@SimpleStepsNRDC: "My fav cleaning product is Borax, it works in the laundry and in the bathroom.  And there's the Malvina Reynolds song!"

Well, I don't know about the Malvina Reynolds song but I do like borax for the toilet bowl....and I was pleased to see so many people are die-hard vinegar and baking soda fans!  My favorite store-bought all purpose cleaner is a Minnesota brand called Soul Tonic.  They're so small they don't even have a website but last time I checked it was available at the Linden Hills Co-op.  It doesn't exactly make me enjoy cleaning but the fabulous essential oil scent helps make my least favorite chore a bit more tolerable!

Do you have a favorite cleaning product?  Let me know and I'll add it to the list!

This is my post for the Green Mom's Carnival about spring cleaning, hosted this month by Jenn from Tiny Choices.