Emily Adams

So how do you actually clean green… the RIGHT way? Experts weigh in…

Ah yes… cleaning without the toxic chemicals. Sounds like a dream come true.

A recent publication from Tree Hugger talks about 10 different ways that you can incorporate green cleaning into your routine simply and easily. It is possible, and works better than you probably conceived! (Inconceivable… cue the Princess Bride references).

Without further ado, here are the 10 simple ways to green clean your home with ease!

1. Get eco-friendly cleaning products
2. Avoid poor indoor air quality
3. Watch out for antibacterial cleaners
4. Basically… baking soda
5. Clean your indoor air… the eco-friendly way
6. Get rid of all of your toxic cleaners
7. Avoid dry cleaners (the convential ones)
8. Hire a green cleaning service
9. Get those shoes off!
10. How to design your home to be clean and green

Let’s take a deep dive into the world of green cleaning and unveil the curtain on the professional secrets to this subtle craft!

1) Get your green cleaning products!

The basics consist of Baking Soda, Borax, White Vinegar, Lemon, Castile Soap, and something called Washing Soda, which is actually sodium carbonate.

The article warns that you probably shouldn’t leave these chemicals around young ones and pets, but for the most part they are more innocuous than the far more chemically laden ones.

You can check out other brands such as Mrs. Meyers and Method for more green cleaning action.

2) Avoid bad indoor air quality

Get those windows open! You want to make sure your home is well-ventilated, since this is one of the best things you can do for your home while cleaning it. All of those toxins you’re removing are definitely going to make the air more toxic, so replace it with fresh air!

3) Steer clear of antibacterial cleaners

Here’s the thing about antibacterial cleaners… they actually remove a lot of good bacteria, and make it easier for super germs to spread! (Cue ominous music…)

4) Baking soda for the win!

Here’s the thing about Baking Soda – you can use it on just about everything cleaning related! Especially when it comes to freshening up carpets and removing stains. Put the power of the soda to use, and you won’t regret it!

5) Clean your indoor air naturally

You can always try using some plants to clean the indoor air – they are great at filtering the air so that you only breathe the freshest air possible!

6) Get rid of your toxic cleaners safely

According to 604 Maids, a cleaning service in Vancouver, Canada: “A lot of toxic cleaners actually need to be recycled at the correct facilities instead of throwing them in the trash. This helps the environment tremendously, and that’s what we’re all about!”

Make sure that if you’re throwing those old spray bottles in the trash, you’re not polluting the environment too much! If they have instructions on how to dispose of them, follow those instead of just chucking it.

7) Avoid dry cleaners (conventional ones)

Yes, they’re toxic! That’s pretty much all we need to say about that.

8) Hire a green cleaning service

Shameless plug: You can always hire us here at NW Maids for your green cleaning service needs if you’re within an hour of the Seattle, WA area!

9) Kick your shoes off!

It’s important not to track in the toxins that you may have been exposed to outside, into the home. Instead, try taking your shoes off in an ‘airlock’ of sorts – an area before you step into your bedroom or living room that serves as a location where you can keep shoes and other things that might potentially have dirt or toxins on them. Examples: oil, antifreeze, debris from street trash, etc.

10) Designing your home to be clean and green

I would actually recommend that you design your home in the way described above, because that will get you the best shot at keeping your home clean. And of course, if you need any sort of cleaning advice, contact us or book your cleaning online with our handy booking form!

 

Thank you for reading and let us know how these tips work for you!

 

It’s time to lift the curtain on the best secrets in the book for green cleaning…

Yes, I’m sure that you’ve considered green cleaning, but also been hesitant to try it out. Let’s face it – sometimes you just need some bleach to get the job done. Or do you…

A recent publication from The Spruce talks about 6 different ways that you can incorporate green cleaning into your routine simply and easily. It is possible, and works better than you probably conceived! (Inconceivable… cue the Princess Bride references).

Without further ado, here are the 6 simple ways to green clean your home with ease!

1. Start with the basics
2. Try commercial cleaning products
3. Keep your drains clean
4. Thing four
5. Thing five
6. Thing six

Let’s take a deep dive into the world of green cleaning and unveil the curtain on the professional secrets to this subtle craft!

1) Start with the basics

The basics consist of Baking Soda, Borax, White Vinegar, Lemon, Castile Soap, and something called Washing Soda, which is actually sodium carbonate.

The article warns that you probably shouldn’t leave these chemicals around young ones and pets, but for the most part they are more innocuous than the far more chemically laden ones.

 

2) Try commercial cleaning products

The site encourages you to purchase commercial cleaning products that are ‘green.’ The reason for this is that these products tend to be easier to use, due to not having to mix anything. The ease of use is definitely an advantage if your goal is to get the job done in the easiest way possible. Remember, that’s what we’re trying to achieve in the end – a clean home for you with less work and less chemicals!

3) Keep your drains clean

Apparently it’s a good idea to use a strainer in order to keep debris from collecting in your drains, making it generally hard to clean in that area. It’s important to use a plunger first, then a concoction of baking soda and vinegar to get the job done. And remember – you should always pour some boiling water down the drain. Ideally weekly in order to keep the drain free of grease residue and buildup. Thank me later when you save on Dran-o!

4) Wood surfaces – how to clean them the green way

Real World Services Co, a commercial cleaning service in Columbus, OH adds that “You can clean most wood surfaces with olive oil and vinegar. This is a less-known folk remedy that works wonders in a pinch.”

Who knew that salad dressing could become wood cleaner, but I guess then you could eat off of the floor, right? Right? I know, it’s a bad one. Don’t hold it against us!

Pro Tip: For wood floors, try a 1/4 cup vinegar with a gallon of hot water.

5) Windows! Windows everywhere!

According to a post on Angie’s List, it costs about $2 to $7 per pane for window cleaning. That can get expensive!

If you can see specks on your windows, they are about to be blasted away by an amazing concoction!

Lemon juice and water will get the trick done. Try it out and let us know how it works!

6) Oven cleaning

Two words – baking soda. This is the old folk remedy that works the best and it’s very green as well. Just make sure that you’re letting it soak overnight so that the grime has a chance to come off. This is especially important if you don’t have one of those fancy self cleaning ovens. I mean, who does? Oh, that’s right. Most people. We should really get one of those for the office! But then we wouldn’t get to clean it, and that would make us sad, because we love cleaning!

Did we mention you can book us online if you’re in the Seattle area and are sick of cleaning your oven?

7) The bathroom

The combination of baking soda and vinegar is very popular. In fact, “baking soda and vinegar recipes” garners over 25 million results on Google. It’s no surprise then, that you can use this magical combo to clean your toilet as well.

Pro Tip: Use borax on your tile and shower to scrub them clean!

8) Fresh air – the green way

Have you measured your air quality? Probably not, because that’s not something normal people do. But to tell you the truth, it’s something that affects your mood and quality of life more than you probably imagine!

Vinegar and baking soda (again) are used together to clean the air.

We hope this list helps, and please check out our handy online booking form if you need maid or housecleaning services in Seattle, WA.

 

Why you shouldn’t just hire any cleaning company – investigate!

Yes, we’ve all been in a hurry before, needing a cleaning service and not caring who you went with. We understand how you feel!

However, if you’re going to let someone into your home, there are several things you should probably ask beforehand. Let’s get into them now!

According to a recent blog by care.com there are 7 things that you should look out for before hiring a cleaning service.

1. What your individual needs are
2. The qualifications of the cleaner or company you’re thinking of hiring
3. Their experience
4. Your schedule vs theirs – are they able to fit you in?
5. Cleaning supplies – who provides them, what are they like?
6. How can you pay? What methods do they accept?
7. References and Background Checks – super important for the sensitive job of going into your home!

Let’s check these out together and figure out more about them!

1) Your individual needs

You should always consider what your actual needs are – if the individual or service you’re thinking of hiring doesn’t accomodate for your individual needs, run!

Here is a sample cleaning checklist that you can reference – it includes all the basics of a regular cleaning, plus some extras and add-ons that you may want to mention to your cleaning professional or company.

Make sure you are clear about what it is you need – are there areas of your home that need special attention? Are you expecting a deep cleaning for the price of a regular cleaning? These discrepancies should be able to be answered by your cleaning individual accurately and clearly. It’s important for your home to be in good hands, and this is a great way to make sure you’re getting a person or service that can fulfill your cleaning needs!

 

2) The qualifications of the cleaner or company

It’s super important to check if the company or cleaner you are thinking of hiring actually has the correct qualifications. Cleaning is a job that does require a high level of organization and expertise. This is partially due to it being a job that requires you to match the correct cleaning products and cleaning techniques to the correct surfaces that you are cleaning. For example: If you use Bleach on a glass stovetop, it does cause damage!

Clean Maids near Cypress, TX has this to say: “Granite, marble and stainless steel appliances (like fridges and sinks) all need to be handled with the correct products and cleaning supplies, otherwise they can be seriously damaged and need to be replaced. This can be quite costly so you want to make sure you have well trained cleaners!”

 

3) The cleaner’s experience (and feedback)

 

It’s very imporant to regard the cleaner’s experience and what kind of feedback they’ve received.

Check online review sites like Yelp and Google for online reviews, but keep in mind that you should take these with a grain of salt! It’s common knowledge that 1 in 50 happy customers leaves a review, but 1 in 4 unhappy customers will scream your company’s name from the rooftops!

This is why it’s very important to ensure that your cleaning company or individual has enough experience to have some sort of feedback listed online for them, or at least references that they can send you.

4) Their schedule

 

Is the cleaner or company able to fit you into their schedule? This is important, as schedules fill up fast, and it’s very important to ensure that you can find a spot that works for you. This is even more important if you’re booking a recurring cleaning vs a one-off, because you want to make sure your cleaner can access the property at the time of cleaning. Otherwise they might get locked out and have to charge a cancellation fee in some cases!

5) Cleaning supplies

It’s important to be clear about who provides the cleaning supplies. Are they high quality? Check with your cleaner or company and ensure that whoever provides the cleaning supplies, they are there at the time of cleaning, otherwise there will be a miscommunication that could result in a bad experience.

6) Methods of payment

It’s important to see if you can pay via credit card – make sure that the cleaner or company has a booking form that you can use. This makes it so much easier to book your cleaning, and ensure payment is sent on time on their end as well!

7) References and Background checks

This is pretty self-evident, but it’s worth repeating anyway. Make sure you get your cleaners background checked and get some references, or at the very least, ensure your company that you’re hiring has done so.

We hope this list helps, and make sure you check our our cleaning services if you’re in the Seattle area!