Pet Hair Problems?

cuba gallery

Pet hair can be a real nightmare to get rid of. I personally have 2 cuddly balls of fur who are, as it is summer shedding all over the place. My sofas are a slight embarrassment and if i wear black i can't leave the house without a lint roller! One thing which makes a massive difference is using a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter, which is also great for those with allergies. Hoover as often as you can focusing on soft furnishings as well as floors. Also brushing your pets when they are moulting will help with the amount of hair they deposit elsewhere!

Summer Clear Out

HowardLake

With the sun in the sky why not throw open your windows and throw out your unused stuff! Nothing feels better then a big clear out. I personally believe that a tidy house equals a tidy mind so try to shift anything i haven't used in a few months. Take whatever can still be used to your local charity shop and recycle things that no longer work or are broken. Any old t-shirts that can't go to the charity shop can be cut up into rags for cleaning around your home.

Sunshine - Nature's Bleach

elliephillips

Summer is only round the corner and as we all know, with a good dose of sunshine, our hair can go a couple of shades lighter. Well did you know the same can be said for your whites? Drying your whites in bright sunshine will keep them white and reduce and small stains.

Tea Tree Tastic

imNatSimple

Tea tree oil is a natural solvent. It has antibacterial qualities and cuts through grease superbly. Dilute with water for a great multipurpose cleaner.

Magical House Plants

You don't have to use an expensive electric filter to clean the air in your home. Houseplants such as Spider Plants, English Ivy and Chrysanthemums are know for their air purifying qualities. Personally having plants around the house also makes me feel better!

Unwanted Blockages?

Kurvz

Keeping sinks clear of blockages can be tricky, especially in the kitchen. If you tend to dispose of your cooking oil down the sink, a good way to prevent blockages is to pour a boiling kettle of water down every week. This will keep on top of build ups without having to resort to nasty chemicals or expensive plumbers!

Oh oh so fabulous video!

If you haven't seen our first foray into movie making, you are missing out!

Energy Efficiency Saves on Two Fronts!

Åsta

There are more ways you can be green then just switching your products. A great way to save money and energy is to turn your washing machine down to 30°c when doing a general load. This can save up to 40% more energy then if you were to wash at 40°c! 

Rediscovering Old Classics

RealisePhotography

Digging out old books can be a great way to bring back memories or simply rediscover old favourites. If your books have been in storage for a while and are smelling a tad musty, simply place them in a bag with some scrunched up newspaper, leave for 24 hours. When you take them out, the newspaper should have absorbed most of the dampness and odour.

Microwaves

Photo by gairid1791

Our favourite wonder-fruit, the lemon is back! This time taking on grubby microwaves. Simply slice a lemon and put it in a microwavable bowl of water and cook on high for 2 minutes. The stream produced will make any tough grease easier to remove while also neutralising any lingering odours.

Bicarbonate of Soda 'n' Vac

Remember the iconic Shake 'n' Vac advert from the 80's? Well now you can get shaking with the fab eco solution to deodorising your carpets and upholstery.

Simply shake bicarbonate of soda liberally onto carpets, leave for an hour and then hoover off.

Keeping your furniture happy

Photo by Prettydreamer.Workshop

Wooden furniture needs to be waxed once in a while in order to keep it in good condition. Beeswax polish is a natural way to feed your wood. Try adding a few drops of your favourite essential oil for an added fragrance.

Christmas

As I am sure you are well aware of by now, Christmas is only round the corner! Now is the perfect time to book in your pre Christmas clean to ensure that you house is shiny and sparkling for the special day.

To get that lovely Christmas aroma in your house try studding an orange with cloves and tying some cinnamon bark to the top. Hang around your house for that instant warming scent.

Disinfecting the eco way

One thing that I am sure is of concern to many people when pondering the decision to move to eco cleaning products is 'Will they act as a disinfectant?'.

A disinfectant that you can quickly make up at home could be the answer to your worries;

• Start with 3 cups of hot water
• Add 2 teaspoons of Borax
• 4 tablespoons of vinegar
• Add to a squirty bottle to use

While this won't remove all bacteria, it should sufficiently disinfect the area that you clean.

Tip of the day.

One problem that we often face when cleaning is a build up of lime-scale on taps and shower heads. A good way to combat this is to soak rags in distilled white vinegar and wrap them around the offending area. Leave for an hour and come back and give it a good scrub to see a marked difference.

Lemons - Essential Cleaning Kit

Hooray for lemons! They are great for anti-bacterial cleaning and are a must-have for natural home cleaning. Here are a 3 quick and simple cleaning tasks that make use of this natural ingredient.

• to freshen up a microwave put some sliced lemons in a bowl of water and mircrowave for 3 minutes. It will make it much easier to clean afterwards.
• lemon juice is great for lifting stains - add the juice of 2 lemons to your whites wash and then ideally line dry your in the sun for gleaming whites
• Use half a lemon to remove stains on chopping boards - leave to soak for a couple of hours and then rinse.

Removing flattened carpet marks

Image by torbakhopper

If you're re-arranging furniture and are left with unsightly carpet marks from where heavy furniture has been standing try ice-cubes. Pop an ice-cube into each area that has been compressed and leave overnight. They don't have to be heart-shaped.

New compostable dishcloths

If you need an incentive to clean the dishes these might just be the thing. Maria Dahlgren is the Swedish designer behind these fab dishcloths (£3.50 from ScandiLiving) who hopes they “will make people smile as they clean!"

Of course sustainability is as important as looks for us here at My Green Cleaner so the fact that these are printed with vegetable dyes and made from cellulose derived from wood and cotton only goes to prove that good looks and eco cleaning credentials go hand in hand. They're not only machine washable but once they've reached the end of their useful life are also fully compostable. We heart!

Pretty Cleaning Things

There's nothing like the acquisition of new cleaning equipment to make chores that much more enjoyable and I've fallen in love with these lovely hand decorated brooms (£20.00) from Brush Strokes. Who could resist an bit of sweeping with a strawberry or chilli decorated broom!

The wonder of E-cloths

Photo by Torie Jayne

They're not cheap compared to dusters but E-cloths General Purpose Cloths (£4.99) are an indispensable part of our cleaning kits here at My Green Cleaner. They're fantastic for giving a high shine to taps, kettles, toasters and really absorbent for dryingdown shower screens and mirrors. They have a towelling texture so are particularly good for wet areas.

E-cloth also do a glass and shining cloth but I prefer Deeply Clean's Ultra Gleam cloth (£2.49 from Sainsburys) which are excellent for mirrors and windows.