Natual Cleaning-the Bathtub

Cleaning the bathroom is a concern for many that worry about germs. The marketed products appeal to out concern of cleaning and killing germs that may lead to illness.

Many of the products are dangerous to the environment as well as out own personal health. So are we really helping ourselves with cleaners in the long run? This is what I hope to unveil in this blog post series.

So in starting out in the bathroom, doing a major cleaning, I like to pull down my shower curtains. Mine are washable. I have 2 and both are fabric. They go in the wash (laundry is coming soon) and start there. This makes it quite easy to clean the shower wall, curtain rod, and the wall above the shower.
I made a fresh batch of all purpose cleaner. Today I used:
1 qt spray bottle
2 Tbsp borax
fill half with white vinegar
add a squirt of dish soap
and fill with water
10 drops of grapefruit essential oils (that is what my mood calls for today) :)

For the shower/bathtub floor itself, I use baking soda with a wee bit of dish soap to make a paste. Adding a wee bit of lemon essential oil does brighten, HOWEVER this does not completely whiten the way some products with bleach or brighteners will.

On occasion, I do use soft scrub , especially when I am hosting people. In summer, I do my work with chaco sandals on and my feet are extremely covered in earth. I don't mind the color remaining in my tub, but when my parents come to visit, yeah, they notice. Darned fiberglass! I live in an apartment so the fixtures are cheap.

Here are the ingredients in soft scrub with lemon. This does not contain bleach and is probably the least harmful of many tub products on the market.

Calcium carbonate-found in chalk,limestone, marble, travertine, egg shells, snails, pearls, and shell fish.
Wiki says, Fine ground calcium carbonate is an essential ingredient in the microporous film used in babies diapers.
This is also in homeopathic remedies, toothpaste,antacids, and supplements.

Water

Sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate- some word, huh? In researching this product, it appears it is a detergent with production of over 1 million pounds annually in the U.S.
It is suspected to cause negative effects in the gastrointestinal tract(mostly in case of ingestion), liver, or gall bladder.
Necrosis, or liver cell death, is a common effect of acute exposure to chemicals and this one in particular is thought to be a possible low hazard.
However the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act has it registered, so apparently this is poison somehow.



Lauramine oxide-this chemical helps build foam and keeps a product stable. It is a possible skin irritant in some individuals.
This ingredient is in some shampoo and bath and body care products.
Tests have shown small animals (rabbits or rats) have had eye irritation in low doses, brain and nervous system effects in moderate doses, effecting sleep patterns and coordination.
I saw this ingredient in some products that are suppose to be natural.

Sodium citrate is a sodium salt of citric acid. This is in alka seltzer and helps relieve cystitis by reducing acidity.It is only recommended for women, however according to wiki.
Sodium citrate is often in ice cream to keep fat globules from sticking together.
It can produce irritation of the skin especially in moist of sensitive areas.

Preservative

Fragrance

Whatever these are could have hidden hazards as I shared in the first part of this series. Secret ingredients of formulas are allowed by law without disclosure.


At least it is in a recyclable container..he he

So lets look at Comet powdered cleanser.

Active Ingredient: Sodium dichloro-s-triazinetrione dihydrate 1.2%
Inactive Ingredients: Other Ingredients 98.8%

Sodium dichloro-s-triazinetrione dihydrate is highly toxic to fish, causing them to die. There is some studies that show lab animals had problems with skin and internal issues, but there was no data on what and how this was tested.
This chemical is found in pool cleaners and is also registered with the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act.
The MSDS states it released harmful gasses into the air.
And the other 98.8% is their secret.


Well if we make a paste with baking soda, water and a wee bit of dish soap lets see what we come up with.

Sodium Bicarbonate is fairly non toxic. Of course it is powder so it is not to be inhaled. Also, large amounts of ingestion can cause extreme alkalinity and cells can swell. It is not a combustible material. If you remember in home ec, throwing baking soda on a grease fire will extinguish the flames. It may sting the eyes if it gets into them, but rinsing should take care of that.
Green River, Wyoming has the largest stores of the mineral Trona, which is where baking soda comes from.
It is mined and turned to soda ash. From the website http://www.grist.org/article/umbra-bakingsoda/, Umbra shares this about an environmental concern.
The wastewater(from the mining and processing into soda ash) is very salty, and when it is piped away to a holding pond, it can make the birds that visit said pond fall sick, and sometimes drown.
However, I find no other environmental issue known. My only conscious concern would be this cleaner running down our drains alkalizing the bacteria in sewers and septics. Compared to other cleaning products, this seems the safest product for cleaning in my mind, however.
Most stinky smells are acidic in nature. Baking soda removed odors by neutralizing the acids, since baking soda is basic.
It is a crystal, which is why it can scrub, but it is soft so does not scratch and is water soluble.
To a couple TBSP of baking soda, I add enough water to make a paste and use a squirt of ECOVER dishwashing liquid to help gather dirt and carry it away. I currently am using Ecover chamomile and marigold.

Ecover ingredients are plant based anionic and non ionic tensio-active surfactants, water, milk whey(oops, not vegan), plant based fragrance, extracts of chamomile and marigold, salt, citric acid and 100% biodegradable preservative.
(They have secrets too)

Environmental advantages

* quick and complete biodegradability (OECD-test 301F, full product)
* minimum impact on aquatic life(OECD-test 201&202, full product)
* against animal testing
* suitable for septic tanks
* plant based ingredients

This particular dishwashing liquid does not have as much foam as most dish soap, but for our needs it works great for dishes as well as basic cleaning.

You can add lemon juice to the baking soda and soap mix for the tub stains to brighten, or a couple drops of essential oil of lemon. It does help.

Scrub your tub with the paste you make and rinse.

Easy, economical and environmentally friendly! YEAH!
After I clean the shower walls I use the same all purpose cleaner and a stool to wash the other walls and door of the bathroom.
I take off the cover to my bathroom heater and clean the dust out and use the all purpose cleaner and an old toothbrush to clean the cover. Dry and replace onto fixture.
This is a good time to take off light fixtures, fan covers and anything that should be clean on occasion. These can usually be washed in hot soapy water. An old toothbrush will help caked on dirt to come loose from grooves and corners.
Baseboards and behind the toilet is the last thing I do since that is usually the dirties part of the wall work. I then get new dish cloths to begin the next series of cleaning, which I will get into next post.

After my shower curtain is washed and dried, I hang back up on the shower curtain hooks, on the cleaned shower curtain rod.

I am going to break this down into a few sections so that I wont lose you with many chemical compositions and techniques. My desire is that we all learn from this!