Home Design Articles

Modern cleaning products are promoted heavily on TV ads and in magazines. They promise almost miraculous cleaning – simply squirt or spray something on a surface or item and all the dirt, grime etc. is dissolved instantly. Similarly laundry detergents will clean anything from clothes leaving them new looking and conditioned. It sounds wonderful until you discover that most of these detergents, cleaners and polishers contain phosphates, strong acids, strong alkalis, caustics, volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) and other dangerous chemicals. These toxic ingredients are bad for your health and cause serious damage to the environment. The green revolution needs to educate people more about the damage done by standard household cleaning items and how natural and safe alternatives can be used instead.

Phosphates in detergents feed on sewage and farm waste and cause algae blooms. These are brown layers floating on rivers, oceans and lakes that are suffocating marine life. Strong acids and alkalis are found in other cleaning products that dissolve dirt but also are highly poisonous. If drunk they can be fatal; on the skin they cause burns. Typical cleaning products found under the kitchen sink are very dangerous for children and do no favors for the health of the environment either.

Before World War 2 much house cleaning was done using traditional methods and with safe and natural materials; so safe in fact that you can eat them. They are lemon, vinegar and baking soda. These three items contain natural acids, alkalis and solvents: they clean without endangering your health or causing pollution.

Lemon has a natural solvent called d-limonene that can dissolve dirt and grime. It is also slightly acidic. Mixed with salt it can be used to remove tarnish from metal cookware. Lemon oil can be used as replacement to VOC high polishes for wood. And lemon mixed with baking soda can remove stains from plastic and other surfaces.

Vinegar is also acidic and can used to clean glass and windows. It can also dissolve mineral deposits. It can clean brass and bronze and it is a safe product for cleaning up pet urine.

For the laundry soap flakes or Maggie’s Nuts can clean clothes without choking water supplies. They are also preferable for people who suffer from allergic reactions to chemicals in detergents.

None of these ideas are new ones. We just need to re-discover the older, slightly more troublesome (namely more elbow grease needed) and healthier ways of cleaning our homes.

green cleaners, green products

Molds, in general, describe a group of organisms that grow mostly in swampy and humid areas like kitchen, bathroom tiles and even on carpets. Molds grow in surfaces where there is moisture that keeps them alive. Dark rooms that are poorly ventilated, laundry rooms and hot tubs are perfect examples of environments for molds to grow. Molds, together with mildew and germs, affect human health in many ways. Mostly allergies and respiratory diseases. Asthmatic persons should not stay in areas where molds are present.

Water damage is one common causes of mildew and molds growth. Water damage mold clean up may require minimum effort depending on how large the area is affected. These organisms should be removed to prevent further diseases it may cause. In this article you get some tips on how to do water damage mold removal.

First, the area where these organisms grow should be well ventilated. There are commercial products available that would help remove molds and mildew. Product labels will guide the user on how to remove molds using mold removal products. Most of the products contain bleach which should not have contact with clothes, painted or papered surfaces. These products help kill and disinfect areas where molds and mildew are present.

Bathrooms and kitchen where the warm and moist atmosphere help molds to grow, should be kept ventilated and dry. Fix leaks first, light and air circulation must be increased. Scrub the areas where molds and mildew grow with a mixture of water and bleach. Keep the area dry after scrubbing. Regularly clean and dry the area to prevent molds from coming back. Appliances on the kitchen like the stove and the cooking area should be vented to the outside. Empty out refrigerator pan and sides should be checked for excess moisture. Kitchen sink and under sink should be kept dry and clean. Cabinets should be cleaned regularly also. Use disinfectant cleaners formulated for molds. Make sure faucets and water pipes leaks are fixed right away. Laundry room likewise must also be kept dry and well ventilated. Damp clothes must be dried up immediately to prevent molds from growing. Bedrooms on the other hand should not have left over food, these are one of the causes of molds growth. Windows should be kept closed. Clean up window frames, closets, books, toys, picture frames and leather products twice or thrice a week to prevent molds from growing. Lastly, basement shouldn’t have carpets on its floor since keeping the basement dry is kind of impossible to do.

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Black Mold, also called Strachybotrys atra, refers to the greasy, black material commonly seen on the bathroom floors and walls, showers, sinks, kitchen, food and any place or thing that is damp. Molds are fungi which grow on moist and dark places. They reproduce fast and their spores could easily be transported to other places. They will attach to an area permanently if left untreated.

Health Issues

It is one type of fungi that poses great risk to people. They can cause respiratory problems such as asthma, bronchitis, bleeding in the lungs and even death. Since it is very harmful to the body, a home should always be free from molds. The longer they are disregarded, the more they multiply and affect your health. The most vulnerable are the children since they love to play on the floor and touch anything they see. They munch on anything and ingestion of molds would be very dangerous.

Getting Rid of Black Mold

Having a clean home wouldn’t promote only comfort but most importantly, a healthy enviorment for the family, especially children. The best way on how to get rid of black mold is to prevent it. Since they thrive on moist places, make sure that the humidity in the house is low. Sufficient aeration of the house will prevent molds to grow. Air would keep surroundings dry through evaporation of moisture. This can be achieved easily if windows are big and open. If not, the use of dehumidifier is essential. This maintains a dry home. Use of air filter is a plus, since it traps mold spores that can spread around the house.

Cleaning the mold is the most important part. Be sure to use a mask and gloves in cleaning. This would prevent inhalation of fungi that can affect lungs and touching them with bare hands. Use disinfectant not only to remove the molds but also the spores. Manually remove mold using sponge or brush. Carefully discard them in a sealed plastic bag that it may not contaminate and spread to other areas. Ensure the surfaces you have cleaned are dried thoroughly to prevent further breeding of molds.

How to get rid of black mold is simply to have a clean and healthy home that keeps the family free from most diseases. It’s good to be healthy and at the same time feel confident that your home is good to look at and live in. Maintaining a clean home without molds requires patience and work. This has to be done ceaselessly. With these easy to follow steps, a mold-free home wouldn’t be difficult to sustain.

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After months and months of searching, you have by now already probably found the best vacuum for pet hair for your home. No doubt, this pet hair vacuum cleaner has all of the features that you need: turbo suction, powerful air flow, light weight, easy to empty bag or canister, and long lasting durability. However, just like any appliance, this pet hair vacuum cleaner will be of no use to you, no matter how efficient it is, if you do not use it properly. Many homeowners complain of inefficient appliances, or specifically, vacuum cleaners, when really they should be looking at their inefficient cleaning. Here are some tips on how to maximize the use of your pet hair vacuum cleaner.

First, make sure that your vacuum cleaner has different attachments. Pet hair vacuum cleaners will usually have roller brushes or hoses, and this is what will allow you to use them on different surfaces. Know which attachment works best for which surface. For example, a roller brush can be best used on car seats and bed sheets. A hose can be best used on mattresses and couches, while upright vacuum cleaners are best used on hard wood floors or carpeted floors. Using the right attachment for the right surface will ensure you better cleaning.

Next, clean from the top down. It would make no sense for you to, for example, clean your floor and then move on to your couch or table, since there is bound to be dirt, dust, or hair that will fall onto the floor as you clean. Begin cleaning from your curtains, and then onto your furniture, and end with the floor. This will help you make sure that you are not counter productive when you are doing your home cleaning.

Lastly, of course keep your pet away from you as you clean your home. Remember that you will be cleaning pet hair, and so it would make no sense if you had your dog walking around and spreading hair while you clean it up. Keep them in a safe location away from where you are cleaning for the meantime.

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It is very important to learn how to clean grout for several reasons. First, you want the grout to stay its intended color for aesthetic reasons. While many people might think that all grout is some variation of white and it doesn’t really matter what the color is, designers and contractors pick certain colors for a reason and keeping it clean will make sure that color stays true. Another reason is that it can be unhealthy to be exposed to the bacteria, mildew, and mold that builds up in dirty grout lines. If you have children or pets that spend a lot of time on their hands and knees then this is even more of a concern. A third reason to keep your grout looking like new is that it will help the resale value of your home. If I were comparing two home that were exactly alike except one had clean grout lines, that would tell me that the clean grout line house is better taken care of and therefore worth more.

In order to understand how to clean grout, you need to understand how it gets dirty. Grout is a porous substance and the dust and grime that starts out on the surface works its way down into the grout over time and more dirt falls on the surface. As time passes, the grime gets thicker and more difficult to remove. The deeper the dirt is and the more layers there are the harder it is for even professional strength grout cleaning machines to get the dirt out. That is why the most important grout cleaning tip is to clean your grout often. If you never give the dirt time to work its way down deep into the grout then you will never have to work very hard to get it out.

The next piece of information that you need if you are learning how to clean grout is that you always want to scrub in a circular motion. Most homeowners make the mistake of scrubbing along the grout lines in a back and forth motion. What they will soon realize is that as you move the brush forward, you dislodge dirt and grime, but then when you move the brush backward, that same dirt and grime gets pushed back into the grout. You are never really getting things clean. If you scrub in circular motions then the dirt gets pushed out the sides before you move along to another section of grout. If you are using a grout cleaning machine then this is less of an issue, because the brushes on the bottom of the machine almost always work with circular motions.

Now that you know the proper technique, the next step is know what the perfect variety of tile and grout cleaner is. If at all possible, you should use grout cleaners that come as pastes or foams rather than pure liquid ones. Liquid grout cleaners will run right off the grout and spread out all over the floor. This is not ideal because you want the grout cleaner to stay directly on the grout lines for as long as possible and foams and pastes can do this.

Once you have narrowed done the category of grout cleaner, you next should decide on the specific grout cleaning product that you are going to use. If you are still learning how to clean grout and are looking for bathroom cleaning tips like what chemical will work best for you then you need to start testing. Start with the gentlest product available and work your way up to the more toxic and harsh grout cleaning chemicals. Along the way, make sure to test your grout cleaning products on small out of the way sections of grout to make sure that the cleaner will not damage the grout or the tile.

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