Toxicfree kitchen- part 2

Last Wednesday we took a tour of a toxic-free kitchen and discussed getting rid of mixes for bread products. This time: cleaners.

Chemistry

Yeah, I know. This is supposed to be about homemaking, not science. The truth is, though, it's the same thing. 

Do you remember the alkaline-to-acid scale? Water is neutral and everything else falls somewhere along the line from 1 (acid) to 14 (alkaline). Opposite ends of the scale render each other neutral and ineffective, easy to rinse off.

Most dirt (body oils, food, grease) is, in fact, mildly acidic. So most cleaners are mildly alkaline or neutral (detergents and soaps). 

Hard water deposits, toilet stains, coffee, tea, and rust are alkaline, requiring an acidic cleaner.

So basically, you need a neutral-mildly alkaline cleaner and an acid ("heavy-duty") cleaner of some sort to do the cleaning in your house. 

Now what you buy all bottled up in the store has all sorts of perfumes and colors added to make you like them better than the competitor. Unfortunately, many people (including some of my children) are allergic to these.

No problem! The manufacturers make hypo-allergenic versions just for us (which they charge extra for for not putting those chemicals in, of course). 

They also use what amounts to very close to the same chemicals with a minor variation in strength/dilutions and perfumes and slap different labels on them (bathroom, all-purpose, kitchen, disinfectant, etc). They all really boil down to that acid-alkaline scale, though.

So let's come up with our own versions that are cheaper, safer, and less toxic to our families.

Scaly Placements

Acids

• Vinegar
• Lemon Juice
• Body fluids
• Grease
• Most Foods
• Most Dirt

Alkalines

• Bath soap
• Baking soda
• Washing soda
• Borax 
• Coffee
• Tea
• Hard water

Use opposites to neutralize each other and them you can just wash them off.

Alkaline Cleaner

I am starting by dissolving a bar of Ivory soap in a quart jar. I have always had to be careful about soaps we use for Hubby (He is where the kids inherit their allergies from.) We have never used anything but Ivory (a pretty pure soap. Few perfumes and no colors) in the bath and I know none of us are allergic to it. From this I will make some basic, All Purpose Cleaners (theoretically);

• Dish soap
• Window cleaner
• Laundry soap
• Cleaner for fingerprints, etc.
• Shampoo

I'll work on these first.
Someday, I intend to try to make my own soap from scratch, but I'm not waiting to get around to that before changing our harsher, more toxic cleaners.

Eventually, I'll need some sort of acid cleaner (vinegar +?), but one thing at a time:-)

12 Things to do with 1 bar of soap