Impending Planetary Extinction

My hoard-like supply of Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid, the All-Purpose Miracle Soap is dwindling. I'm down to a mere two bottles, down from three cases. It took me years to get through it. Obviously, I didn't buy enough.

A few weeks ago as I was shopping I came across a display of a new dish washing liquid. It's called Biokleen Natural Dish Liquid. "Biokleen"? I hate it when people change the spelling of words and make it sound like the fake substitute. Like when people in education-type businesses us "skool" instead of "school" which makes one wonder if they can spell. Toys R Us? What does this teach kids?

Of course, "Biokleen" reminds me of "Beau-line" (pronounced "bee-o-leen") which was the toxic make-up poisoning everyone in the latest Catwoman movie, so I wasn't impressed. It's made in my area which is nice as I think supporting local, American products is a good thing. Then I read the ingredients on the label...teeny, tiny print that no human could read without some kind of visual aid, in my case a magnifying glass provided by the co-op's customer service desk. Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Lauramine Oxide, Capryl Glucoside, Glycerin, Grapefruit Seed Extract, C10-15 Alcohols. The weird thing about all these unpronounceable words is after each is (plant-based...whatever) to make those words seems less toxic. I passed it up. My co-op is really good at not selling anything toxic so I wondered how this product got on the shelves? Is it not as toxic as one would think? Did the co-op not read the ingredients? Yeah, it was on sale for $3.99 which was slightly less than the Planet, but the ingredients just didn't set well with me.

My next trip to the store, knowing my cherished supply of Planet was on the verge of disappearing, I thought I should check the Planet display and see if they've changed the ingredients list or whatever. Again I passed the Biokleen display reminding me of their sale. Planet has changed their label, but the ingredients are the same. But the price!! The price is now $5.25 a bottle! When I first started buying Planet it was $3.25 a bottle. By the time I bought the cases it was up to $4.10 a bottle. Jeez. I should have purchased I life time supply!

Before I bought the bottle of Biokleen I unscrewed the cap and took a big whiff. No smell. Hmm. Maybe I should try it anyway? I didn't realize using it with hot water would make it STINK. There is no scent, it's a raw, chemical-like stink that makes me gag. Damn. Oh well!  I should have known.

I'm not sure what I'll do if the new Planet also smells, but for now I'm staying with Planet Ultra Dish Washing Liquid, the All-Purpose Over-Priced Soap.

Chemical sensitivity is expensive....

Entertainment, Part Two: Organic Gardening

Believe it or not, there are advantages to being chemically sensitive and one of them is being introduced to the world of chemically-free living and natural healing. Organic products become a priority when conventionally-grown, chemically-saturated food is the anti-Christ, but what is the guarantee the food in grocery stores is organic? In addition, the exorbitant prices of organics take some getting used to after a lifetime of cheap, chemically-grown food. What better way to be assured of quality control and to save some money than to grow your own!?

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would be a gardener. I grew up surrounded by agriculture and as a child being a farmer meant you failed at life. You didn't get out. I dreamed of living in a big city, being successful at some prestigious career, and making lots of money. If I had gardens, I'd have gardeners to work in them.

The highest score on my pre-college admission test was in agriculture. No way. I was horrified and convinced the test was flawed or someone scored it incorrectly. Besides if I'm supposed to be a farmer, why go to college? I associated gardening with dirty, uneducated, uncivilized people who hung around cows and pigs all day. I thought gardening would be my personal hell. Who would have known it would be so joyful and satisfying? 

Right about the time I became chemically sensitive, I developed a fascination with herbs, their medicinal value and medieval folklore. I didn't have the property to grow fresh produce, but I did have a patio. I'd start small.  Once I was ready to move into a house with a yard, I had grown a container garden totaling forty-three different herbs. I also knew I would be giving up my former city lifestyle and embracing country living, and gardening was at the top of my list of new adventures. I had no idea how to garden, but I was determined to learn.

Gardening is a no-brainer if one is apt to use chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, conventionally-grown starter plants and treated seeds. What could go wrong? Without chemicals, the gardening novice needs to learn the skills and knowledge that have been developed over centuries of experience and accumulated long before chemicals even appeared on the scene. This was my challenge. I was excited. 

So...stick a seed in some dirt, water it, and like magic, you've got food, right? Not hardly. My first misconception was I'd never have to shop at a grocery store for produce for the rest of my life. It was a rude awakening to find out if you plant in the spring, most of the veggies won't even be ready until August or September and then only for a couple weeks. Where's the fresh produce for the winter??? What about fall and spring, too? I haven't graduated to year round gardening, but it is limited anyway.

Before chemicals ruled the earth, there were a variety of food preservation methods used so meats, fruits and vegetables could be eaten year round: root cellar storage, drying, and canning, for instance. I canned my first couple years in the country and it was another new and wonderful experience. I loved seeing all the pretty glass jars on my shelves. Problem with canning is it's not fresh food! I hate canned food so I ended up giving most of it away. Then I found out the lid seals are made with the toxic chemical bisphenol A (BPA). Eewww....

This green thumb
 looks radioactive! HA!

The real challenge with organic gardening is making sure the plants live to maturity. There are all kinds of garden enemies to deal with: bugs, slugs, fungus, mold, scale, mildew, bacteria, moles, voles, raccoons, cats, deer, watering problems, weather issues, weeds, weeds, and more weeds. It's a war zone out there. Without chemical enhancements, you must find other ways to strengthen and protect the plants from their enemies. It's a science...well, yeah, botany, biology, and chemistry all rolled into one. But more importantly, it's a skill. A talent. Having a green thumb in organic gardening means you work very hard and have a whole brain full of tricks!

Here are brief summaries of some basic organic gardening tricks I discovered:

Companion Planting  Just like it sounds...some plants make good companions for other plants. They strengthen, support and often provide nutrients to each other that they wouldn't normally get on their own. Some plants protect other plants from insects or they attract good insects that will eat the bad insects attracted to their companion. On the other hand, some plants are not good companions and will stunt growth or steal nutrients. It's a system of allies and enemies.

I made all kinds of garden maps to keep it straight. Lots of work, but the planning was very exciting to me and I spend all winter preparing and rethinking strategies. Sorry the examples below were done in pencil so they are hard to see. Click on them for a better view.

Three Sisters Plan 2006

Front Yard Plan 2012

Some years I have strayed away from companion planting, but the years I stick with it I've had the healthiest and biggest plants. The first year I had a turnip the size of a soccer ball and the next year one of my beets won a blue ribbon for largest at the county fair!

This theory of gardening isn't conducive to the traditional row gardening one imagines. I had one acquaintance look at my first garden with the companion plants all intermixed with herbs and exclaim, "Well, I like my other friend's garden better. She has a real garden. One with rows." Gee, thanks, annoying acquaintance! Yes, rows are pretty, but not always smart.

Moon Planting  This is planting according to the moon phases. It's how farmers have been planting crops since the beginning of time. It is what we call in modern times The Farmers' Almanac. Now  instead of oral traditions passed down through generations, it's a bound book!

The basic theory of moon planting is seeds are sown or plants transplanted during the first three weeks of the moon phase (1st, 2nd, and 3rd quarters) depending on what kind of plant it is. Herbs are always grown or transplanted during the 1st quarter. It is believed during these phases the moon pulls at the earth's gravity assisting growth. Plants are then strengthened making it easier for them to resist diseases and pests. The fourth quarter is a bit of a anti-gravity time and this is when you would apply fertilizers, pest controls and weed. If you weed during the fourth quarter, the weeds don't come back! I don't know if this is true as I have so many weeds I can't tell, but I like the idea. It's like a fairytale. 

Ed Hume's Garden Almanac is available at most garden supply stores for about $1.79. It will have the calendar dates according to the current year's moon phases and tell you month by month, day by day exactly what to do and when.

Moon planting was really fun because people thought I was a little loony. I was always saying things like, "Oh, no, I can't do that now I have to wait until second quarter." "Oh, that would be best during first quarter, but only if you harvest during third quarter in Sagittarius." They'd laugh and shake their heads, but I enjoyed having knowledge that no one else seemed to have. Moon planting in combination with companion planting was extremely challenging. I have to admit, I still keep an eye on the dates, but I'm not as strict as I used to be.

Feeding and Fertilizing  There are all kinds of natural substances an organic gardener may use for fertilizing. Ashes from your fireplace will replenish potassium in the soil. Egg shells are good for potassium, too, but slugs love to eat them. Bone meal adds phosphorus. Winter cover crops such as crimson clover may be planted to replenish nitrogen.

Various manures are also very high in nitrogen. Chicken manure is the highest, but messy and smelly. Rabbit manure is second highest and also not "hot" so it can be used right away. The third best is horse manure, but pasture weed seeds infiltrating your soil is a hassle. Don't use cow manure because of e coli contamination.


I've been using rabbit manure for a few years, but only on certain plants. Although Peter is a very hard-working bunny, he really doesn't produce enough for a whole yard. Last fall I found a local rabbitry willing to unload what they had and I transported sixteen garbage cans of it into my gardens. Peter was NOT happy. I'm hoping for over-sized veggies this year! We'll see.

A trick I learned for transplanting is placing alfalfa pellets (rabbit or horse food) under the plants. They are very high in nitrogen and hold water well so the newly planted roots don't dry out. Just be aware of your raccoon population. One year I transplanted all my basil, went out the next morning and a whole family of raccoons pulled them all up to get at the pellets. Grrrrr....

Railroad Nails and Old Iron Nail

There are other little tricks one learns, for instance, tomatoes love iron. I happen to have some old railroad nails I bury in the ground next to each plant. I also grow all my indoor starts in egg shells for the calcium and potassium. I know someone who's husband is a fisherman and they supplement their gardens with fish heads and guts. She gets gigantic zucchini!

Pest Control     Companion planting and moon planting strengthen plants so they are better able to resist insect attacks, and many plants, herbs in particular, are pest deterrents.

My all-purpose, natural, home-made bug deterrent recipe is made with garlic, onions, cayenne pepper and Planet Dishwashing Liquid, the all-purpose miracle soap. I liquify the onions, garlic and cayenne in a blender with a lot of water. Let it sit in a bucket for a few days. Strain. Add soap. Spray on and around the plants.

Straining Bug Spray...Stinky!!

Always apply any kind of bug spray at night when the bees are not foraging and during the fourth quarter of the moon cycle. See also my post titled, "Pest Control" for more gardening and household pest control tips.

Finished Bug Spray...Lovely!

This is but a brief summary of organic gardening. If you would like more detail on anything in particular, just comment and I'll see what I can do. The Internet is also full of information and there are thousands of books on the subject.

Happy Gardening!

Pest Control

My neighbor is afraid of bugs so he has a professional pest control company spray his house down once a week. Can you imagine?  He seems to think over-spraying works, but his rationale makes no sense if he needs to spray constantly because the bugs keep coming back. I told him they were reproducing and creating giant, resistant mutants that can't be killed. Unfortunately, that makes him want to spray twice as often. I'm sure I gave him nightmares. Next time I'll tell him the chemicals will make his boy parts fall off....

I once lived in a basement apartment with giant spiders. The landlord seemed to have a bug fetish and wouldn't help, but what could he do that wouldn't kill me, too? Between August and October when the weather would change and spidey mating season would start, I'd see around 30 skittering over the floor in the course of the season. They were fast, ugly and BIG! About the size of my palm. I lived in fear and fear can be very motivating. The thing about bugs, they've been around forever so the trick is to find repellents that have been used since the beginning of time, back Before Chemicals (B.C.).

Actual Size

I read spiders don't like scent. Smart critters. Any scent. When I found this out I developed a new-found admiration for the creepy crawlies. The year I tried peppermint oil I saw only two spiders. It was nice - smelled like candy canes. My tolerance for essential oils has decreased since then and now I have to be careful with them as well, but I can spray  outside and under the house with no problem. Now I see maybe two spiders a year and they are of the small-ish variety.

Another miracle pest repellent is cayenne pepper. In the same apartment I had an ant infestation. They made an ant hill out in the garden and decided they liked my patio. The landlord loved ants, too. He was so incredibly useless.  So I started experimenting with various historical insect control methods. Finally I laid a line of cayenne pepper around my patio and they disappeared. Not much messes with cayenne.

I currently live near a river and when I first moved here everyone told me I'd eventually have rodents at some point. Feeling charitable toward wildlife,  I bought a bird feeder and started feeding the birds. What a mistake! The ratties were grateful and stored up a winter supply of bird feed. That winter I could hear them gnawing at my walls. It echoed through the house at night. Good lord, I felt helpless! I was so grateful they never got in the house, but they always sounded like they were within a half inch from breaking through. <shiver> Someone scared me to death and said they can nibble on the electrical wires and burn down a house.  I also read a rat shit is a theory for the cause of breast cancer. Jeez. I tried traps, but I'd find them triggered with the food gone. Poisons killed them off, but their dead bodies stunk up the house for three weeks  and a new tribe would move in the next week and continue the gnawing. Besides I'm opposed to poisons and with Peter running free I fear he'll somehow get into it and die a horrible death. If there is any way possible, I prefer to keep pests away rather than kill them. Even rats. So I started putting cayenne pepper around and under the house with the peppermint oil.  No more ratties! I go to Winco or Costco and buy it in bulk.

Actual Size

I lived in Arizona a few years back. It was the first time I'd ever seen a cockroach.  I swear it was the size of a cat. And friendly! It came skittering toward me one day, and stopped. I think it was waiting for me to feed it. When they skitter at night it sounds like they are tap dancing. Normally I would have been impressed. I tried everything to get rid of them. Yes, them...he brought the rest of his family. Finally I read boric acid does the trick, but you have to dust it lightly in corners because cockroaches are smart. And clean. They prim and wash themselves like cats. So when they walk in the boric acid dust, it gets on their little legs, they lick and die. Also, check to see where they are coming in: around sink drains, under counters and plug up any holes you find.  A construction trick down in Arizona is to put boric acid under the foundation. It'll kill anything including termites. The problem is you can't use it freely if you have pets or children. It'll kill them, too.

Garden pests are discouraged with things like soap (Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid, the All-Purpose Miracle Soap!), onion/garlic tea and cayenne pepper. I am very careful with these home remedies in the garden because I don't want it to chase the good bugs away so I don't do too much.  Companion planting keeps the plants strong so they can resist invaders on their own and there are some plants that deter bugs so I grow them around plants that need extra protection.  

Slugs...Why did the universe make slugs? I don't see their purpose in the grand scheme of things. I've tried salt, beer, copper, garlic, tomato leaves, pine needles, killing them by hand with a sharp instrument, drowning them in water, and talking sweetly to the snakes and black beetles so they stay in my yard and eat them. I almost got some ducks then decided the ducks would cause more damage than the slugs. It was a full-time job. Finally someone told me about Sluggo which is iron phosphate and supposedly certified organic. It works quite well.

For aphids, if there aren't enough ladybugs or ants helping out, I've used Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid, the All-Purpose Miracle Soap. Most bugs don't like soap as it suffocates them and Planet is scent-free so it's not going to suffocate me. Also, aphids don't like chives so grow chives around your rose bushes.

I have a rabbit and I've read wild rabbits that will move into your yard and destroy your grass and plants won't go near cayenne pepper. I thought I'd try it so if I wanted to keep Peter out of a particular garden, this might work. Fifteen minutes after I applied it, I found bunny boy sitting in it. Maybe Peter is just a goof ball? His eyes did get watery, but it doesn't seem to faze him. Maybe it gives him a thrill? Rabbit masturbation?

I used to love cats, then I moved where over-breeding is an epidemic. Many of the neighbors have cats that breed incessantly, and the litters from the previous season all have their own kittens. One house nearby has a minimum of eighteen new kittens every spring and they do nothing to control it.

You know cats don't crap in their own yards - they go to the neighbors'. I have vegetable gardens and nothing disgusts me more than the thought of eating food grown in parasite-contaminated cat shit. Pregnant women are advised not to garden unless they want to give birth to brain-dead babies because of these parasites. And then there is the smell and mess. UGH! Be sure to always wear gloves while gardening. I sometimes catch cats sleeping in my bunny's sleeping places which is incredibly irritating since the rabbit can't find many other rest places. Damn free-loading cats giving my bunny fleas and worms!

Cat from Hell

I've tried nearly everything: cayenne, lemon peel, boric acid, peppermint oil.  Two of my neighbors trap cats and "take them away"; another traps and then douses them with cold water. The other neighbor shoots them. Her rule is if they are walking through the yard she uses a bb gun; if they are crapping, a shot gun. I really don't understand cat owners who allow their cats to roam. Besides the cats that spread disease to wildlife (and pet bunnies), they are also subjected to wildlife diseases. Not caring for your cat properly is so irresponsible, but people don't care. It's disgusting. Again, I prefer to keep the pests away than kill them. The only remedy I've found that works for cats is chicken wire and deer netting, but that gives my yard a certain concentration camp look that I don't enjoy. Oh, well.

Anti-Cat Concentration Camp Decor

For people pests, see my post titled, "Home Invasions".

Anyone have any other chemical-free tricks?

Alternative Beauty Products

If housecleaning isn't enough to overload women, then add an overabundance of beauty products. That should do the trick! What I don't understand is why are women expected to use cosmetics and men aren't? The male of every other species is the one that has the fancy plumage or attention-getting dances for mating. And with the feminist movement of the 1970s, why do women STILL feel the need to go to outlandish effort to attract a man? It should be the other way around. My neighbor's husband used to make her wash her hands with bleach. Hmmmm...she's had cancer three times.

Mary's goat

Soap Mary's Milk Monsters soap is my favorite. It does have sodium hydroxide (lye/caustic soda) which is the basic ingredient of old-fashioned soap, but little else in the way of poison. It is rare that I can find an unscented soap that doesn't give me grief. It is sold by Mary who is the cutest little goat wrangler I've ever seen in my life. She looks like a fairytale character. Mary and her mother sell goat milk products at a local farmers' market. You can even get a soap that is vegan without the goat milk, but Mary claims the goat milk makes your skin smooth. She's so adorable. See her blog to the right on my blog list.

Shampoo  Planet Dishwashing Liquid, the all-purpose miracle soap! Another option is aluminum-free baking soda. Put about 1/2 cup of baking soda in a small bowl with just enough water to make a paste. Wet your hair, apply soda paste, scrub through, rinse. I do an extra rinse with vinegar water. When I first read about this on a minimalist blog I didn't think it would work very well, but this is what was used for centuries before fancy products replaced it. Your hair comes out squeaky clean.

I wash my hair about once every three weeks. I'm sure to some that is unimaginable! When I was in high school I read an article in Glamour magazine about a girl who quit washing her hair because she was having skin issues. She said it made her crazy for a week and then all was fine. Since she wasn't stripping it every day with harsh chemicals, it grew full and healthy. It was as if her body balanced itself and all the oily greasiness went away along with her skin problems! That left a huge impression on me for the rest of my life although it took becoming chemically sensitive to stop washing my hair so much.

Me (London, 1979)

Hair conditioner  Organic coconut oil. Just a tiny bit. When it's not on my hair or skin, it's in the frying pan.

Beauty Parlor and Hair Styling I cut my own hair in my bathroom. It's short so I don't even have to use a blow dryer anymore. No poofing or lacquering short hair either. I've heard if you want to sculpt your hair, use whipped up egg whites. That's what British punk rockers used to get their long hair to stand straight up. Homemade mousse.

Make-Up  Zilch.  On occasion I use Nanak's Lip Smoothee for chap stick. Does that count as make-up? I don't think so. Nanak's has Vitamin E in it. I recently read Vitamin E is made with gluten and if you are on a gluten-free diet (which I am) you shouldn't even wear make-up with gluten. Nearly all cosmetics and lotions have Vitamin E as an ingredient. We are a vitamin-crazed society and manufacturer's think if they put that on the label, people associate it with health. Another marketing ploy by the money-makers.

Moisturizer/Lotion/Suntan Lotion  Coconut oil. Makes me feel like I'm on a Hawaiian beach. I don't use moisturizers often since I don't wear cosmetics so I don't use harsh soaps to scrub off the first layer of skin to get the chemicals off.

Aloha!

Deodorant  Vinegar for smell, baking soda for wetness. I've tried some non-toxic deodorants and none of them work as well as vinegar and baking soda.

Bath water conditioning  Sometimes I put vinegar in my bath. The acid is good for your skin. Sometimes I put Epsom salts in my bath. Both are good for muscle pains. (Note: After years of vinegar baths I'm noticing my bathtub finish is wearing thin. From the vinegar? Maybe....this is a warning.)

Toothpaste  I use a toothbrush and water, and I floss every day. Once a week or so I brush with baking soda for a scrub. Toothpaste is loaded with chemicals: fluoride, whiteners, dyes, flavorings, preservatives,  and SUGAR! It used to be camouflaged as sucrose in hopes stupid consumers wouldn't recognize it. How many people look at ingredients labels on a tube of toothpaste?  I'm constantly baffled by the lack of common sense. Or was this a ploy by the American Dental Association to guarantee returning patients? Lately manufacturers have been replacing sugar with sorbitol and saccharin. Are those any safer in my mouth? No.

My old dentist used to always ask if I drank coffee or tea. I didn't. When I stopped using toothpaste, the plaque build-up decreased.  Now I only go to the dentist about once every five years because it's hard to find one that doesn't stink and I like to avoid being radiated so often.  They love to radiate! $$ I also refuse tooth polish with flavored chemicals. Like the AMA, dentists can get really testy if you aren't spending money like a normal American.

Some people use soap. Another use for Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid, the miracle soap? Eeewww! That's where I draw the line. The childhood threat of getting your mouth washed out with soap still haunts me.

If you haven't seen The Story of Cosmetics, check it out: http://storyofcosmetics.org Very cute and informative.

And that's a savings of... Getting rid of cosmetics, make-up removers, make-up tools, shampoos, conditioners, hair gel, hair mousse, hair dyes, hair bleaches, hair appliances, hair accessories, toothpaste, mouthwash, deodorant, Ivory soap, bath oil beads, bubble bath, lotions, fingernail polish, and fingernail polish remover and I can afford to buy quality, organic food!

Alternative Cleaning Products

Women are statistically more often afflicted with chemical sensitivity because of our traditional roles as house cleaners. Because of this social history, we have been and still are exposed to some of the most toxic chemicals on the planet. I, personally, would like a new role.



I'd rather be an heiress.

Laundry  I am laundry-impaired. Always have been. Unfortunately, unless I win the Lotto someday, doing laundry is a lifestyle requirement I haven't be able to ignore. I use Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid for soap. It bubbles too much so I am careful not to put too much in the washer. Planet laundry detergent makes me wheeze so it's OUT. 


Vinegar is added for germ killing and dye setting with dark clothes, and hydrogen peroxide for germ killing with light clothes.

Borax is used for really dirty stuff, but nothing that I have to wear or sleep on as it's too strong.

Every now and then I use bleach for whites. Because I dislike dull, dingy whites and laundresses needs to use bleach to get them bright, I have few whites in my life. To use bleach, I need to seal off the laundry room, open the windows and wash the load. Then wash it again without bleach two or three times more to get the stink out. (UPDATE: NEW DISCOVERY: Vinegar neutralizes bleach. During the rinse cycle, put on a mask, open the washing machine and dump in about 1/4 gallon of vinegar. Whites come out white without any bleach smell! Same if you inadvertently get bleach on your hands while adding it - wash them in vinegar.)  I've tried hydrogen peroxide for bleach - it's never worked for me, but again, I'm cursed when it comes to laundry skills so maybe it was just me.

I did recently discover ammonia. I guess you are supposed to use it for oils instead of bleach. Am I the only one that didn't know this? As long as I wear a mask, seal the room off, open the windows, I'm fine with ammonia and the smell is gone by the end of the rinse so unlike bleach, I don't have to do multiple washings.  (Ammonia is also used to excite a compost pile into faster composting.)

No dryers here. They damage clothes and waste electricity.

Buying anything new involves washing it multiple times before it's worn. Sheets or other bedding I must wash a minimum of ten times before I can go near them let alone sleep with them due to the formaldehyde and other chemicals manufacturers use to deter mildew in storage.  I opt for organic products whenever possible, but they are very expensive. Most bedding I get is from estate sales, brand new, still in the package, for $3 to $10. Hard to pass up. This is how I end up with whites or dark colors and need to figure out how to wash them safely.

I also avoid buying anything from China as products from China tend to be over treated with chemicals. I never buy synthetic fabrics which are made from petrochemicals. Just the feel of synthetics make me cringe and they always need fabric softener or fabric sheets to stop static electricity and that horrid cling. <shiver>  I stick with mostly cottons and wools, organic if I can find it.



The All-Purpose Miracle Soap

Oven Cleaner Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid, sometimes non-aluminum baking soda, always a pumice scouring stick that gets off any baked on gunk.

Car Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid. It's environmentally safe.



Toilets Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid and Borax. For a good scrubbing or  iron stain removal, I use a pumice scouring stick.


Baths and Showers Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid for bubble scrubbing, vinegar to kill any residue, germs and mildew. (Don't use vinegar on marble - it eats it.)


Windows Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid to scrub off dirt and grime, then hot water and a little bit of vinegar for rinsing. Wipe dry with a rag.

Dishes I use Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid for basic bubbly soap and aluminum-free baking soda or scouring pads for scrubbing.

Carpets I don't have toxic carpets, only wood and tile floors and cotton throw rugs. But on occasion I rent one of those carpet cleaners and do furniture or the carpeting inside my van. I use SafeChoice Carpet Shampoo which is chemical free and odorless. I bought two gallons of this stuff two years ago and I've only gone through a half a gallon so far. First, I rinse out the rental cleaner with vinegar and water. Then I add some shampoo, turn it on, and wash nothing as I flush out residue left from the chemical shampoo. When I think it's properly cleaned and rinsed, I add the SafeChoice shampoo like normal and shampoo. If I ever run out of this stuff, guess what I'll be using? Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid. :)

Floors Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid and peppermint oil with a bucket and a scrub brush. Then I rinse and polish with a towel. I can tolerate small doses of peppermint oil. I use it because spiders hate it and I hate spiders.

No spiders...

Deodorizers and Air Fresheners These products are so incredibly toxic I don't know how anyone tolerates them. Instead of chemicals, I boil some cinnamon or cloves in a pan and everything smells like cinnamon rolls. When I have spider-treated my house with peppermint oil, people say it smells wonderful, but I don't tolerate essential oils much so I avoid using them. Although essential oils are professed to be "natural", jacking up a smell five million times its natural scent is anything but natural. I also use non-aluminum baking soda in a bowl to suck up smells, vinegar in a bowl to rid a room of paint fumes, and freshly ground coffee beans for other, more serious offgassing issues.

Wood Polish I don't have a lot of bare wood in my house, but I have used olive oil and coconut oil on furniture and wooden things. I read that's what was used in history.

My personal stash....

I love Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid. It's the only soap-like product I can tolerate. I emailed the company and told them how much I loved it and they mailed me coupons. It is expensive, and will cost you anywhere from $3.99 to $4.15 a bottle. I wait until it's on sale at $2.99, buy a case, and get another 10% off the whole lot. I also use Planet to wash wounds and kill garden pests!

So...how many different products does one really need to clean?  If you eliminate Pinesol, Lysol, Windex, Tidy Bowl, Mr. Clean, Easy Off, Shout, Comet, Dawn, Pledge, Ajax, Downy, Fabreze, Glade, Renuzit, Bounce, and Tide (I can't even do unscented Tide - it stinks!),  how much poisonous exposure would you avoid per day? How much money would you save? Probably enough to splurge for some organic food!