Making your own green household cleaners is an environmentally-friendly practice that can save you money. Here are a few ideas for getting started.

Green Furniture Polish: According to The Sideroad, you can add an all-natural shine to wood furniture such as end tables, bookcases and dining room sets by filling a spray bottle with 1 cup of vegetable oil with 1/2 cup of lemon juice . Here’s another green furniture polish recipe from Green Guide.

Green Dishwasher Detergent: For a family of 4, it’s not uncommon to run the dishwasher twice a day. Here’s a green dishwasher detergent recipe from Suite 101. Simply add a tablespoon of super washing soda and a tablespoon of 20 Mule Team Borax to the soap dispenser in your dishwasher. Add vinegar to the rinse compartment for streak-free dishes.

While checking out Clorox Green Works products on yesterday,  I was surprised that the collection of green household cleaners does not include a green laundry detergent, so I went in search of one.  I’m going to try this one, ECOS laundry liquid.  According to The Good Steward, ECOS laundry soap provides better performance than other green laundry detergents.  ECOS natural laundry soap is highly concentrated, and a large load of laundry requires only 2 ounces of the product.  The ingredient list, found at The Good Steward, sounds amazingly natural, and includes chamomile, coconut, and essential oils from magnolia and lilies. ECOS green laundry detergent is non-polluting,biodegradable and non-toxic.  This environmentally friendly laundry detergent also has a neutral Ph which is ideal for those who have problems with allergies.   

Green cleaning products seem to have finally hit mainstream markets such as Wal-Mart and chain grocery stores with the introduction of Clorox Green Works™ line of green household cleaning products.  The Green Works™  cleaning products collection includes environmentally friendly all purpose spray cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, a dilutable cleaner for use on floors and countertops, a bathroom spray cleaner and a glass cleaner. 

According to Clorox, the entire line of green cleaning supplies is made from 99% all-natural ingredients including lemon, coconut, glycerin and filtered water.  The company has plans to add environmentally friendly dish soap to the Green Works™ line of cleaning products.  I’m going to pick up some of these green household cleaners next time I do some shopping to see how they hold up against my family’s messier than average household!