How To Green Your Cleaning Routine

In some form or another, we all clean every day. For most of us, that involves products. We touch the soaps, we inhale the fumes. And who knows how long the chemicals stay on the surfaces in our homes, and in the waterways outside. More and more people are asking how we can clean in a safe, responsible way. We feel biological products are the ultimate green products. Here’s why.

What makes biological cleaning products better than conventional products?

  1. Biological cleaning is intelligent.

A good biological cleaning product incorporates indigenous, clean bacteria in spore form. As soon as the product gets sprayed onto a dirty surface, the spore senses the presence of food and wakes up. It then produces exactly the enzymes needed to digest that food, eats the food and dies. You are left with a surface that was cleaned more intelligently than any soap could do.

  1. Biological cleaning uses less chemicals.

Because the microbes do most of the work, less chemicals are needed in the product. A good biological cleaner will therefore be soft on hands and cause less allergies, and do less damage as it is released into water treatment systems and eventually rivers.

  1. Biological cleaning kills only what should be killed.

You have heard how indiscriminate use of antibiotics is actually breeding superbugs. There is a general move away from killing all bacteria, towards killing only deadly ones, while nurturing the multitudes of beneficial strains. Biological cleaning works on this principle of teaming up with the life that is already in, on and around us. A good biological soap will therefore contain no biocidal chemical, which means it is also safe for the environment!

Other than choosing a good biological range of cleaning products, what can you do to make your cleaning regime more green?

  • Microfiber and water goes a long way.

Water is nature’s universal solvent, and you nearly always have it available. Paired with microfiber you can clean just about anything. Launder your cloth properly, dry it in the sun and it will last for years, reducing plastic in the landfill.

  • Throw out anything that says antibacterial.

Unless you are a surgeon, you do not need sterile hands. Hands covered in colonies of good microbes are actually your first defence against germs. Also, triclosan and the rest is not healthy for you or the environment.

  • Use all natural sponges, and choose refillable soap containers.

Say no to single use plastic. Loofah is a gourd that grows on vines, and when dried works wonderfully for scrubbing the shower and washing dishes. When choosing detergents, look for strong containers where refills are available. Dumping a used dish soap bottle in the rubbish every month simply does not make sense!

Why Use Concentrates?

Many people ask me why we have 50ml concentrates and 5l concentrates for FLOOR, SURFACE and MIGHTY.

The small amber bottle is the 50ml concentrate, and the large red bottle is the 5l concentrate.

The short answer is: it is more economical! It also reduces the carbon footprint of our product’s whole life cycle.

Cost effective for you

The recommended dilution ratio is 1:14. That means one 50ml concentrate refills the 700ml spray bottle once, and the 5l concentrate refills the 700ml spray bottle a whopping 100 times! Consider: to buy a spray bottle filled with Ready To Use (RTU) soap, costs you R70. When you refill from the 50ml concentrate it costs you R35 for the same bottle. When you refill from the 5l concentrate it costs you R19 for the same bottle! That’s a saving of more than 70%.

Cost effective to transport

We try to ensure that the whole life cycle of our product has a low impact on the environment. The 5l concentrate makes 70l RTU soap. To transport 5l soap instead of 70l soap saves space and weight in vehicles, so less petrol and less fumes.

Space saving in your home

The 5l concentrate makes 70l strong soap but takes up the space of 5l. That’s a huge space saving under the sink!

You choose the strength

This is an unforeseen advantage that our clients alerted us to. When you buy a concentrate, you can dilute as much or as little as you like. If the job is especially tough, you could dilute 1:5 for example and have a super strong soap. It’s really up to you!

It makes refilling easy

Refilling your empty used containers from a 5l concentrate becomes a breeze when you add one of our large pumps. Every squirt of the pump dispenses 30ml soap. So two squirts into your empty spray bottle, with water added, and you’re done!

The 50ml concentrate is even easier – empty the entire concentrate bottle into the spray bottle and add water! Please remember that we do accept empty concentrate bottles back – just arrange with us. That way you never throw anything out!

And why do we not offer concentrates on the other products like HAND, BODY and DISH? Because these products are too thick already – they would be very difficult to use in concentrated form.

I would positively LOVE to hear your take on our concentrates. What is your favourite use for them?

 

Ses Nommer-Nipper Aanlyn Geskenkidees

Hoekom ek ‘n lysie  van nommer nipper geskenkidees moes maak

Ek is altyd laat. Ek besef dis erg. Dis verskriklik. Dit wys vir ander jy respekteer nie hulle tyd nie. Dit maak jou man kwaad. Dit maak dat jy altyd ‘n bietjie windverwaaid op ‘n plek aankom. Dis aaklig.

Maar jy kry darem daai laaste bondel wasgoed in die masjien…

Ek moes veertig word voor ek kon verstaan hoekom ek altyd laat is: ek haat rondsit. Jy wat my ken sal weet ek hou van doeltreffendheid (efficiency, man). Om tien minute in die teater te sit en wag vir die konsert, is super ondoeltreffend (so loop die gesprek onbewus in my kop). Dis sieldodend. Jy kry niks uitgerig nie, en dit terwyl die huis wat jy so lank gelede agtergelaat het, op sy kop staan. Jy kon net sowel tien minute later gery het en nog ‘n bietjie skoongemaak het! So daarom maak ek nog ‘n bietjie skoon, ry vyftien minute later en kom laat aan. Elke. Liewe. Keer. Daar ken jy nou een van my groot karakterfoute.

Alweer laat

So hier is ons, drie slapies voor Oukersaand en vier slapies voor Kersdag. En ek het nog nie geskenke vir almal nie. Ek is laat.

In plaas daarvan om by Crazy Store in te storm, het ek aanlyn rondgesnuffel vir geskenke wat onmiddelik opdaag. Die wonderlike ding van kitsaanlyngeskenke is dat dit gewoonlik nul vullis is (zero waste, man).

En omdat ek nie kan glo dat ek die enigste een is wat laat is nie, deel ek graag my vondse met jou. Terloops, niemand betaal my niks hiervoor nie.

Ses nommer nipper geskenkidees wat sommer ook nul vullis is

1. Teken haar in op ‘n lekker tydskrif

Wie hou nie daarvan om op die rusbank/langs die swembad te le met ‘n pragtige tydskrif nie? Betaal die intekenfooi namens jou vriendin en siedaar! Jou Kersgeskenk word elke maand afgelaai by jou vriendin se huis, en sy sal ‘n jaar lank dankbaar wees. As jy regtig ernstig is oor nul vullis kan jy natuurlik ook die digitale weergawe kies. Vir tussen R360 (digitale weergawe) en R480 (drukweergawe) kan jy ‘n tydskrif uitkies waarvan sy sal hou. Ons is mal oor Weg! Platteland. En hierdie maand se somerkersfeesartikel in LIG was pragtig (plus hulle gee tans 40% afslag op die intekenfooi).

2. Maak haar ‘n Friend of the National Zoo

Pretoria het ‘n fantastiese dieretuin. Ons kinders kan nie genoeg kry van die dieretuin nie. Dit is reusagtig, dis oud, en elke keer wat ‘n mens gaan is die atmosfeer anders omdat dit buite is. As jy vir ‘n spesiale kind (R125) of selfs ‘n gesinnetjie (R300) betaal om Friends of the National Zoo te word, kry hulle afslag op die gereelde Fun Walks wat ‘n 5km vroegoggendstappie deur die dieretuin is. Hulle kan ook tweemaal verniet ingaan by die dieretuin! Gee ‘n ervaring eerder as ‘n ding. En watter beter ervaring as die dieretuin?

3. Koop haar ‘n Wild Card

As jou vriendin nie in Pretoria woon nie of die dieretuin nou al genoeg gesien het, kan jy die ervaring wat jy gee aansienlik opgradeer na ‘n Wild Card. Dis nou ‘n geskenk. Dis beslis die goedkoopste manier om Suid-Afrika se fantastiese parke te verken. Jy sal vir tussen R640 en R1300 regkom, afhangende van watter kluster jy kies en of dit vir een mens, ‘n paartjie of ‘n gesinnetjie is. Jou vriendin sal vir ‘n jaar alle deelnemende parke in die kluster verniet kan besoek as dagbesoeker. Sy sal boon-op afslag kry op verblyf, ingeteken word vir die WILD tydskrif en verwittig word van eksklusiewe promosies en kompetisies.

Kyk net hoe baie parke het ons eintlik in Suid-Afrika!
Wild Card klusters

4. Sluit haar aan by die Botanical Society

Hoekom?! vra jy.  Sodat sy vir die hele jaar verniet by al tien SANBI Nasionale Botaniese Tuine in Suid-Afrika kan ingaan! Ja, ons het tien Nasionale Botaniese Tuine: Kirstenbosch (Kaapstad), Harold Porter (Bettiesbaai), Karoo Desert (Worcester), KwaZulu-Natal (Pietermaritzburg), Vrystaat (Bloemfontein), Laeveld (Nelspruit), Pretoria, Hantam (Nieuwoudtville), Walter Sisulu (Krugersdorp) en Kwalera (Oos-Kaap). Ons gesin sou ons elke Sondag op Pretoria se Botaniese Tuine se grasperk gaan neervly het as dit nie geld gekos het nie. Om van die broeipaar witkruisarende by Walter Sisulu nie te praat nie! Vir tussen R500 en R900 (afhangende van enkel- of gesinslidmaatskap) kan jou vriendin vir een jaar enige tyd verniet ingaan by enige tuin, en sy sal ook ingeteken word op die oulike tydskrif Veld & Flora.

5. Koop haar ‘n geskenkaart

Ek sal altyd ‘n iTunes geskenkkaart met ope arms verwelkom! Jy kan boeke, films, musiek of apps koop. Hoe nul vullis is dit? Hoe luuks? En hoe kits?! Gaan na jou iTunes account, kies die Store tab regs bo (as jy dit van die desk top af doen) of die Send Gift knoppie heel, heel onder (as jy dit van die iTunes app op jou foon doen). Vul jou vriendin se eposadres in, skryf ‘n boodskap en kies ‘n bedrag!

Kies die store tab regs bo en jy kry hierdie skerm.
iTunes op my desktop

En dan moet ek darem ook ons eie Mrs Martin’s gift cards noem want miskien weet jy nie eers dat jy intelligente, verantwoordelike, veilige seep aan jou vriendin per epos kan stuur nie!!

Geseende Kersfees!

Ek hoop jy geniet jou aanlyn inkopies. En nog meer as dit: geniet ‘n rustige, geseende Kersfees.

 

 

Ons Maak Self Huis Skoon, En Dis Nie Vir Sissies Nie

Martin en ek en ons drie kinders maak self ons huis skoon. Ons het nie hulp nie.

‘n Dekade gelede sou dit baie vreemd gewees het vir ‘n middelklas wit familie om self in die huis te werk. Ek het al vertel hoe ek na matriek die eerste keer vloer gewas het. Skoonmaak (en veral hoe die bediende nie daarin slaag nie) was in die ou dae ‘n ding waaroor Ma met Tannie Martie oor die muur staan en gesels het. Niemand anders in die huis het tweemaal daaraan gedink nie…(behalwe natuurlik as die bediende die dag nie opgedaag het nie!)

Maar gelukkig het die lewe ‘n manier om mens wakker te skud. My twee sussies was o, so verontwaardig jare gelede toe hulle in Skotland ‘n gapjaar gaan vat, en ‘n ander tiener se bed moes opmaak! Terwyl genoemde tiener haarself voor die TV uitvlei, moes my sus nederig vra dat sy haar bene optel sodat sy die mat kon suig. Volle sirkel.

Ek kry die gevoel dat al hoe meer Suid-Afrikaanse gesinne vandag ‘kies’ om self skoon te maak.

My oudste maak die stoof skoon

Óns kies dit beslis nie omdat ons wil snaaks wees of omdat ons so mal is oor huisskoonmaak nie, hoor! Ons het ander redes.

Sizakele was die beste

Sizakele was deel van die gesin.

 

Sy was skaam maar uiters betroubaar.

Vir jare het ons die beste huishulp op aarde gehad. Sizakele se hand het vir niks verkeerd gestaan nie. Sy was my kinders se mamcane. En my beste vriendin – nie net omdat sy my so ongelooflik gehelp het in die huis en my werk by die skool moontlik gemaak het nie, maar ook omdat sy so baie goed soos ek gesien het. Maar met ons groot omwenteling byna twee jaar gelede, moes ons Sizakele groet. Oor die trane wil ek nie hier praat nie. Se maar net daar was geen lus in my om ‘n nuwe huishulp te soek nie. Niemand kon haar ooit ‘vervang’ nie, het ons gevoel.

Ook kan ons eintlik nie ‘n huishulp bekostig nie. Enigeen wat wetsgehoorsaam wil wees en ‘n gemiddelde inkomste het, sal weet wat ek bedoel.

Ons wil ons kinders iets leer

En ons wil graag ons kinders leer om verantwoordelikheid te neem vir hulle eie gemorse. ‘n Mens leef nogal anders as jy weet jy gaan self skoonmaak waar jy vuilgemaak het. Jy drink jou tweede koffie uit net-nou se koppie, en koop minder ‘stuff’ wat rondsit en afgestof moet word. Self skoonmaak dwing jou om te dink oor wat jy doen, en ons hou daarvan.

Laastens voel ons sterk daaroor dat skoonmaak ‘n vaardigheid is wat mens eendag op ‘n heel konkrete manier kan help.

  • Dit kan jou gemoed oplig. ‘n Opgemaakte bed is belangriker vir ‘n suksesvolle dag as wat mens besef. Om soggens in ‘n skoon kombuis in te stap gee jou sommer krag vir die dag.
  • Dit kan jou geld spaar. Jou huis moet skoongemaak word. As jy dit self doen, kan jy die geld op ‘n motorpaaiement spandeer!
  • Dit kan selfs vir jou geld inbring, as jy daarvan n besigheid maak. Ons lewe van mattewas en seep verkoop!

En dis nie vir sissies nie

Dit het maande geneem om gewoond te raak daaraan dat Sizakele nie meer ongemerk alles gaan regmaak wat in die huis verkeerd staan nie. Om te besef, ‘the buck stops here’. Daar is eenvoudig geen engel meer nie. As ek die besmeerde eierpan van ontbyt op die stoof los om ‘n klient se oproep te antwoord, bly hy daar tot vanmiddag 13:00 wanneer ek weer in die kombuis instorm om ‘n volgende ete reg te kry. Ek kon die wasgoed nog skoon kry, maar gestryk? Chaos loer gedurig om die hoekie.

Hoe ons kop bo water hou, vertel ek volgende keer.

Foam Does Not Clean; Soap Does

My dad used to say that hardworking people leave the dishes for later. “We lazy ones,” he would say to us four siblings every Sunday, “do them straight away because then it is still easy. You do not need to scrub that much.” With vigour all of us would then roll up our sleeves and get stuck into the pile, while Mom would read a book… for a change. It was a clever bit of child psychology. And it worked. Amused by our own laziness we gleefully washed, rinsed and dried everything up to the last fork.

Dishwashing is a part of every home and it has taught me valuable lessons.

Lesson 1: When something looks like a mountain, start climbing

It has taught me that when something looks like a mountain, the best thing to do is to start climbing. Where do you start climbing? At the bottom. You take that first step and you don’t stop till you are at the top! Well, with dishes of course it goes the other way around: you take the item at the top of the pile and don’t stop till you’re at the bottom. But it is the same principle. Don’t involve your mind too much. Just force your hands to get going.

View from the top of the mountain

Lesson 2: Your sister washes dishes differently – and that’s fine

Forward twenty years and my sister and I find ourselves together in a kitchen, washing dishes again. While we are chatting I see, from the corner of my eye, my sister taking a plate instead of a glass. I am about to open my older-sister mouth to say, “You can’t wash plates before glasses! Pull yourself together!” when it hits me: different people do things differently and in most spheres, it really does not matter. Let another girl wash dishes in another way if she wants to! It really is of no consequence. To be clear: I do NOT believe that everything is relative. I DO believe there are issues in life you need to get right. But dishwashing is certainly, certainly not one of them! So I bit my tongue, carried on chatting and went away feeling like my eyes had been opened.

Scourer? Sponge? Cloth? Each one washes dishes differently.

Lesson 3: Foam is not important for cleaning

I also learned that hot water is more important than foam when cleaning things. Our DISH is low foam because we do not add phosphates or ammonia. These chemicals are added to some soaps to make more suds, because consumers want foam. But they have no other function. And these chemicals cause eutrophication of rivers and lakes and that is bad, so we choose to leave it out.

If you find it hard to believe that foam has nothing to do with how well soap cleans, think about your dishwasher tablets.  Ever thought why you cannot use regular dishwashing soap in your dishwasher? It foams too much. You have to buy special tablets that do not foam, for the dishwasher. And yet the dishes come out clean!

Our DISH does foam. Just not as much as you might be used to. But I am very confident is cleans perfectly well, for two reasons: I have been using it for over a year myself, and we have lab test results saying so. If you crave a lather, feel free to use more soap. But it is not necessary.

Have a lovely Worker’s Day!

(P.S. because our DISH is low foam you can try it in your dishwasher. I find it is not harsh enough to get hard food off dishes every time, but in an emergency it certainly works!)

 

 

What Is The Difference Between MIGHTY And SURFACE?

I have been asked this question several times. I do understand: SURFACE sounds like it cleans all surfaces…. so what is left for MIGHTY to clean?

The short answer is: the really greasy areas such as the braai and the oven. And perhaps the stove top after you’ve fried fish. You get the idea. MIGHTY is a degreaser, SURFACE is a cleaner.

This is the strong one. You probably don’t need it every day.

Ingredients

To understand why we offer different kinds of detergent, let’s talk ingredients. In line with our aim to clean responsibly, none of our products contain any of these ‘dirty’ ingredients:

Chlorine bleach
Triclosan
EDTA
Phosphates
2-butoxyethanol
Phthalates
Paraben
Ammonia
High VOC glycol ethers
Formaldehyde

That does not mean we are against all chemicals. Humans have used chemicals to clean for centuries. Vinegar is a mild acid and bicarb is a mild base, so even if you use these to clean, you are using chemicals. We use more advanced chemicals, like surfactants that clean jolly well without causing damage.

MIGHTY is a degreaser

MIGHTY contains liquid glass which cuts grease extremely well. It cleans mucky, greasy things. But one does not need to use it on the surfaces you wipe for breadcrumbs every day. It will be wasted on the outside of your fridge where only a few finger marks bother you. You don’t need oven cleaner to wipe your dinner table.

SURFACE is excellent in the bathroom

SURFACE again can be used on all surfaces, but it performs really well in the bathroom. With repeated use it will dissolve scale and stop the growth of mould.

Our suggestion is that you use SURFACE for the everyday tasks, and keep MIGHTY for the really greasy ones.

Unless, of course, you are the kind of person who wants to own only one bottle of soap. In that case you must decide whether to keep SURFACE and scrub a bit harder when the dirt is stubborn, or whether to keep MIGHTY and avoid wiping the old wooden desk where the lacquer has turned soft. We are happy to provide you with the choice.

Are you a one bottle person? And which bottle do you choose? We’d love to know!

Cheerio

Washing a Floor Is a Skill

I was over eighteen the first time I washed a floor. Can you believe it? I remember early in my first year at TUKS telling my friend Kholofelo I had never washed a floor before. She was flabbergasted. Her reaction made me realise that there was a part of life I had up to then not participated in. The next weekend at home I took a bucket and a mop and washed the kitchen floor. It wasn’t horrible. It wasn’t terrific. But it resulted in a clean floor and I could say I’d washed a floor. I felt enabled.

The reason I missed out on all those life skills of course is that mine was a traditional South African middle class family of the eighties. We had a sleep in maid most of the time. The maid always washed the floors!

I started late but I’m an expert by now

Well, I am forty now and for most of my adult life I have done the cleaning myself. No-one can count how many times I have washed floors. In fact, I am quite a pro. I can even write a blog about my preferences. 😉

  • I hate traditional mops. They stink. And all they do is slop dirty water around on the floor.
  • I hate dipping my mop into a bucket of dirty water. I cannot imagine dirty water cleaning anything.
  • I dislike wax based detergents that promise to clean and polish your floor at the same time. They cause wax build up that eventually discolours and then your grouting is permanently dirty!

Regular bucket and a bit of clean water. The mop is fabulous: flat swivelhead with a detachable microfiber cloth.

The microfiber cloth is easily and securely tucked into the sides of the swivelhead. Note that the head can ‘fold’ in half when one steps on the little triangle lever on the right.

My soap of choice

My method

My method? I like a broad, flat microfiber mop. I spray our very own FLOOR onto the floor, neat, and wipe it off with the mop. Then I rinse the mop in clean water (normally running water at the bath or whichever tap is closest at the moment) and repeat until the job is done. The next time I go over the floor with water only. This way I know the microbes are on the floor long enough to do their job, and the soap is eventually rinsed off. Not that leaving it on the floor would be a problem, really. FLOOR does not contain anything that could build up.

Sharing chores gets things done but it also creates moments to connect. We often chat while cleaning.

And my kids help. I will not let them turn 18 before washing a floor. Washing floors is as much a part of life as brushing your teeth and I will teach them how to do it. I will resist the notion that certain mundane skills are not important to learn because someone else will do it. Any skill enables. And being able to just ‘get on with it’ is priceless too.

Still, my house is only ever spotless two minutes before guests arrive. Even with help. Please tell me I am not alone?

Till then