Your dish-and-clothes-washing water goes somewhere! In fact, it sometimes goes into a drinking water source for for both humans and wildlife which is often also a whole wildlife habitat. Sometimes it is filtered and directly re-circulated into the tapwater system. So watch what you put in it.

Also, any soaps/cleaners you use in your home will have an effect on the people living in it. Toxic and synthetic chemicals in cleaners can emit fumes that are health hazards and often smell bad on top of that.

If you feel like you’re too lazy to make your own biodegradable, natural, and environmentally/human friendly soaps and cleaners, Ecover sells them. Otherwise, I will provide you with some recipes I found for household cleaners (no body soaps, though, you’ll have to do your own research on that)

You can make your own dish soaps and household cleaners with a few simple ingredients and recipies that I found in my co-op newsletter, specifically an article about natural cleaning products for a green home by Tanya Petterson. The following ingedients and recipies are in her words with a few very minor changes because I think Tanya put it the best way:

• Distilled white vinegar is a deodorizer, disinfectant, preservative and mild acid. It breaks up dirt, grease, mineral deposits, mold, and soap scum.
• Baking soda is a deodorizer and gentle scrub. It softens hard water, removes acidic stains, and polishes shiny surfaces like stainless steel without scratching them.
• Salt is a great basic scrub that will give you extra cleaning power.
• Lemon is a deodorizer, stain remover, and grease cutter. It acts as a mild bleach when exposed to sunlight except it smells way better than normal bleach.
• Olive oil helps polish and nourish wood.
• Borax is a mild natural alkali used as a water softener, and preservative, aiding in cleansing in cleansers and detergents.
• Essential oils such as eucalyptus, lavender, and tea tree are natural disinfectants and antifungals.

RECIPIES:
Lemon-Scented All-Purpose Cleaner
1 tbsp borax
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup hot water
Mix ingredients in a spray bottle (the lemon scent lingers). Use for cleaning bathroom and kitchen surfaces, as well as other water-safe surfaces. Discard any remaining cleaner and make a fresh batch next time.

Toilet Bowl Cleaner
1 cup vinegar
1/2 cup baking soda
Pour the vinegar directly into the toilet bowl and let stand for 30 mins. Sprinkle baking soda onto toilet brush and scour. To keep bowl fresh, pour 1 cup of vinegar into the toilet bowl once a month and let stand overnight.

Furniture Polish
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tsp lemon juice
Mix in spray bottle. Spray liberally on wood surfaces and wipe dry.

Drain Cleaner
For slow drains, use this drain cleaner once a week to keep drains fresh and clog free.

1/2 cup baking soda
1 cup white vinegar
1 gallon boiling water
Pour baking soda down the drain, followed by vinegar, and allow mixture to foam for several minutes before flushing the drain with boiling water.

All-Purpose Scrub
1/2 cup baking soda
1/2 of a lemon
Coat the lemon with baking soda and scrub with the lemon itself. Use a damp rag to wipe away any residue.

Mold + Mildew
2 cups distilled white vinegar
Pour vinegar into spray bottle and spray on infected area. The smell will dissipate in a few hours (open a window to speed up the process). For areas with persisent mold problems, use tea tree oil instead of vinegar, combining 2 drops of tea tree oil with 1 cup of water in a spray bottle. A natural antiseptic and fungicide will kill most types of mold and help prevent new growth.

All-Purpose Cleaner
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup baking soda
2 liters water
Mix vinegar and baking soda with the 2 liters of water. Store and keep. Use for removal of water deposit stains on shower stall panels, bathroom chrome fixtures, bathroom mirrors, etc.

Enjoy!