As the movement towards organic living continues to increase in popularity, the organic phenomenon has spread from the food industry to other industries including beauty products and cleaning products. In particular, households and commercial cleaners are opting for green cleaning supplies to improve their health as well as the environment.
What does “green cleaning” mean?
While many cleaning solutions may be useful, they may be loaded with toxic (or even carcinogenic) ingredients. Also, other cleaning products cause environmental havoc as they pollute water sources. Green cleaning refers to cleaning methods and products that are not only environmentally-friendly but also pose little to no health risk to those using the cleaners.
Benefits of green cleaning
There are many benefits to green cleaning including:
- Safer homes: Read any label of a conventional cleaning product, and you might never touch the bottle again. Thanks to California’s Proposition 65, many labels indicate that toxic chemicals are present and may cause significant health problems. Switching to green cleaning removes these toxins from your home, which is especially important if you have children and pets. The CDC estimates that 13 million workers are exposed to chemicals through their skin; anything that touches the skin can be quickly absorbed by the skin and into the bloodstream.
- Improved health: Many people may suffer from headaches, sneezing, and even asthma due to using chemical-laden cleaning products. That is because many ingredients used in cleaners are often irritants causing minor (and sometimes major) health issues with those people who are repeatedly exposed.
- Cleaner environment: Swapping out your cleaners for green cleaning products not only makes your home healthier but it also dramatically cuts down on water pollution and ozone depletion.
- Better air quality: Have you ever cleaned a bathroom or other enclosed space and nearly passed out from the smell? Green products, typically made with plant-based ingredients, do not have such strong chemical odors as conventional cleaners.
- Less expensive: Green cleaning can be a much cheaper endeavor thanks to the use of all natural products. For instance, distilled white vinegar can clean easily clean coffee pot reservoirs.
Can dry cleaning be organic?
According to the New York Sun, “organic dry cleaning” is a tricky term to define because the FDA does not regulate dry cleaning. However, the EPA has deemed perc, a common element in traditional dry cleaning, to be hazardous to the health of humans. Thus, dry cleaning methods that do not use perc are considered safer, healthier, and greener. Those options are:
- C02 cleaning: CO2 is converted to liquid and then used to clean the garment. Once the garment is clean, the C02 is converted back into gas and released; no dirty water or chemicals is tainting the water supplies.
- Wet Cleaning: Water is used to clean either with nontoxic detergents or no detergents at all. The water temperature is carefully regulated to achieve optimal cleaning without causing the fabric dyes to run or fade.
Whether you need your clothes dry cleaned or your home or office cleaned, contact us for a green cleaning experience.
