Products & Ideas...

So last weekend, prepping for the arrival of an out-of-town guest, I set out to clean my apartment. Not “straightening up” cleaning – you know, when you move books, clothes, magazines from one side of the room to the other – but more “scrubbing the kitchen floor on your knees a la medieval fairy tale” cleaning. I was serious about getting the mold out of my tiles, so I was using serious cleaners – meaning bleach, bleach-based, and bleach-infused cleaners. And by the time I got to my bath tub, I was more light-headed than the time I attempted my first inverted yoga pose.

A few minutes later, my friend Suzanne (not the out of town guest, just a concerned citizen) arrived on the scene. Upon entering, she said “Why does it smell like bleach in here?” followed by “What aren’t the windows open?” and finally “I can’t believe you’re not dead.” After helping me fumigate my place, Suzanne helpfully pointed out that bleach alternatives do exist, and that maybe I should consider them next time.

So consider them I did. Using our handy friend Google, I found the Happy Slob’s Guide to Housekeeping, which listed some fantastic bleach alternatives for the laundry, like using 1/2 cup 3 percent hydrogen peroxide in the rinse cycle and 1/2 cup washing soda to warm or hot water wash cycles and 1/2 cup lemon juice in the rinse cycle. The Green Clean site lists “two great alternatives to chlorine bleach for laundry and household use: oxygen bleach and hydrogen peroxide-based bleach. Recommended oxygen bleaches include Bi-O-Kleen's Oxygen Beach Plus and Earth Friendly Products' Oxo-Brite.” And finally, Seventh Generation Free & Clear™ Chlorine Free Bleach “gets whites and colors their brightest without chlorine”. No dyes, no fragrances, no chlorine bleach, no phosphates, no near-death experiences.

Clearly, there are alternatives to turning your brain cells to mush every time you want to address the mold in your life. Now if only I had a solution for not passing out during every downward-facing dog.