Green Floor Cleaning

Green floor cleaning is easiest if you start with floors that are easy to clean. This sounds obvious; but many people take wall-to-wall carpet for granted, as a necessity of modern life.

In fact, it is one of your least healthy choices for floor covering. Why? For indoor air quality, wall-to-wall is bad because no matter how much you vacuum, tiny particles of dirt get trapped. As they get ground down by walking and by cleaning attempts, the particles get smaller, letting your lungs breathe them in more deeply, where they do the most harm to your health.

In addition, most commercial carpet is made from petroleum by-products. These break down with wear and tear on the carpet, becoming part of your indoor air issues. And when you finally rip the old carpet out, it goes to the landfill where it never, ever breaks down into anything nature can use (in contrast to plant-based materials).

If you have carpets or rugs to clean, beware of the chemical compounds sold as carpet cleaners. They may brighten the fibers back up; but they'll put chemicals you don't want to breathe or touch into your home at the same time.

Instead, put together your basic green cleaning supplies and try:

Green Carpet Cleaner

Mix 1 Qt warm water, 1 tsp liquid soap, 1 tsp borax, and a splash of lemon or vinegar.
Apply with a damp cloth and rub gently. Wipe with a clean cloth and let dry.

To deodorize, mix 1 part borax to 2 parts cornmeal.
Sprinkle onto carpet, Let sit 1 hour. Vacuum well.

Note: if you can, use a vacuum with a built-in HEPA filter. (Gives you a cleaner home, and saves you from breathing so much dust while you clean.)

Hard Surfaces

A smooth, hard floor seems less cozy to many people, but the benefits for your respiratory health are clear. The two most common in the US are wood and vinyl. Unfortunately, most of the products you'll find on the shelf contain chemicals you may not want to expose yourself, your kids, or your pets to.

If you have purchased or are renting a home with these floor types, you may want to try:

Vinyl Cleaner:
Mix 1 gallon warm water with 1/2 cup vinegar or 1/4 cup borax

Wood Floor Cleaners:
Unvarnished: damp mop with mild vegetable oil soap.

Varnished (polyurethane or Swedish finish): 1 part vinegar to 10 parts water. Dry well.

Green Flooring Options

If you are building or renovating a home, some options you may want to consider include:

* Poured concrete (looks nice with a color wash, and works well with radiant floor heat)
* Cork
* Bamboo
* Salvaged hardwoods (from old buildings - some wood you can't find anywhere else)
* Wood products certified by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council)
* Marmoleum
* Carpet tiles from Interface carpet's Flor line (made from recycled materials; and returnable for recycling when worn out)

Note: green floor cleaning formulas and techniques may be somewhat different for these products than for those the recipes here were designed for. Always check with the supplier.

Green Kitchen
green cleaning
Green Laundry

Or print out this handy 2-page brochure with all the

Healthy Home Cleaners recipes (including green floor cleaning).