Recycling is becoming a widely accepted practice in Hawaii, and many of us are shopping with reusable cloth bags. Now that those good habits are in practice, it's time to put more emphasis on responsible consumerism. And that should mean reading labels for environmentally friendly cleaning products that are safe around your house, your family and your pets.
Conduct a Google search on the computer for safe household cleaning products and amazingly basic items pop up: vinegar, lemon juice, lemon oil, salt, baking soda, cream of tartar, denture tablets, and water. Most homes have these simple and cost-effective components that can knock out dirt and stains without harming tiles, fixtures, and respiratory systems. Another product that is highly recommended is borax, which can be toxic around children and pets. Handle with care.
Such household items debunk the notion that people can be too poor to be green. They are often reasonably priced. But they also might require assembly, time and elbow grease to be effective. When a 24-hour day isn't long enough to accomplish all that needs to be accomplished, cheap commercial products, harmful or not, are often more appealing.
There are those who are not inclined to fashion a home-based chemistry set of funnels, spray bottles, jugs of vinegar and big boxes of baking soda to achieve germ-free nirvana. Fortunately, the market is becoming more and more populated with "green" products. Although they tend to be a bit more expensive, buying them feels right for some people.
Kelly Mitchell, a Realtor with Prudential Locations Diamond Head, made a concerted effort at concocting her own cleaning formulas using vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice in various ratios.
"A working woman has multiple challenges with this," Mitchell said. "Finding the time to concoct the mixture, remember what the recipe was and actually doing it, and finding that it just isn't as effective as most of the toxic chemical cleaners. After continually running out of time, I fell back into bad habits."
Mitchell assessed her needs and said she made changes she found easier to follow through with.
"At Kale's Natural Foods [in Hawaii Kai], I buy BioKleen products. From Safeway, I've been using the Planet products," Mitchell said. "These products are biodegradable, not tested on animals and are effective for everyday use. I want to do my part, and using safe, effective products that I can purchase off the shelf have made it easier to change my buying behavior."
Often overlooked as an environmentally safe cleaning agent is Simple Green, a translucent green water-based concentrate artificially scented with sassafras. On the market since the 1980s, Simple Green can be used as a laundry deodorizer, and in various concentrations for the cleaning for floors, kitchens and bathrooms. Originally developed to remove tannic acid from coffee roasting equipment and for restaurant coffee pots, Simple Green's availability gradually progressed from being solely distributed for business use to the general public. According to its material safety data sheet, Simple Green is non-toxic, non-flammable, non-carcinogenic and biodegradable. But it's also somewhat corrosive, so it's not recommended for aluminum. Although welcome in most garages, reasonably priced Simple Green offers a cleaning ability that can be very effective throughout the rest of the house. It will irritate sensitive skin and eyes, so it should be used around the home with great care.
Cyndi Obayashi of Hawaii Kai has a son who is growing out of his eczema skin condition, and she credits that with her efforts at incorporating natural cleaning products in her home. Obayashi uses Melaleuca products, which are available through mail order and through www.Melaleuca.com on the Internet.
"As far as green products, I've been using Melaleuca cleaning supplies for the last six years," Obayashi said. "I continue to use green products because with every load of laundry and every dish I wash, I am reassured that my actions are a less invasive choice to our environment. More importantly, I feel my family is safe. I choose to pay for this because I think it's worth it."
But just because a product is available at the local grocery store, doesn't mean it is suspect. For instance, Dawn dish soap is so gentle, it has been used for the last 26 years by the International Bird Rescue Research Center to help remove oil from the feathers of birds caught in massive oil spills, without harming the animals. Available by the jug at big box stores, Dawn soap is not only an accomplished de-greaser, but it's also great for debugging garden plants, washing the car and cleaning the tiles around the tub or the pool.
"Instead of using chemicals, we also use Dawn dishwashing soap on the pool with a small scrubbing sponge," said Mary Jane Feldberg, a Realtor who lives in Hawaii Kai. "We also use baking soda to get rid of the mold around the pool. We actually have the kids do this and sometimes we even get away without paying them!"
Debuting this past January was Clorox's Green Works cleaning products, a line that boasts the endorsement of The Sierra Club on its label. Easily accessible in large quantities at local big box stores, Green Works does include some toxic petroleum-based ingredients. Using this readily available line of cleaners is a step in the right direction. According to its Web site at www.greenworkscleaners.com, Green Works are 99-percent petrochemical free, biodegradable, derived from plant- and mineral-based ingredients from renewable resources, and are not tested on animals.
To address the growing concern of Hawaii's consumers eager to preserve the planet, Kale's Natural Foods proprietors Kale and Suzanne Gibb offer Seventh Generation and BioKleen household products, such as diapers, paper towels and toilet paper, dishwasher detergents, fabric detergents, and general multiple-use cleaners. With a baby boy of their own, the Gibbs family has an even greater reason to want to affect change through their store nestled in a space next to the Hawaii Kai Safeway.
Demand for environmentally safe products is increasing, and Hawaii's alternative grocers such as Down To Earth, Kokua Market, 'Umeke Market and Kale's are making it possible for consumers to walk the talk. This year, Whole Foods Market enters the Hawaii retail landscape at Ward Centers and at Kahala Mall, with its vast array of natural and organic foods and products. It's quite possible that the demand for natural cleaning products will sharpen the competition as companies develop safer and more effective cleaners for the home. Incorporating these products into our household cleaning routines will mean that we will all breathe easier as we protect our families, our pets and our planet.
