Cleaner Laundry for a Cleaner Environment
Americas alone wash 100 million (35 billion loads) of laundry every year. But most laundry detergent used is so harmful to the environment it ends up polluting the water ways with phosphates, chlorine and even petroleum. Instead opt for a product that doesn’t take a toll on the environment or your clothing material. Here are three that you should consider switching to.
1. Method Detergent: Contains no phosphates. It cleans through a biodegradable enzyme. $8 for 32 ounces (32 loads of laundry). Can be purchased at Wal-Mart and Target.
2. Biokleen Detergent: Uses super concentrated formulas, which means less packaging. All of the ingredients are from a renewable resource. Contains no phosphates and comes in fragrance-free. Can be used in cold water which saves on additional energy usage. $7 for 32 ounces (32 loads of laundry).
3. Ecos Detergent: Comes out clean in its whole production cycle. The all-natural liquid detergent is made in the United States in green facilities. The ingredients come from a domestic, certified organic source. Packaging and container are recyclable and even biodegradable. Ecos even encourages their employees to garden organically as well. $9 for 50 ounces (25 loads of laundry)
4. Try making your own:
• What you will need:
2 cups Soap flakes
1 cup Washing soda
1 cup Borax
Vegetable glycerin
Heavy plastic or glass container
Essential oils
• What you need to do:
Mix the soap flakes, washing soda and the borax together and store in a lidded container.
If you want to make a liquid all natural laundry detergent, add 6 tablespoons of vegetable glycerin and 6 cups of water to the powder detergent above. You’ll need to shake well before each use.
Lavender and Orange essential oils are good to add for scent. Use about 30 to 40 drops per batch of liquid detergent.
August 17th, 2008 at 12:41 am
I’m always into discussions on anything organic, so this read made me feel at home.
I’ll bookmark the site and subscribe to the feed!