Cleaning?

[TheDivineMrsM]

Please excuse a silly question.

My bathroom desperately needs to be scrubbed out, but I'm afraid to use things like bleach b/c of the fumes. What kinds of cleaning supplies are safe to use? I'm about 5 wks.

[MaerynPearl]

I love vinegar! It stinks but it's a lot less harsh.

http://www.vinegartips.com/scripts/pageViewSec.asp?id=7

[chattyprincess]

A drop or two of dr.bronners sals suds dilluted in a spray bottle. If you want a "real" cleaner Target sells 7th generation cleaners and thier bathroom one ROCKS.

[Pinoikoi]

I use baking soda a lot.

[CherryBomb]

I use vinegar and backing soda a lot. You can make baking soda into a paste with water and it's great to scrub with. Half vinegar/half water mix is a good cleaner, too, like for glass and such.

[IAMommy]

In addition to the previously mentioned items, hydrogen peroxide can be useful for removing grungy stains. Lemon juice is useful too.
If you Google 'how to make natural cleaning products" or something along those lines, you can find specific recipes to fit your needs.

[Eresh]

The main mothering.com website is probably still running the article with a bunch of green cleaning recipes that use vinegar, baking soda, dish soap, and so forth.

[at_the_hip]

Ecover makes a great all-purpose concentrate...it has a faint lemon scent. You just put a little of it into a spray bottle and fill the rest with water and it is good to go. Non-toxic and ready to scrub!

That being said, after the first trimester I felt comfortable with an occasional (diluted) bleach scrub of the bathroom. This with windows open & fan on. I just made it quick, and wore gloves. Both times I did it were due to needing to disinfect afer a stomach virus to prevent further illness.

[Miims]

My favorite natural scrub cleaner is this: a cup of baking soda with a squirt of Dr. Bronner's liquid soap of your choice and a little water to make it into a paste. It smells yummy and works really well as a lightly abrasive scrub for the tub and sink. Then I use vinegar on the other surfaces, letting it set on there for a few minutes.

[TheDivineMrsM]

Thanks ladies!!

[MonP'titBoudain]

If you feel the need for a disninfectant (rather than just a good cleaning), spraying equal parts undiluted vinegar & hydrogen peroxide one after the other is at least as effective as bleach. And not harmful to you. I can't find the link to the study anymore, but if you do a search on pubMed, it should come up.

[neonalee]

I love vinegar and/or Shaklee products (I don't sell them, just LOVE them). I do use disposable products for the toilet. I think the only thing we still use bleach for is cleaning the washing machine "as directed".

[claddaghmom]

Yep we do vinegar too...and I sometimes use vinegar on the whites laundry. I do tolerate a scrubby toilet kit that I got free after coupons...has those disposable cloth thingies on it...but when that runs out I will switch to hydrogen peroxide for the toilet.

[slgt]

Seventh Generation Tub & Tile cleaner does a great job for your shower/tub - spray it on, leave it for 5-10 minutes, come back, and you barely have to scrub! The oils in it are 100% natural, real, whole essential oils, but they are definitely there so you can open the window if you want the scent to dissipate quickly. It's my favorite bathrrom cleaner!