Many people are interested in not only keeping their home clean, but removing harmful Volatile Organic Compounds that are emitted by certain chemicals.  Does that mean you are reduced to cleaning with only vinegar and water?  Of course not!  What you do want for a safer surface and air environment in your home are natural multipurpose cleaning products that don’t contain solvents, have a neutral pH, and are biodegradable. Removing those elements from your cleaning supplies ensures air to breath that doesn’t contain toxic fumes and no harmful residue on your surface.

Avoid Volatile Organic Compounds - There is a name for the dangerous and health-affecting fumes that are emitted from certain liquids and solids, Volatile Organic Compounds.  These fumes tend to build up in a enclosed environment and according to the EPA can be as much as ten times higher in density in a home than when used outside.  Lack of ventilation is the prime culprit in the accumulation of these fumes which can come from such common household items as cleaning supplies, air fresheners, dry cleaned clothing, plywood, and paint and paint removers.

It may seem that having used these Volatile Organic Compounds causing products for years in the past, you could just continue unaffected.  There are some symptoms and side-effects from their use, however, with which you may not have associated the cause and effect.  Ever experience eye irritation, headaches or dizziness while cleaning?  How about flu-like symptoms?  Those are just some of the short-term health considerations.  Long-term consequences can include cancer.  It is apparent that these chemicals are not safe for even the healthiest adult, however, there are specific groups who appear to fall under a higher risk category.  The elderly, of course, as well as babies and children, but also pregnant and nursing women.  Individuals with compromised immune systems are also vulnerable.  Understanding that these fumed are present for hours after use let’s you know that anyone could be exposed.

If you are like most people starting to learn about this subject, you could go to where you store your cleaning supplies right now and you would find that every product emits Volatile Organic Compounds.  Unless you already buy pH neutral and biodegradable, the cleaners you use for your floors, tubs, carpets, countertops, grill, and windows all produce Volatile Organic Compounds.  You know now that using them produces these fumes that last for hours, but even sitting there, unused, they emit gasses.

Neutral pH - PH determines the reaction of a cleaning product with your skin, the surface being cleaned and the environment when it is washed into the water system. A compound with a pH value under 7.0 is acidic, more than 7.0 is alkali and a pH value of 7.0 is neutral, neither acidic nor alkaline. Liquids that are either too acidic, such as battery acid, or alkaline like bleach, are very corrosive. A neutral pH is non-reactive to the surface that it touches.

Burns to your skin from caustic products are no joke.  Nor is damage to a sensitive surface, such as certain tiles and marble.  Using neutral pH natural home cleaning products is the way to ensure that neither of these happens to you.

No Solvents - If you knew something was toxic and carcinogenic to the environment and the people who used them, you probably would avoid use.  Common household products often contain solvents such as Ethylene Glycol Ethers (EGEs), alcohols, esthers, and Propylene Glycol Ethers (PGEs).  You won’t be surprised to learn these are corrosive chemical ingredients.

Biodegradable - Rinsing, flushing, and washing only remove the chemical cleaners from your surfaces, not from the impact to the environment.  Retaining their harsh, damaging nature instead of dispelling the toxicity by changing into non-damaging co-factors, common household cleaners are not environmentally friendly.  There is also a level of greater dissipation in some biodegradable products, with some producing the desired result faster than others.

Few decisions are as easy as the one involved in changing from harsh chemical cleaners to commercial green cleaning products. Replacing your existing cleaners with all natural cleaning products protects your home and your loved ones, as well as making a positive environmental impact.

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