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COEJL PROGRAM BANK
View Programs
Detoxify Your Home - Create Your Own Cleaning Products
COEJL
info@coejl.org
Source: Operation Noah
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Detoxify Your Home - Create Your Own Cleaning Products At-a-Glance
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Create your own cleaning products. Subsitute non-toxic cleaners and pesticides in your home. This sounds like a hard thing to do but in fact is somewhat simple. Just takes a little education and effort.
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| Audience:
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Ages 14-17 (High School)
Ages 18-21 (College)
Adults
Family/Community
Seniors
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| Facility:
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Community Center
Hillel
Synagogue
Other
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| Program Type:
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Educational Program
Social Activity
Other
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| Issues:
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Air/Water/Trees
Baal Tashchit/Waste/Recycling
Environmental Health and Justice
Sustainability
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Description
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Check health food stores, food co-ops, mail order catalogs, and even supermarkets for non-toxic cleaning products and pesticides. Citrus based cleaning products are generally effective and may even be safer than other alternative cleaners. Try to avoid products that contain phosphates, chemical bleaches, petroleum detergents and synthetic perfumes.
You can also make your own safe substitutes. These common solutions, plus some elbow grease are reliable and effective ways to get the job done:
*Ceramic Tile Cleaner- Mix one-quarter cup white vinegar with one gallon of water.
*Furniture Polish- Mix three parts olive oil with one part vinegar. Wipe with a clean, soft cloth.
*Oven Cleaner- Sprinkle vinegar, then a layer of baking soda on oven surfaces. Rub gently with fine steel wool for tough spots; wipe clean with sponge.
* Toilet Cleaner- Sprinkle baking soda into the bowl, drizzle with vinegar, and scour with a toilet brush.
* Roach Control- Kill roaches either a mixture of equal parts flour, oatmeal, and plaster of Paris. [Keep Out Of Reach Of Children and Pets].
* Ant Control- Wash countertops, cabinets, and floors with equal parts vinegar and water.
* Moth Control- Use cedar blocks or chips instead of moth balls.
* Flea Control- Try giving your cat or dog Brewer's Yeast fills and use natural powders and sprays which use ingredients made from flowers, plants and vegetable oils.
* Insect Repellent- Use citronella oils and candles to repel mosquitoes, flies and ticks.
* Buy Mercury-Free Batteries- check packages of alkaline batteries (i.e. those used in radio and flashlights) to be sure they are mercury-free. Also, if you use a hearing aid, consider using zinc-air batteries instead of mercuric-oxide batteries, when feasible.
* Try rechargeable Alkaline Batteries- Using rechargeable batteries that can be used many times before disposal helps the amounts of cadmium, mercury and lead (contained in household batteries) entering the waste stream. Be sure to choose rechargeable alkaline batteries instead of rechargeable nick-cadmium batteries. Cadmium is a heavier metal that can pose environmental and health hazards when mines, processed or discarded.
*Return Button Batteries- Ask jewelry stores, watch repair shops, camera stores, and other retailers to recycle your button batteries.
* Use Latex(water base)Paints, Instead of Oil( solvent-based)Paint. Oil paint is flammable and contains volatile organic compounds that can cause air pollution and contribute to smog.
*Recycle Motor Oil- Motor oil has trace toxins which increase after use. Contact your local auto shop about recycling oil.
Use Safer Anti-Freeze for Your Automobile- Many children and animals have died due to accidental poisoning from the usual anti-freeze which resembles punch in color and taste. When people carelessly sump their anti-freeze on the road, children and wildlife are in danger or drinking it and being poisoned. Dispose of anti-freeze responsibly. When replacing anti-freeze. Put it in sealed, marked containers and return to your local auto shop so that it will be disposed of properly, or call your local hazardous waste department for instructions in your area. Choose less hazardous anti-freeze with a propylene glycol base, such as SIERRA Anti-Freeze /Coolant. 1-800-298-7234
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Materials Needed
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Regular household items and containers.
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Resources
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These companies sell healthy home and garden products.
Earth Care- 1-800-347-0070
Gardens Alive!- 812-537-8650
Seventh Generation- 1-800-456-1177
The Natural Choice ECO Design Company- 1-800-621-2591
For Further Information:
Clean Water Action-Home Safe Home- 202-457-0336
Washington Toxics Coalition-Alternatives-206-632-1545
Greenpeace-Stepping Lightly on the Earth- 202-462-1177
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Attached Files
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Comments
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This program added on 2002-12-06.
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Programs placed on the Jewish Environmental Educator's Program Bank are
solely the property of the program submitter. COEJL has no right or
interest in the posted programs and is making no representations or
warranties concerning same. All inquiries concerning programs should be
forwarded directly to the program submitter.
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