Comments on: Plastic-Free Stain Remover & other Laundry ideas

By: mudnessa

mudnessa — Tue, 18 May 2010 16:48:55 +0000

I recently switched to a powdered detergent and was happy to open it and not find a scoop at all. Then I got half way through the box and found a plastic scoop. I will definitely be getting myself some ecover when I need more. I love their products but they aren't easy to find in the stores in my area. I will have to order them online but it is well worth it to not have the unnecessary plastic scoops. .-= mudnessa´s last blog ..Bottle cap magnets =-.

By: Brian

Brian — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:39:55 +0000

I love the blog. I found a funny site earlier today. I needed to remove a blood stain from a t shirt. the site is called 10 Worst Stains. Now, if I could just find a site to tell me what to do with the body!

By: ~M

~M — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:56:47 +0000

It seems like bamboo or hemp clothing might be really good for athletic clothes, possibly blended with cotton. Personally, I’d look at what the best cloth diapers are made of, since they’re absorbent, durable, and have to be cleaned well, and base your athletic apparel off of that knowledge. But I usually try to repurpose old clothes (or my husband’s, lol) for the gym to save on space and money.

One cleaner that I sometimes use on laundry is hydrogen peroxide. Yes, it comes in plastic (I think partly because it needs that dark/opaque brown container so sunlight can’t destroy it) but it works really well and disinfects. I got out a huge puddle of cranberry juice (the unsweetened, red as blood kind) on my light gray carpet with hydrogen peroxide and a spray bottle filled with a squirt of Dr. Bronners baby mild castille soap (now, this I wish came in gallon sized glass containers…but at least it’s crazy concentrated) and water. I buy a gallon at a time, I think through Vitacost. If you look at Ecover’s environmentally-friendly bleach, it’s only hydrogen peroxide and water. Since my washing machine, like all washing machine, fills with water, I save plastic and space by just using regular hydrogen peroxide.

By: Fake Plastic Fish

Fake Plastic Fish — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 19:31:57 +0000

Hi Donny. The trouble with the MSDS is that is does not require manufacturers to list the actual ingredients in their products. I don't want them to just tell me their ingredients are safe. I want to know what they are so I can decide for myself.

By: Donny

Donny — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:05:11 +0000

A very nice way to get around corporate secretiveness is a nice document required by OSHA at all workplaces. They are called MSDSs (Material Safety Data Sheets), and they are required to be supplied by employers, for things from soap to industrial solvents. Since these documents are required to be registered as well, they are publicly available for many household products. A decent database of them is available here. I would love to hear how useful this is for you.

By: hhw

hhw — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:46:09 +0000

I've been refilling the same 4 plastic containers for dish soap, laundry soap, oxygen bleach, and baking soda for at least 10 years, thanks to the extensive bulk options available at my local food co-op. I also use distilled vinegar for fabric softener (sadly not available in self-serve bulk so I have to recycle the 5-gallon plastic jug).

By: Fake Plastic Fish

Fake Plastic Fish — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 18:41:43 +0000

Hey Cat. You've got it. Before I stopped buying new plastic, I bought a ton of polyester "technical" athletic wear. What a racket. Those things stink really fast, and then they sell you a "special" detergent made especially to get odors out of these kinds of garments. Obviously, I'm not buying more of these kinds of clothes. But before I switch over to cotton, I really need to do some research and find out what natural fiber clothing has the best water wicking ability. Cotton is terrible for distance running because it just absorbs sweat, which leads to chafing and irritation. I need to find out if there is athletic wear made from wool or other wicking fabric that's also suitable for running, not just skiing.

By: The Green Cat

The Green Cat — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 18:24:02 +0000

Beth, I wonder about your stinky gym clothes vs soap nuts. My gym clothes (which consist of cotton shorts and cotton t-shirt) get a thorough soaking during my kickboxing class. I hang them to dry when I get home but then just toss them into my laundry with soap nuts. I don't have any problem. But as I'm typing this I wonder if that because they are cotton. Are your gym clothes some kind of polyester/spandex performance clothes? Perhaps that's the difference.

By: Becky

Becky — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:00:16 +0000

We also use Charlie's. I decided to get the 5 gallon bucket. Once you switch over to Charlie's, it's best to avoid using other detergents anyway because of the whole residue stripping issue. Once we had used it for a couple of months and were reasonably satisfied we went in big. It does come in a plastic bucket but that bucket will last us for years and could be reused for other storage after that. I felt that the decrease in fossil fuel transport use from needing 1 delivery per 2-3 years vs a delivery every few months evened out the plastic. I haven't been completely wowed by it's stain removal but I'm also dealing with 2 very small stain magnets and I'm not terribly on top of stain treatment.

I've heard good things about applying lemon juice and then letting diapers dry in the sun but haven't yet pulled off any miracles.

I use about a cup of white vinegar in the rinse cycle to help disinfect and cut back on static (we use the dryer fairly frequently- working on that). It works well until we hit those super dry, super cold weeks in January and then we need about a 1/4 cap of fabric softener.

We use GSE or tea tree oil for disinfection. That, along with the vinegar and sun will get rid of just about anything. You can also make a really great mildew spray from a string concoction of tto, gse, and vinegar.

I've also started using washing powder occasionally but I'm still a bit confused about the ecological impact of it.

By: rachel

rachel — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 20:11:42 +0000

Another commenter posted about using the sun, and I've gotta say THE SUN ROCKS! It has yet to fail to get out a stain for me, and I've got a sweaty husband and a messy 13 month old (who uses cloth diapers). It gets out stains of unknown origin, always to my surprise. It even gets out stains that have stayed on the clothes through several washes. If anything ever needs a little extra help, lemon juice is pretty fab.

I also love vinegar. Yes, it comes in plastic, but I bigger bottles and dilute. My main cleaning agent for my home (and laundry) is diluted vinegar. I have an old Windex bottle that I have a vinegar/water mixture in, and I just refill when it gets low. It doesn't eliminate my plastic usage, but it definitely reduces it.