Questioning current solutions
Do you really need aluminium foil for the leftovers from dinner or will jars, which pile up as waste glass anyway, do? If you look through all the cupboards when spring cleaning, you’re bound to notice one or two other things.
Avoid waste
Cleaning does not necessarily have to generate a lot of waste – it can be easily avoided with environmentally friendly spring cleaning. If you combine the opportunity to clean something out, you can sell, give away or donate unused items.
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Remember upcycling ideas for later
If you don’t have any use for glasses or other things at the moment, they don’t have to go into bin. Maybe in autumn you will feel like making tea light holders, or you will need more storage containers for later.
DIY all-purpose cleaner
Most standard cleaners contain questionable and harmful substances that damage our health and the environment. You can easily make your own cleaning products with just a few natural household remedies for an environmentally friendly spring clean. This is not only good for the environment, it’s also for your pocket. For a simple DIY all-purpose cleaner, you will need:
- 500 ml warm water
- 2 tablespoons citric acid
- A few drops of essential oil (e.g. tea tree)
Simply stir the citric acid into the water until it has completely dissolved. This works slightly better in warm water. Then add a few drops of essential oil. Tea tree oil has an additional disinfecting effect, but the DIY all-purpose cleaner can also be enhanced with any other oil. The finished mixture can then easily be filled into a spray bottle using a funnel. It’s also very easy to wash out and reuse an existing spray bottle for this. Theoretically, any room can be cleaned with the DIY all-purpose cleaner. Alternatively, you can also make other DIY cleaners for an environmentally friendly spring clean. Most of the household remedies for this are already in the cupboard, anyway.
Photos © Lisa Arens
