Green Cleaning Tips & News

You're reading this blog so chances are, you're a bit of a techy person. So many of us have grown attached to our laptops, using them from morning until late night. I am guilty of this more than most. My laptop is my right arm!

I have an Acer laptop that automatically goes into a battery saving green mode. It uses far less energy than most laptops unless I go into the settings and tell it to do otherwise. And when I know I won't be at my computer for more than 2 hours, I tell it to go to sleep. I'm very cheap, I'm all about saving money!

But overnight is a different story. You should be completely turning off your computer each night, not just putting it to sleep. A study showed that organizations waste $2.8 billion per year from leaving computers on over night! (Source.) That is unreal!

It's much harder to track how much you could be wasting be not turning your computer off each night. With so many types of computers out there, they just can't all be created equal. But the general assumption is that you can save anywhere from $50-65 annually.

Turning off your computer each night is a simple to-do. It saves energy and money... and I think we can all get behind that!

Going green isn't very easy for me. I didn't really realize how proactive I was going to have to be. I couldn't just live my daily life and occassionally think, "Oh I'll choose this instead of this since it's green." No, it's a constant thing.

Every time I leave a room I need to turn off the light. Every time I throw something away I need to think about if it's recyclable. Every time I make a purchase I need to consider other options. It's not green to just HAVE a compost pile, I actually need to use it. And building a raised garden does nothing for me if I don't actually plant something!

I think I'm overwhelmed with how many decisions there are out there. I don't know how you do it! How do you make it fun and easy? How do you remember to make the right decision. Half the time I don't even realize that there is another option.

Any tips would be appreciated.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to wander my house in search of all of my bad decisions.

I have resisted the green/eco-friendly/natural lifestyle for a while because I have always had the impression that it is expensive. I mean, face it, if I can get my apples for 30% less if I don't buy organic, I'm going to go with that! (See y'all, I have a long way to go.)

But I once heard that you can make your own laundry detergent. It's supposed to be cheaper and better for the environment. I'm not entirely on board with that. Partially because I don't think I have enough spare time to actually make laundry detergent, and partially because I'm not sure how well it actually cleans!

I decided I'd use less, though. I took the challenge to use about half of the recommended amount and, honestly, I haven't noticed a difference. All of my family's clothes look and smell clean, my detergent lasts longer, and I save money! I use the Tide Free version because of skin reactions to other types. I recently switched from liquid to powder since powder is cheaper, and I'm pleased with the results. Plus the powder comes in a cardboard box, whereas the liquid comes in a plastic bottle. Seems like my option is more eco-friendly, yes?

(I am curious though, does anyone know why people prefer liquid over powder?)

Maybe you're like me and taking baby steps to the green lifestyle. This is an easy switch to make. Make the change slowly if that makes you feel comfortable, but try to get to the point where you only require 50% of the recommended amount of detergent. See if you notice a difference!

I haven't had this ForceOut gig for long, but in the short time I've been here, I have noticed a few things about the products. Normally I'll be using the blog to tell you about my "going green" efforts, but I think we need to take a little pause so I can tell you about ForceOut's Odor Eliminator.

Ladies and gents, here are the Top Five Reasons I Love ForceOut Odor Eliminator!

1. The bottle is huge! Seriously, it is 32 ounces. It's going to last me so long. And I won't ever be like, "It doesn't smell THAT bad, I'm not going to waste a spray on that." (Because I would totally do that, I'm so cheap.)

2. Well it's getting hot in Houston, which means my dog starts to smell like dirty dog after being outside for approximately 7 seconds. This stuff is allowing Rookie and I to maintain our friendship.

3. I get headaches really easily so if I light candles in my house, there is a good chance it'll trigger a headache. So last week when we discovered a mold issue in our bedroom, I sprayed my ForceOut all over the ruined carpet. Instead of making the whole house smell like French Vanilla, I made the whole house smell like fresh air!

4. I won't go into detail on this one... but let's just say that my husband sprayed it in his shoes this morning.

5. It's environmentally safe! If I spray it on my carpet and then my baby crawls on the carpet, I'm not worried about him breathing in nasty chemicals that will make him grow another arm or something.

Give it a shot and let me know why you love it. I have yet to use it in my car, but I have a feeling I'm going to like that too.

Even though I felt that I set my standards pretty low, I did not accomplish all ten parts of my challenge. Let's discuss...

1. Carpool anywhere I go.
I almost got this one! I spent some time at my parents' house on Friday and since they are in the same neighborhood as us, I just walked the stroller over. But that evening we went to the Good Friday service at our church and I didn't think it was appropriate to walk and show up all sweaty! Plus, it was going to be dark when the service ended and I didn't want to walk home in the dark. The good news is that our church is also in our neighborhood so I wasn't in the car for long.

2. Use 50% less laundry detergent.
I did this. I normally use about 3/4 the recommended amount but I cut it down a bit more. You can't tell at all!

3. Clean at least one thing with vinegar.
I have a Tupperware container that had a sticky lid from a label. I used the vinegar to get the residue off and it worked!

4. Eat leftovers or cook using what I already have.
I didn't quite get this one since my parents offered to take us out to dinner after church. I would have said no but, come on, free dinner!

5. Keep all lights off except in the room I'm in.
The only time I left a light on was when I was gone for the evening. I knew I'd be coming back by myself and it creeps me out to walk into a pitch black house. So I left a light on for some peace of mind. I'm okay with that cheat.

6. Take a shower that is less than 5 minutes.
Yep!

7. Read at least 3 articles on green living.
Nope.

8. Plan my garden.
If a piece of paper that says, "tomatoes, green beans, strawberries, herbs" counts, then yes. Otherwise, no.

9. Start a box of items to donate to Goodwill.
Yep! I have 4 sweaters and a pair of shoes in there!

10. GIVE AWAY SOME FORCE OUT!
Obviously!

Hopefully I can accomplish these, they don't seem too difficult.

1. Carpool anywhere I go.
2. Use 50% less laundry detergent.
3. Clean at least one thing with vinegar.
4. Eat leftovers or cook using what I already have.
5. Keep all lights off except in the room I'm in.
6. Take a shower that is less than 5 minutes.
7. Read at least 3 articles on green living.
8. Plan my garden.
9. Start a box of items to donate to Goodwill.
10. GIVE AWAY SOME FORCE OUT!

Let's go ahead and cross #10 off of the list! Congrats to Meghan, Alice and Heather, our three winners of of the Earth Day giveaway. I'll get in contact with you to get your items to you. I hope you love them!

Put yourself in my shoes. I took a job with a green cleaning company and I'm not green. (Don't hate me, I'm learning!) So if we're going to be completely honest, I was a bit nervous about this! I've never had a very high opinion about green cleaning products. Not because they don't work (because I wouldn't know if they work or not since I had never used them) but because they just don't smell clean.

Do you know what I mean? I like the smell of clean. I like the scent of harsh chemicals on my floor. To me, green cleaners always seemed like bottles of lightly scented water. I just wasn't interested in that.

A few weeks ago I heard my baby boy crying in his room. It was late at night and he's normally a great sleeper. But he was cutting two teeth on his bottom gums and he was in a lot of pain. So I gave him some infant Tylenol and headed toward his rocking chair. The next second happened in slow motion: I turned. His foot hit the medicine bottle. It tipped. It fell. It poured hot pink liquid all over my white carpet.

As I rocked my sobbing baby, I watched the pink junk soak deeper and deeper into the carpet. Once things had calmed down, I got out the Force Out Stain Remover to see if it could handle this drying pool of sticky pink goo! I was pleased to see that it made the spot completely disappear. My white carpet was completely white, there wasn't even a tiny bit of evidence left on the floor. Of course I was thrilled that the spot came up, but I was also thrilled to know that this product is actually as amazing as it claims to be!

But I understand that my words are just words and you may need some convincing. We'd like to give three of you the opportunity to try our products for free. Just leave a comment with an easy green tip and we'll draw three winners and announce them on Friday.

(If you don't see an option to leave a comment, click the title "We'll Prove It" and you should see the option.)

In looking for ways to minimize the amount of chemicals and junk I bring into my home, I learned of the powers of salt. Apparently simple table salt is a fantastic cleaner. It's cheap, effective, and green! Here are five ways you can use it in your home.

1. You know that bouquet of fake hydrangeas you have on your dining room table? They sure look nice but they collect dust like it's some sort of hobby! Grab the bundle, take it outside, and sprinkle some salt on the pedals. The grains of salt will help collect the dust that your rag can't get to. Then just shake the plant until all the salt (and dust!) falls right off.

2. What if you have a vase of real hydrangeas on your dining room table? We all know you're supposed to replace the water on a daily basis, but sometimes we forget. When your flowers have run their course and you go to clean out the vase, you notice a faint line of grime. There's an easy solution for that. Just throw in a handful of ice cubes and a healthy spoonful of salt. Swirl it around to let the grit of the salt do all the scrub work for you. Then pour it out and wash as usual.

3. Oven spills are my least favorite spills! Cleaning on oven is an awkward task with all that stretching and scrubbing. Next time you have a bubble-over, sprinkle some salt on the spill and it'll absorb the grease for you. Let it sit for a bit and then just wipe it away.

4. My personal favorite: glass. The amount of soap scum that gathers on a shower door is just unreal! I once heard that scrubbing your glass with dry crumbled newspaper would take the scum off. Sad to report that all it did was leave me with black fingers. I decided to give salt a try because, well, why the heck not? It worked like a crystal clear charm! Spray your glass with water and dampen a cloth. Pour some salt on the cloth and scrub the glass. Beautiful.

5. If you're bold, this next tip is for you. Dishwashing. Sprinkle a bit of salt on a dish, the abrasion will help loosen the food. Some say that salt water alone is an effective way to clean your dishes. I'm not that brave. I'd recommend taking it one step further and just using a touch of your favorite dish soap.

Save some money and give a couple of these a shot. Hopefully they'll work like a crystal clear charm for you too!

Welcome to the Force Out blog. We are a group of people who discovered an amazing cleaning product and it just so happens to be green. We are all new to the green way of life but we're making it our company's mission to learn and educate! I (Chelsea) have taken a specific challenge to embrace this new life while blogging, tweeting, and Facebooking about it. I will be working hard to find and test the best green tips to share with you. Check back often to see what I've discovered. Oh, and feel free to send tips my way!