Clean House

At one point in time, I made every single cleaning product in my home. However, trial and error has shown me that there are other products I can purchase that are just as good. (I do still enjoy making stuff, though!)

Mostly, we use water only to clean. Very rarely do I feel the need to sanitize anything.

Here is a list of products we employ to keep our home spic and span. I use a lot of Norwex products, but not all! Below this list, check out my thoughts on several products.

Kitchen
Norwex Envirocloth
Norwex Scrubby Dish Cloth
Norwex Mighty Mesh Pot Scrubber
Norwex Polishing Cloth
Better Life Dish Soap
Better Life Dishwasher Soap
Norwex Magnetic Ball
Norwex Kitchen Towel (for drying only!)

Bathroom
Norwex Envirocloth
Norwex Scrubby Dish Cloth (works FAB for soap scum in the tub!)
Norwex Polishing Cloth

Laundry
Biokleen Laundry Detergent Powder
Biokleen Bac-Out
Buncha Farmers Stain Stick
Poofy Organics Pre-treatment Spray
Norwex Laundry Pre-Wash
Norwex Magnetic Ball
Wool Dryer Balls

Floors
Asian Broom (the $5 one from the Asian markets)
Norwex Superior Mop (dry and wet)

Walls/Furniture
Norwex Dusting Mit
Norwex Envirowand Dusting Sleeve

Specialty
Norwex cleaning paste
Young Living Thieves Cleaner (a capful in nasty laundry is nice; also used if I feel the need to ?sanitize somewhere which is not often)
Vodka (I add it to water and put in whatever essential oils I want)
Vinegar (kiddos get vinegar/water spray bottles)
Norwex Oven Grill/Cleaner
Lye (as drain cleaner occasionally, but check this is safe for your specific pipes!)
Mr. Clean Magic Eraser (removes blue crayon from upholstery!)

Here?s the scoop on each of the cleaning products.

Envirocloths: LOVE. Anything that gets off caked dried on banana on my dining table with just water and not much elbow grease is a win. They’re also a degreaser just wipe up any oil! These do not hold odor and they don’t smell even at the end of a week. (after each use, I try to hand scrub the cloth with a bit of dishwashing soap and rinse, but not always)

Mighty Mesh Pot Scrubber (they also have non-handled ones called Spirinettes): Scrubs everything without effort! I can easily remove stuck food off cookware, burnt food on the stove top, and even dirt and soap scum off my should-never-have-been-used-poor-quality shower porcelain tile. Be careful the plastic handle doesn?t slice your finger! If there are spots that could, then contact Norwex!

Kitchen Towel: gets things DRY. I don’t like to dry my hands on it even because it pulls everything – all my hand oils – off my hands. But that’s a darn helpful thing for drying dishes or countertop. ?I used to keep it hanging on my stove, but I was needing something for my hands more than I was drying, so I put these away in the cupboard and just have a regular towel hanging for drying my hands. ?That may not be an issue for you, but it feels really unpleasant to me to dry my hands on these.

Dish Soap and Dishwasher Detergent: The Norwex ones are costly, and I prefer the ingredients in the Better Life products. Check each ingredient on EWG.

Magnet Ball: AMAZING. I want another! I always forget I have this thing because it just sits inside the dishwasher. I have not had to use a rinse aid of any kind in our dishwasher ever since I got this. I don?t know the magic it uses, but it works!
I also have one that lives in my washing machine. My clothes are always soft without the poison of a fabric softener or the hassle of vinegar!

Scrubby Dish Cloth: This is great and it gets off pieces of stuck on food easily. Never smells – I only wash this once a week. I also use it to remove soap scum in the bath tub. Do not confuse this with the regular dish cloth that is a piece of netting. Some people love the netting (not me). If you want to try that, go to the fabric store and buy a piece. It?s the exact same thing. (note this is the same fabric on the bathroom scrub mitt no reason to buy separate products!)

Cleaning Paste: This is pretty neat stuff for places an abrasive cleaner may be needed.

Laundry Detergent: ?The bain of my existence! Ha! The Norwex detergent is very costly and is made of unattractive ingredients. I’ve used Country Save, but it doesn’t get my whites white and left clothes dingy over time. Molly’s Suds Powder is popular and seems so nice, but it is just water softener. Moll s Suds Liquid Detergent looks good and supposedly works well, but it is costly. I’m currently loving Biokleen Laundry Detergent POWDER and I may consider Planet 2x Ultra Laundry Detergent Free & Clear if I have need of something else in the future.

A note one homemade laundry soap: Yes, I used to make my own like everybody else, but then I realized the importance of a detergent vs. a soap. The homemade laundry soaps are soaps, not detergents. So, the soap will attach to the dirt, but then it won’t leave the fabric – that’s no good. ?You need a detergent or some real friction (like from hand washing), to get it out. ?A detergent has two things going for it: part of it attracts to dirt, the other part attracts to water. ?So, it will get the dirt and leave the clothing.

Wool Dryer Balls: Love them, but be sure to buy them inexpensively on Amazon or at local discount stores. Or make them. I think the main function is helping clothes not tangle so they dry more evenly. ?I find static electricity is only a problem on synthetic fabrics, and we have very few of those. But, the balls do help with that, as well. If you want a scent on your laundry, after the clothes dry, add some essential oils to the balls and toss them in and run the dryer another ten minutes.

Polishing/Window Cloth: oh so nice. I wipe down my cupboard doors, windows, mirrors, chrome handles, glass table top with the Envirocloth and then run the polishing cloth back over and it is streak-free, lint-free every time. The girls do this. They love it. ?Gotta have it.

Dusting mitt: Wow! I live in Texas. We have dust. Always. Every day. Everywhere. This picks it up – better than the swiffer and better than Pledge! – and I actually have to dust less now. I’m not sure how/why. I also have the kids’ dusting mitt clothes for the girls to go over the tops of baseboards. The girls have the kids’ mitt, too, and they love it.

Envirowand: Same great dusting material as the mitt, but a nice shape. I can reach up to my fans or down to my baseboards.

Superior Mop System: I’m seriously obsessed. I mostly use it for dry mopping. Loved that I can now walk around bare footed and not get stuff all over my feet. I use this thing like five times a day. I love it. Make sure you get the SUPERIOR mop system, not the other one. The kids’ mops are the other one and the re terrible. Instead, buy the kids a regular sized superior mop pad as that fits the kids’ mop perfectly. My girls love love love mopping for me. And it?s effective every time!

As far as the wet mop goes, it’s pretty great and got up stuff I didn’t expect it too. Very easy to use, as well. Make sure you buy a rubber hand brush to go with this mop system. ?Also, I’m using this on hardwood floors and a very small amount of tile. While there is a tile pad to buy, I don?t find need of it.

Rubber Hand Brush: This works great at getting hair/stuffing off upholstery and cleaning my mop thingy between rooms.

Oven/Grill Cleaner: Works really well. Best part for me was the no fumes. Charlotte was standing right next to me while we sprayed it in. Make sure you open the screen on the bottle or it uses way more product to create a foam.

Laundry Stain Stuff: If it?s a body fluid, I use Biokleen Bac-Out. The Poofy pre-treatment works ok on very minor problems. For food stains, I use Buncha Farmers stain stick. For things I know are going to be a major stain problem or stains that have gone through the dryer, I use the Norwex Laundry Pre-Wash. I?m not a huge fan of the ingredients, but it works super well.

Drain Cleaner: Watch a few YouTube videos on how to clean your drains with lye. Be safe with it! The Norwex drain cleaner is very nice, but it won?t unclog pipes at all like lye does. It?s also costly. Lye fits my budget and I use it to make our soap, too.

People often ask me what they should purchase first. Envirocloth, Mighty Mesh Pot Scrubber, Polishing Cloth. ?If you have toddlers, add a finger spray bottle from the beauty supply store and you’ll get them to effectively clean half your house! ?(I do half vinegar, half water only because if they don’t wipe up all the water, when it drip dries, it doesn’t leave streaks thanks to the vinegar content)

If you are interested in purchasing some specific Norwex products, feel free to contact me about it if you don?t have another buddy from whom you can purchase. I do not business build. I do not keep up with new products. I have what works for me, and that?s it.