Many of us grew up in the largest generation: the Clorox generation. Our earliest memories of cleaning usually involved using bleach and water. The use of bleach defined cleanliness for us – the stinging nostrils, burning cuticles, and noxious fumes – and yet, no one ever seemed alarmed at its use. Of course, bleach isn’t all bad. A bottle of bleach means clean drinking water in many parts of the world, good times in swimming pools, and very white clothing. So, why all the fuss?
Bleach is kryptonite for allergy and asthma suffers. Bleach also mixes with common household cleaning products to create some dangerous situations. Examples? Oh, I got plenty of those!
Mixed with ammonia … bleach releases a gas that can cause your lungs to stop functioning. Where is ammonia lurking that bleach often mixes with it? Toilets. Urine contains ammonia, right?
Mixed with dish soap … bleach produces mustard gas. That’s right, the stuff from World War I that caused severe chemical burns, conjunctivitis, temporary blindness, bleeding and blistering within the respiratory system, and (in some cases) cancer. Not cool, folks.
Mixed with organic matter … bleach produces chloroform. Chloroform? Yep. Inhaling chloroform vapors depresses the central nervous system of a patient, causing dizziness, fatigue and unconsciousness. Prolonged exposure can harm necessary (and kind of super-important) organs like your liver, kidneys, and skin. Chloroform is also a cancer-causing toxin.
So, what can we use instead of bleach?? Easy-peasy, y’all!
Here’s the recipe:
12 cups water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup hydrogen peroxide
Mix. Add 2 cups per wash load or put in spray bottle and use as a household cleaner.
You can use grapefruit juice instead of lemon juice. Whatever floats your boat.
I got this bottle of hydrogen peroxide for less than $1. One bottle like the one above contains about 2 cups of hydrogen peroxide. So, we’re keeping it appealing to the budget.
There we have it. Fresh as an Irish water fall. No noxious fumes. No burns. No fear.
Load this stuff into an old vinegar jug and/or a household sprayer and start your cleaning engines!
