Green Clean with Steam

With the weather starting to get a bit more Fall like, I have been working on changing over my closet from summer to winter. This annual event is filled with a great deal of shifting of shoes (as you may have guessed, I have many shoes). Into the closet go the sandals and out of the closet come the boots. I also use this transition to review my clothing and clear out items I no longer use. Some are put aside for clothing swaps. Professional items are separated out for donation to the Career Wardrobe and the final pile goes to Planet Aid or Goodwill.

All this cleaning got me thinking about new ways to clean my house which has mainly tile and some hardwood flooring. I have been using the Method mop and cleaner with reusable microfiber pads. I prefer this solution to a mop and water, but I wanted to get a deeper clean, remove the cleaning product and see if I could find an easier solution. 

Enter Steam Cleaners. I recently saw an ad for the Shark Vac-Then-Steam that piqued my interest. I investigated my options online and there are several products for under $100 that will steam clean tile, hardwood, etc. Many got good user reviews and I did consider them, but you have to sweep or vacuum before you use them - 2 steps with 2 appliances and not much difference from my current program. 

The Shark Vac-Then-Steam performs both steps with one machine. It retails for a bit more - $149 at a local Target. It comes with several washable microfiber pads. I added a little white vinegar to the water for a little boost. It did a great job in my kitchen in a few minutes and utilized less than a full tank of water. 

Is it greener? Maybe not. It does use water and electricity, while my Method system relies on "green" cleaner and muscle power. But it does perform 2 functions with one appliance, will reduce the use of my monster Dyson and does get a deeper clean while cutting my cleaning time in half.

Maybe the compromise is to use the steamer for the heavy cleans and the Method system in between. Either way, steam cleaning is coming to home near you.

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew

Waterless Wash?

We've discussed washing our clothes numerous times on this blog. The water and energy use is staggering and we won't even discuss drying and ironing! 

Enter the Xeros Waterless Washing Machine(currently in rapid prototype stage). Using a similar theory to washing balls, the Xeros system uses detergent in tandem with nylon beads that work their way into your clothes and absorb stains. When the cycle is over the beads drain away, leaving your clothes  clean. Xeros claims to use 90% less water than traditional washing machines and estimate a 30% reduction in laundry costs over a traditional system. Other benefits include a faster cycle, no need to use a dryer and less nasty soap run off in the environment.

Xeros is currently working with the commercial sector, but they plan to roll out home models as well. Thumbs up for Xeros, but the jury is out till we see the cold, hard facts and the bright, clean results;)

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew