Spring is rapidly approaching, it is time to clean up your place. EWG Has a nice list of tips to help you clean your house the green more eco-friendly way.

• Check the exterior of your home and repair any cracked or flaking paint
• Check and clean gutters again
• It is time to work on your garden and rejuvenate your lawn
• Inspect and test your sprinkler system. It will be needed soon
• Clean out your garage and closets. The holiday season is over and it is time to donate useless items and recycle other things
• Bad weather is over. Your car needs some TLC. Change its oil if necessary, get an inspection, clean and wax its exterior
• Check and clean chimney if necessary
• The heater will get a rest, so it’s time to check your air conditioner and its filters
• Check your roof and patch or replace any damaged areas

Some other useful tips

Using cleaners that do not have any of these chemicals: 2-butoxyethanol, Alkylphenol ethoxylates, Dye, Ethanolamines, fragrance, pine or citrus oil, Quaternary ammonium compounds.

Learn how to check on the products and ingredients by reading MSDS documents.

The Many Uses of Baking Soda

Baking soda is a pretty versatile product and a mainstay of any green person’ s utility chest. This product can be used for cleaning to laundry to maintaining your swimming pool to preparing your grill. Baking soda can easily replace far harsher chemicals that may exact a toll on the environment and perhaps your health. Arm and Hammer has a nice list of solutions to everyday household problems that baking soda can help solve.

My favorite uses of baking soda include:

• Cleaning toys
• Eliminating carpet odors when you vacuum
• Deodorizing a stinky garbage can
• Eliminating residue and dirt off fruits and vegetables
• Controlling the pH in your swimming pool at a far lower cost
• Creating an erupting volcano
• Boosting your clothes washer’s cleaning power

Baking soda and water works well as a substitute for acidic toilet-bowl cleaner and oven cleaners. These tips are also incorporated in their healthy home checklist.

Recycle old unused electronics and computers responsibly and perhaps get some money back.

Donate or give away unneeded items.

New Lawn Equipment and Small Boat Motor regulations

Spring is when we start thinking about purchasing new lawn equipment and motorboats.

US Environmental Protection Agency issued new emission standards for small engines used in lawn equipment and small boats aimed at significantly reducing pollution in our air and waterways. 2010 is when the new boat standards kick in. 2011 is when the new lawn and garden equipment rules start. Be sure to keep this in mind when upgrading or buying new gear. You’ll reduce the toxic gases you inhale and help clear the air.

A single ‘old-style’ lawnmower emits as much pollution in an hour as 50 cars driving 20 miles.

Many of the newly compliant lawnmowers will include catalytic converters.

Since January 1, 2007, California has required fuel powered mowers with catalytic converters, so this is not new here. If you are concerned by this, you could buy a unit that is California compliant and not wait for 2011.

Also consider buying an electric mower. Many areas have electric lawn mower rebate programs, so check with your local electric utility before buying. Many counties will work with your local hardware store and offer incentives to replace your old environmentally damaging gas lawn mower. Worx has a rebate when you buy their new electric mowers.

Costco’s Kirkland Signature Environmentally Friendly – Eco Friendly cleaner made from environmentally friendly ingredients that are biodegradable and biorenewable. Plant based formula, made from bio-renewable resources.  No Phosphates or dyes, cruelty free, natural fragrance.  Costco Connection has an article on this product in Costco Magazine page 55.

Kirkland Signature Environmentally Friendly fabric softener is also available. It uses biodegradable softening agents.

Costco Kirkland Signature Eco Friendly Cleaner Ingredients

Costco lists all active agreements. Coconut and palm oils ingredients as well as natural plant oils are used.  MSDS documents are tough to get. Calling Costco at 800-774-2678 lead to a recommendation to call their supplier for these products, Huish detergents – Sun Products, at 800-776-6702.  You can call them and ask for the MSDS documents.

Costco follows the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) requirement of cleaning agent degrading. Biodegrades 70% in 28 days after functioning.

Costco has stated that “Palm and coconut products are purchased only from certified-sustainable plantations where deforestation and irreversible damage to the ecosystem are forbidden.”

Per the MSDS documents, the Multi Purpose Cleaner has Cocamide DEA (From coconut oil, toxicity) and d-limonene (major component of the oil extracted from citrus rind). They do not indicate how much is present.

The Liquid Dish Detergent has Ethanol. (On the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Hazardous Waste list and can cause central nervous system disorders)

Liquid Laundry Detergent did not list items on its MSDS.

Digging into a product takes a while but can produce some interesting results.  At least Costco is moving in the right direction.  Using these products rather than old fashion ‘regular’ cleaners is a step in the right direction.

Don’t forget to wash your clothes in cold water.

Clorox Green Works Laundry Detergent

Clorox Green Works openly list their ingredients open on their packaging, unlike most other Clorox products:

Water, plant-based cleaning agents (methyl ester sulfonate, alkyl polyglucoside, cocodimethyl amine oxide), glycerine, water softener (sodium citrate), plant-derived soap (oleic acid), enzyme stabilizer (boric acid), natural enzymes, alkalinity builder (sodium hydroxide), fragrance with essential oils, salt, calcium chloride, biodegradable preservative, blue & yellow colorant. Contains no phosphate or bleach.

Their MSDS (Material Safety Document Sheet) document shows several hazardous ingredients and petroleum-derived ingredients.  Clorox Green Works products are not perfect, but a step in the green, eco friendly direction.  Clorox has wide distribution so they will allow more mainstream customers to access greener cleaning products. We prefer the slightly more green Method ultra concentrated or Seventh Generation products ourselves as they do not  have petroleum derived products. What exactly is a natural cleaning product?

Alternative Eco Friendly, Green Cleaning products

An easier route we take is buying Planet, Seventh Generation, or Method product from a local grocery store or Amazon.  Free shipping and low prices make it easy. These vendors clearly declare ingredients used in their products. No need to lug the heavy items too!

Do you wonder what is in that detergent or cleaning product?  How green is it really? What do I do if it gets on my skin?

We have often cited Material Safety Data Sheets or MSDS in our analysis of cleaning and construction products. What are they?

What is a MSDS

They are documents used to describe a products ingredients, what they are, are they hazardous, how to store them, toxicity, health affects, what should be done if there is an accident, regulatory issues, etc. Vendors have to undertake manufacturing, distribution, use and disposal of hazardous materials and chemicals to complete these documents.  There are even MSDS docs for things like Mustard gas, VX Nerve gas!

OSHA and the EPA set up regulations that require MSDS documents on certain products.

Where can I find MSDS documents

Often vendors have links to MSDS documents on their website or require you to email them asking for them.  This site has links to many MSDS docs.  NIH has a database of Household Products.

When checking out the greeness of a product, be sure to look for its MSDS document and READ it.

Additional carcinogenic chemicals identified

Formaldehyde, Aristolochic Acids, styrene,Captafol, cobalt tungsten carbide, inhalable gas wool fibers, O-Nitrotoluene, and Riddelliine was added to the National Toxicology Program’s carcinogenic list in 2011. It takes them a while to identify and add items to the list.

Formaldehyde is found in many composite wood products such as desks, bookcases, kitchen cabinets. Be sure to check our article on volatile organic compounds or VOCs.

Some herbal remedies contain Aristolochic Acids, so check your homeopathic medicines.

Some herbal teas contain Riddelliine.

Why are so few chemicals tested For Safety?

A recent article titled: Why Are So Few Chemicals Tested? reminded us about how scary the chemical world is.

Many everyday products contain chemicals that have never been tested for safety. The clothing detergent that you used and the dishwasher soap that you cleaned with probably hasn’t been tested at all.  The Toxic  Substances Control Act (TSCA) passed in 1976. The number of chemicals used in commercial products rose from 60,000 to 80,000 during this period. The EPA has tested only 200 of these chemicals and banned only five.

Under this act, chemicals are given the benefit of doubt. They are presumed safe unless proven unsafe. New laws are being proposed that would allow the EPA to regulate of new and existing chemicals and to take faster action. You sure do express your support for these measures with your local representatives.

A recent CNN program – Toxic America by Dr. Sanjay Gupta reiterates elements of a safe and clean home.

We need to look to Europe for leading edge guidance.  The European Chemicals Agency is considering restrictions or bans on these substances of very high concern. These are chemicals that are carcinogenic mutagenic, toxic for reproduction; persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic; very persistent and very bioaccumulative. Scientific evidence showing probable human health effects from these chemicals should raise our concern level. Industry needs be more proactive in insuring all chemicals have fully tested for safety on humans.

Chemical – And Their Uses

Benzl butyl phthalate (BBzP) -Plasticizer, Vinyl tiles, food conveyor belts, artificial leather, traffic cones, plastic foam

Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEPH) – Plasticizer, Toys, medical devices, furniture, pool liners, lightsticks

Cobalt dichloride – Humidity indicator, Metal-plated objects

Dibutyl phthalate -Food Containers, nail polish

Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP) – Paints, printing inks, adhesives

Hexabromocyclododecane – Flame Retardants

Lead chromate – Paints

Potassium chromate – Leather, textiles, enamels, pigments

EPA Green Chemistry Awards

The EPA gives out Green Chemistry Awards to the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances. Green chemistry applies across the life cycle, including the design, manufacture, and use of a chemical product.

When you are looking for green products, be sure to check out past Green Chemistry award winners.

A 2003 winner was the Environmentally Friendly Biofungicide Serenade from AgraQuest. It stops fruit and vegetable, rose, vines, and flower diseases. It is Bacillus subtilis strain (QST713) based and compatible with IPM programs.

Be sure to read those ingredient lists and MSDS documents.