Green Product Review: Natural Instincts Stain Remover

Not the most riveting of topics, I know, but I have been longing to find a good, non-toxic stain remover for. ever. Up until last week, the stain remover was the one blip on my green laundry radar and it really bugged me. Plus it stunk. And any homemade remedies (like vinegar, baking soda, washing soda and lemon juice) were never quite up to scratch. And, in all honesty, were a lot more work. And I'm all about the easy.

My sister found some of the Natural Instinct range at a chemist and called me about the Pre-Wash Stain Remover. Yes, I most definitely wanted to try some! And here's what I've found:

Pros:

• It's non-toxic and has no discernible scent at all = winning!
• If you follow the instructions (leaving a minimum of 5 minutes before washing) then it works just as well as regular stain remover on new stains
• It even takes out some of the yellowing of old underarm or collar stains

Cons:

• It's $7 for 500ml. I've not checked but I think it's more expensive than the regular sprays from the supermarket
• You do need to be slighly more organised to make sure you leave the spray on for minimum of five minutes. I usually spray my first load of washing the night before so it's ready to go. (Yes, I am a bit ridiculous.)
• It's not quite as good at removing super tough or older stains, unless you apply it a number of times and wash it a number of times.

Verdict: 

I'll definitely be buying this from now on. The fact that it's non-toxic alone is reason enough for me, plus, it works.

 

Green Living: Fabric Nappies

No, they're not for everyone. Yes, I am quite keen on them. Yes, I do wash slightly more often. No, I don't find them gross 'cause, well, there's poo in them regardless of what they're made of.

There's a growing number of cloth mamas around, and also a lot of mamas who are interested but overwhelmed, so I thought I could share what I've done to get on the cloth bandwagon, and hope that this may help someone.

I know there's a bazillion different brands out there now, but I found one I liked and just stuck with them. I ordered a test pack to make sure they worked and fit properly and then I just went ahead and ordered enough for three days. (Like I've said before, giving yourself endless options doesn't make your decision quicker, likely the opposite).

I use Bambooty nappies on both of my kids. I've got 3 days' worth in small, medium and large and I very rarely have to revert to using disposables (although I do keep a pack for upset-tummy-emergencies or rainy-week happenings).

I opt to use the flushable liner in my kids' nappies as it does make getting rid of poo a little easier so I just pop in in the loo on my way to the laundry.

(In the interests of safety and hygiene I keep the dirty nappy bucket in the laundry.) I use a dry bucket to keep dirty nappies, so I just spray them with a tea-tree oil and water mix and pop them straight in the bucket. The bucket gets washed and sprayed with vinegar on washing day and I sprinkle bicarb in the bottom to get rid of any smells.

On washing day I use a half-strength scoop of environmentally-friendly laundry powder (it's the only time I use it - on Bambooty's suggestion) and a sprinkle of bicarb. No vinegar in the wash as it can affect the absorption quality of the nappies. I make sure to wash using 60C water (again, the only time I wash in anything other than cold water) which is hot enough to kill any bacteria.

It really is simple once you find your groove, just like any new routine.

Green Product Review: Organoil

When Sparky and I were looking at products to finish our house, we tended to look for products that were safe for our family, with less impact on the environment. I've already mentioned the interior paint we chose, but I thought I'd review the floor finish we ended up using, as when I was researching online I could find very little info on it.

We have cypress pine floor throughout the house and decided to get the old floors (which were finished with some kind of estapol or polyurethane finish) sanded back and treated at the same time as the new floor in the extension. After talking to a few people and doing some reading online we opted for an oil finish on the floors and decided to go with Organoil.

THE PROS:

• The smell was not only bearable but actually pretty pleasant. Citrusy/bergamoty kind of thing.
• It's non-toxic - great for Isy and myself (I was pregnant at the time)
• A matte finish on the floor - good for a family home where spills are frequent and varied!
• Scratches are apparently easy to fix, with just a quick reapplication of oil required.
• The installer recommended only mopping once a month (score!) as the matte finish means scuff marks don't show up readily.
• The matte finish feels really nice underfoot, as you're essentially just walking on the polished raw timber.

THE CONS:

• It's expensive to install (it's more time-consuming apparently) but it was more than double what a poly-finished floor would cost.
• We're found it to be not very durable. Things that wouldn't have scratched our old poly floors have left noticeable marks and scratches in the finish (these aren't gouges, just surface scratches from things like the high-chair or the kids' pram)
• Things like chalk or crayon, which would wipe off a poly floor easily can leave a mark.
• Very very very susceptible to water damage in the early days and weeks. Obviously water and oil aren't great friends, which means we had to walk on cloths for the first few days, to avoid getting any water from our shoes onto the floor. Even socks wouldn't do as any sweat on your socks will affect the finish. We had a million people in and out of the house at this stage and as a result, have tradies' footprints, what I think is an Esky mark and water rings in the finish already.

Scratches in the surface from the high chair.

The beautiful, silky matte finish on the floor. Feels nice underfoot!

The water damage (whitish marks) from a tradies' Esky and drink bottle.

THE RESULT:

Despite all the cons, and the fact that we're both a little disappointed in the durability of the finish, Sparky and I would still choose Organoil if we had our time again. The smell factor is huge for me, and I do like the more rustic, matte finish of the floor. It's a little more on the Scandinavian side, which is what we're after in our house overall.

Basically there's a reason that some products have both a green option and a traditional, commercial option - often there's characteristics of the commercial option that people don't want to compromise on (durability/hardness, shine, etc). In this case we're happy to compromise as the pay-off is a much greener, friendlier product in our home.