BidMyCleaning.com Banter

Bidmycleaning's Green House Cleaning Pantry: Cornstarch

Posted by Candice on September 30, 2009 at 17:04 pm

Cornstarch, or cornflour, is the starch of the corn (maize) grain. It has many applications in the home and is a useful addition to your green cleaning pantry. Some of the ways you can use cornstarch are to clean windows, to deodorize and clean carpets and rugs, polish furniture and several others.

One of the key ways you can use cornstarch is to cut grease because it does a great job of absorbing oil. When it comes to laundry – as it’s name applies – it is a great way of naturally starching clothes.

In the kitchen cornstarch is perfect for cleaning areas which becomes greasy such as stove tops, vent hoods and countertops where food prep takes place. To clean these surfaces create a paste of cornstarch and water and then use it like you would any regular commercial de-greaser.
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New Demographic for Maid Service

Posted by Candice on September 28, 2009 at 22:29 pm

When one thinks of the typical demographic for a maid service it would probably be a dual income household with a working mother or perhaps a Single Professional. It seems however, that the younger under-25, or Generation-Y, demographic has come to appreciate the benefits of regular housekeeping help and are happy to pay for it.

It is becoming more common for students to pay someone to keep their dorm room clean. It is a cost that can be shared among roommates. It is common for one roommate to end up carrying the load when it comes to keeping the shared space clean and so it may be an easier discussion to say I think we need to hire a housekeeper to help us stay on top of the cleaning than to say “you need to clean up more”. Parents are often willing to lend a hand with an expense like this because they feel it will free up more time for working and ensure a sanitary living environment.

For recent college grads who may not go out much and spend more time at home cooking and having friends over, the cost of a maid service is seen as an important part of ensuring a comfortable living space. They would rather splurge on this than another handbag or pair of shoes. Again, in the situations, a parent may have put down the security deposit for the apartment and hiring a cleaning service increases the likelihood they will get that back in the end.

When it comes to freeing up some time or just making sure your home is as comfortable as it can be for you maid service is beneficial for anyone.

Seven Quick Ways To Clean Up

Posted by cstone on September 24, 2009 at 14:24 pm

If we all just for one day looked at everything we consume and use and tried to find ways to clean up our act so to speak we would realize that there are many opportunities to be more green and eco-friendly.

Here are 7 quick ways to send a little less to the landfill:

1. Junk Mail: There are 100 billion mail items sent every year in the US. If you think about all the resources that go into making that happen it is mind-boggling. Think of the trees, the water, the power, the mail processing facilities, the cars the mail carriers drive. Just cutting down the amount of junk mail you received will make a huge difference! There are services available to help you do that eg. http://www.41pounds.org/

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Truth in Labeling -House Cleaning Edition

Posted by Candice on September 21, 2009 at 23:01 pm

Consumer demand for safe and eco-friendly personal care and home care products continues to climb. People rightly believe that they have aright to know exactly what is in the products they have in their kitchen or bathroom cabinets but this is certainly not the case. Most cleaning products do not include a complete list of ingredients as there are no government requirements for these products as there are for food products. Currently, the government only requires that ingredients which pose an immediate danger be indicated on a product label.

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Bidmycleaning’s Friday Eco-Friendly Web Find: WorldChanging.com

Posted by Candice on September 18, 2009 at 14:37 pm

It seems that more and more people are becoming aware of the fact that continuing on our current path of consumption and disregard to our environment is no longer sustainable. There is a growing awareness of the need to find new and different ways of doing things that are more eco-friendly. WorldChanging.com was founded on the idea that real solutions already exist for things like renewable energy and innovative ways to improve building, transportation, communication and quality of life. They are advocating that we focus on these and get things moving we can build the future we want. In their own words, “Our readers are ready to change the world, and Worldchanging connects them with the latest ideas on how to do that.”

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CleanWell – Another Essential Oils Post

Posted by Candice on September 16, 2009 at 10:30 am

So in keeping with yesterday’s post about using Essential Oils for house cleaning – today we want to talk about another great application of essential oils. The safety of our families is one of the main reasons for focusing on how to be more green in our homes and when it comes to the safety of our children it can be daunting trying to find products that fit the bill.

With the looming threat of H1N1 flu and the constant PSAs about clean hands being our best defense, it is tempting to resort to Purell or some such product when there is no soap and water available for hand washing. Alcohol and Triclosan are two of the undesirables in these products. Triclosan in particular, breaks down into toxic chemicals including chloroform. There is a better choice – CleanWell All Natural Hand Sanitizer and Hand Soap. Can something all natural and 100% biodegradable really kill 99.99% of germs including MRSA, staph, E. coli, and Salmonella!
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Bidmycleaning’s Green House Cleaning Pantry – Essential Oils

Posted by Candice on September 15, 2009 at 10:00 am

What does a clean home smell like? We’ve come to associate a fresh lemon or pine scent with clean but in the case of commercial cleaning products that scent is most likely anything but fresh. Typically the fragrance of these products is a cocktail of chemicals that are best avoided in our homes.  The best way to avoid the chemicals in commercial cleaners is of course to make our own at home so we’ve been highlighting the staples you should have on hand to create your own cleaning products in our green cleaning pantry series.

So, how do you get the fresh clean scent for your homemade cleaners?

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Bidmycleaning’s Friday Eco-Friendly Web Find: Grist.org

Posted by Candice on September 11, 2009 at 10:30 am

Grist is no newcomer to the green scene, having been providing environmental news and commentary since 1999. If you need a little help making sense of the latest headline … perhaps with a wry twist then Grist is for you. As they say, “each day, we use our Clarity-o-Meter to draw out the real meaning behind green stories, and to connect big issues like climate change to daily life.”

Top level navigation highlights News, Grist Voices, GristTV, Community, Green Jobs, Eco-Shop and a variety of topics like Politics, Climate & Energy, Food, Business and Living Green. There is a quick ‘More’ link to a tag cloud where you can easily link to topics of interest to you. You can also start your visit by looking at what content is most viewed, most commented on and most emailed.

Grist voices is where you can learn more about the authors and reporters and see all their articles. GristTV has original programming which looks like it might be a new addition because there’s only a small sampling of videos posted. The Eco-Shop is powered by http://www.econsciousmarket.com/ and has a full range of eco-friendly choices clothing, accessories and personal care products as well as home and office supplies and furniture. In the Grist community you can register for a free account, which will allow you to post a profile, follow favorite writers, make comments, and more. You can also friend or follow Grist on all your favorite social networks including Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube.

Eco-Friendly Move-In and Move-Out Tips

Posted by Candice on September 9, 2009 at 10:30 am

We all have one eventually – moving day! Whether it is moving out of your parents home to your first apartment or taking the big step of first time home ownership moving day is usually a time for great excitement and lots of work. One of the big jobs associated with moving in or out is the clean up that goes with it. When you move out of a home you tend to ‘spring clean’ and get rid unnecessary ‘stuff’ and when you move into a home you will have a lot of used packing materials once you’re done unpacking. So how do you make sure that your moving day is eco-friendly.

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What's Your House Cleaning Style?

Posted by Candice on September 8, 2009 at 10:30 am

When it comes to house cleaning most everyone probably has a dirty little secret – the old adage about sweeping dirt under the rug came from somewhere. House cleaning is a chore that most people view as a necessary evil and this probably leads to crazy shortcuts or unusual ways of getting the chores done!

We all know about going on a binge when it comes to dieting but what about binge cleaning? Yes, the principle is the same -periods of famine and feast – or more specifically periods where you ignore the clutter, dust, dirt and soap scum that is appearing around your house and pretend it isn’t there as it accumulates and then the sudden ‘binge’ where you clean the entire house from top to bottom … with a toothbrush!  This would be fine if you didn’t feel guilty about letting things slide between cleanings but in all likelihood you do. You probably live in fear that a neighbor will knock on the door and will get to see the cheerios lying on the floor and layer of dust on your furniture. It can be difficult to commit to a schedule of cleaning which will mean your house is cleaned on a regular basis but it might be good for your mental health to try it. There are many great websites which can help you figure out a cleaning checklist and rotational schedule to keep your cleaning on track.

Does your family sometimes compare you to the wicked witch of the west because you’re always nagging them about house cleaning chores? Not all family members are always on the same page when it comes to how clean the house should be. You may want your home to be ready for company at all times whereas your spouse might be more inclined to wait until the door bell rings and then rush around throwing things in closets and hiding clutter behind the sofa cushions. In this case your requests to clean up will be seen as nagging. Perhaps a family meeting is necessary to all agree on a cleaning routine for your home and then assign chores and deadlines posted where everyone can see them. Hopefully this will reduce the nagging required.

The only time a cleaning style becomes a problem is where you share a home with others who do not have the same cleaning style otherwise it’s all good. If your cleaning style is complete avoidance then let us help you find a reliable house cleaner in your neighborhood.