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It is the annual cleaning time of the year as we gear up to celebrate the festival of lights. This year, courtesy the pandemic, with the new understanding, and to do our little bit to enhance greener life choices and drive sustainable practices, let's choose nature-friendly cleaning practices so that when we clean our houses, we do not pollute and dirty our larger home – mother earth.
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This Diwali, make your festive cleaning effective through sustainable solutions and ditch the harmful chemical and plastic laden cleaners, making switching to:
Natural Cleaners/ Bio Enzymes
Home cleaning products, like detergents and liquid cleaners, etc., found at stores, contain toxic and harmful chemicals which have destructive environmental consequences. BioEnzymes are the perfect way to manage home cleaning needs and are practically free as it uses up basic citrus waste found at home. Make a mixture of citrus fruit peel, brown sugar/jaggery, yeast and water in a container then leave it for a month, drain the liquid and its ready to use.
For an instant solution to greasy steel surfaces, mix baking soda with lime drops and scrub. Alternatives like adding vinegar to a solution with soaked citrus peels also work wonders for tough greasy surfaces. These solutions are easy on hands and do not harm nature in any way and clean well.
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Use Cloth Dusters
Before plastic cleaners came into the market, and in our daily cleaning routines, the cloth was a solution to all surface cleaning requirements. Go back to wet or dry cloth dusters instead of using paper tissues or napkins. Make use of those cloth rags and turn them into duster; this reduces the major carbon footprint that goes into produces tons of garments each year. They can be cleaned easily and reused for a longer time and are totally pocket-friendly as compared to buying paper rolls every month.
Coir Scrubs
Chemical and plastic laden synthetic scrubs and cleaners are one of the largest sources of micro-plastic pollution in the air and water. They can cause scratches or be damaging on sensitive surfaces like non-stick pans etc. Coconut coir scrubs, on the other hand, are not only biodegradable and eco-friendly but are also perfect for effective cleaning on all kinds of surfaces; they are scratch-free, safe for your hands, non-toxic, naturally antimicrobial, non-absorbent and low-maintenance.
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Upcycle The Clutter
De-cluttering is an important part of cleaning. And a lot of people tend to equate this to 'discarding' un-used materials, which eventually finds its way to landfills and add to the waste load. Instead, look out for NGO's and organisations that are into re-cycling and up-cycling plastic and other wastes. Look at creating up-cycled art decorations for home, like plastic bottles can be used for making self-watering plant pots or glass bottles can be used to create lights and lamp decors etc.
So this Diwali, go back to basics, be creative and not just clean your homes but also get rid of a lifestyle filled with chemicals, toxic and plastic resources. Not to forget these home-made sustainable solutions will make you richer by saving a sizable amount of money. So it will indeed be a Happy Diwali!
Also Read: Thinking Of Pampering Your Loved Ones This Diwali? We've Got You Covered
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