The Problem with Green Cleaning Recipes

October 16, 2013 by Admin Leave a Comment

Green cleaning recipes are all the rage and many people are making the switch to green cleaning products to try and get away from the toxic chemical cleaners that have been shown to have an adverse effect on people’s health.

The problem with these green cleaning recipes though is they are a hassle to make, they don’t smell great and they don’t really work that well!

Like every good mechanic knows, you have to have the right tools to do the job and even though the green cleaning recipes are better than their chemical counterparts for your health, you are still going to have a hard time cleaning without the right tools.

Best microfiber cleaning cloths.

Most families in their homes are still cleaning with cotton cloths, paper towels or even newspapers on the windows.

Now, paper towels can do a good job with absorbing liquids and cleaning up lint from windows, but there is a lot of waste and part of the green cleaning movement is to be eco-friendly and protect the environment.

The use of paper towels does not help that and in fact Americans use over 3,000 tons of paper towels a DAY! It takes 51,000 trees a day to replace those paper towels.

The problem with cotton cloths is they don’t remove bacteria without having a chemical agent to kill it. Bacteria that does get on the cloth stays there and that is where you get the smell from, even after rinsing it out.

If you use the cloth again, it still has the bacteria on it and it spreads to other surfaces.

And as for newspapers…let’s just stick to reading the headlines instead of wiping the black print all over our windows.

So the solution?

The E-Cloth

Ecloth is a top quality microfiber cloth that uses microfiber technology to grab dirt and bacteria and trap it between the tiny fibers in the cloth. This actually lifts the bacteria from the surface and keeps it in the cloth so it doesn’t go back on the surface or get pushed around like cotton cloths do.

You don’t need any green cleaning recipes and especially no toxic chemical solutions, all you need is water and a quality microfiber cloth.

It has been shown to remove over 99% of bacteria from hard surfaces and with a quick rinse in hot water it releases it all down the sink, so there is no transfer to other surfaces if you are to use the same cloth again.

The cloths don’t hold the bacteria, so if you have the problem of stinky kitchen cloths, then you have a bacteria problem. It is the bacteria in those used cotton cloths that make them smell. Not so with microfiber cloths from E-cloth. They don’t hold the bacteria, so they don’t smell, even after using them regularly for days.

In fact, just one wash a week for a regular household is enough to keep the ecloths fresh and new and they are guaranteed for at least 300 washes. That is 6 years of daily use from one cloth.

Just how many paper towels and cleaning supplies do you think you would save in 6 years?

E-cloth has been manufacturing microfiber cloths since 1995 and is the world’s leader in quality microfiber cloths.

They have the highest amount of fibers per square inch of any microfiber dues to their advanced manufacturing procedures and can pack 1.6 million fibers per square inch compared to 200,000 from most of their competitors.

What does this mean for you?

More cleaning power!

Best Cleaning supplies

When compared to 345 sprays, scrubbers, brooms mops and solutions, E-cloth came out top in 3 cleaning categories according to Real Simple magazine. Best all-round cloth, best washable mop and best scrubber.

E-cloth has a list of top quality microfiber products to help you clean your home without the green cleaning recipes or toxic chemical cleaning solutions. You can find them here and they have free shipping on all orders in the US (excludes Alaska and Hawaii)

Once you try these microfiber products, you will never need green cleaning recipes again.

Just water and a quality Microfiber cloth.

Try it…you’ll be glad you did!

Microfiber Cleaning Cloths from Ecloth

October 15, 2013 by Admin Leave a Comment

Microfiber Cleaning Cloths are a revolutionary, environmentally friendly, and extremely effective way to clean. Microfiber cloths are made of tiny fiber which catch and hold dirt, grease and grime and pull it away from your surfaces. There are approximately 200,000 fibers in one square inch of a high standard store bought microfiber towel. Top level microfiber cloths have 1.6 million fibers per square inch and that really makes a difference!

Ecloth is the world’s leading producer of microfiber cloths and have been manufacturing since 1995. Nearly 500 million fiber strands are in each e-cloth resulting in 1,246 miles of e-cloth fibers in each cloth. To put this in perspective, fibers from one e-cloth would stretch from New York City to Minneapolis or Seattle to San Diego.It is e-cloth’s composition (highest quality polyester and polyamide), fiber size (smallest diameter in the world), fiber processing (highest density in the world), that allows e-cloth to outperform all other microfiber and cleaning cloths.

e-cloth’s filaments are so small and so strong; using just water they break up, lift, lock in, and clean deep down into the tiniest grooves and crevices. Dust, grease, oils, grime, dirt and bacteria are quickly and easily removed and locked away deep inside the fibers until the cloths are rinsed or washed.

Surfaces are cleaned so effectively that there is nowhere left for bacteria to grow. Surfaces are left polished and totally smear and lint free. e-cloths rapidly absorb 7 times their weight in water.

In addition, scientific research carried out by world renowned Silliker Group, has proven that e-cloths also remove over 99% of bacteria.

High quality microfiber cleaning cloths feature split microfiber, after the splitting process each fiber towel looks like an asterisk if you’re looking at a cross section. The open spaces in the microfiber created by the splitting process allow it to pick up and hold dirt as well as absorbing liquid.

You can use microfiber cleaning cloths dry as a duster instead of using a cleaning cloth treated with chemicals or a (chemical) spray and wipe method. Split microfiber is positively charged which makes it work like a magnet attracting negatively charged dust particles. This characteristic along with the microscopic open spaces created by the splitting process allow the cloth to attract and hold dirt and dust rather than just pushing it around like a cotton cloth would. Depending on the size of the cloth you may want to fold it. For instance, when using a 16×16 cloth it’s probably best to fold it into fourths. This gives you 8 cleaning surfaces on one towel. When using a smaller cloth, like a 12”x12”, you may want to just use it unfolded like you would use a wash cloth while bathing. Once you’ve collected the dust around the house you can release the dust from the cloth by rinsing it out then you can go on to use the same cloth using the damp method described below.

When used damp, microfiber towels are great for removing smudged dirt, grease or stains. When using the microfiber towels damp, the squeegee like edges of each microfiber in a microfiber cleaning cloth scrape up the dirt while the open spaces keep the dirt in the microfiber towel. You can accomplish all of this with a microfiber towel without adding any chemical cleaners. When using the cloths damp it’s usually best to get it wet and then ring it out. You don’t want it to be dripping as the towel needs to have the capacity to absorb whatever you’re trying to clean off of surfaces. Like with a dry cloth, when using a larger cleaning cloth it’s probably best to fold it to give you multiple new cleaning surfaces on the same towel. This damp method works best for scrubbing bathrooms, cleaning appliances, wiping down kitchen counters, cleaning car interiors and hundreds of other cleaning applications.

The absorbency of microfiber make it great for cleaning windows, even when just using the cloth with water. Microfiber cleaning cloths hold up to 7 times their own weight in liquid which allows them to clean glass while leaving no streaks. This feature also makes them great for cleaning up spills. This will allow you to cut down on the use of disposable cleaning products like paper towels.

Microfiber cleaning cloths are machine washable! When cared for properly you can expect to get several hundred washes out of a single cloth and it will be as effective as it was the day it was new.

Filed Under: House Cleaning Services, Residential Cleaning Services Tagged With: best microfiber cloths, e cloth, ecloth, green cleaning, microfiber cleaning cloths, microfiber cloths, natural cleaning

Speed Cleaning Tips From Professional Cleaners

October 14, 2013 by Admin Leave a Comment

Here is a great article from Cynthia Ewer. We have a couple of things to add, but getting organised and treating house cleaning like a scheduled job, or task is the key to a continuously clean home.

By Cynthia Ewer, Author of
Complete Idiot’s Guide to Getting Organized

Paid cleaning help can be a wonderful short-cut to a clean and organized home–if the household budget can stand the cost.

But what do you do if the Prize Patrol bypassed your door this year?

Take a speed-cleaning lesson from the pros!

Paid cleaning services are masters of the art of speedy, efficient cleaning. Watch professional cleaners at work: they don’t waste time, cut corners or dawdle over the job–and they know how to clean fast, clean right.

To speed cleaning chores in your organized home, take a tip from their copybook. Try these tips from professional cleaners.

Schedule Cleaning as A Job

Professional cleaners schedule every job, right down to the minute. Nobody hires a cleaning service that promises to arrive “some Saturday when nothing else is happening.” Take a tip from the pros, and set up a regular weekly cleaning schedule.

There’s nothing like the feeling of a completely clean home—but you won’t get it by cleaning in fits and starts! The pros don’t quit until the job is done, and neither should you. Schedule the job and stick to it to get the work done in record time.

Dress for Success

Professional cleaners dress for the job in comfortable, washable clothing designed for work.

Check out their supportive shoes and kneepads. Goggles and gloves protect against chemicals (we don’t use chemicals, but gloves are still a good idea to protect your hands from nicks and cuts), while a cleaning apron keeps tools and supplies at their fingertips.

Clean catch-as-catch can and clothing tends to catch it! End the era of bleach-stained sweatshirts and dripping nightgowns. Set aside a “cleaning uniform”, and wear it, right down to shoes, gloves and eye protection.

Invest In Proper Tools (the number one key to success)

Professional cleaners don’t use gadgets. You’ll never find them toting specialized, one-use tools, or gee-whiz gimcracks hawked on some television infomercial.

Forget flimsy supermarket cheapies, and invest in sturdy, well-made cleaning tools. Replace the rackety sponge mop with a terry-covered Magic Mop or Sh-mop for easy, efficient floor cleaning. (we use Quality microfiber cleaning cloths that take the germs and dirt out with them and not spread them around your house like all other cloths do. There is a huge difference in the quality of microfiber cloths too and I haven’t found one store bought cloth that can do the job of an Ecloth)

White terry cleaning cloths (find them in the auto parts section as “detailing towels”) are durable enough to stand up to walls, counters and floors, and are easy to launder in hot water and bleach. (these do an okay job at cleaning, but you still have to use chemicals to clean and kill germs. With Ecloth, you just need water!)

Pick It Up

Professional cleaners come to clean: counters, furniture, appliances and floors. They can’t do the job if each horizontal surface in the home is covered with papers, toys, dirty dishes and just plain clutter.

Pretend that you’ve hired a high-priced cleaning crew. You wouldn’t make them sweep the clutter to one side to do their job! Give yourself the same head start you give professional cleaners: pick up before you clean. Without the distraction caused by out-of-place items, cleaning chores will fly.

Tote Your Tools

Watch an average home manager clean the bathroom. Ooops! Forgot the powdered cleanser, so down the stairs you go. The toilet brush? It’s in the kids’ bathroom down the hall. Run to the laundry room for more cleaning towels, to the kitchen for a box of tissues. Where’s the vacuum? Did the teenager take the squeegee to wash the car?

Professional cleaners tote their tools with them–all their tools.

Look in the cleaner’s tote tray: all tools, cleansers, brushes and rags needed to finish the job are right there.

Vacuum, mop and mini-vac wait in the doorway.

A plastic bag for trash is tucked into a pocket, next to the waving feather duster.

That’s why the pro has finished the entire bathroom before our amateur makes it back up the stairs with the powdered cleanser.

(if you are going to clean your home regularly, there is no need to keep toilet brushes, chemicals and cleaning supplies in each room. Just one place is good for all rooms and should be kept in a bucket or tote.)

Simplify Supplies

There’s a reason professional cleaners can tote all the products they need in one tray: they’ve simplified cleaning products. Relying on a few multi-purpose solutions cuts time and clutter in the cleaning tote. Professional cleaners carry:

light-duty evaporating cleaner (glass cleaner or multi-surface cleaner)
heavy-duty degreasing cleaner
tile cleaner
powdered abrasive cleanser

That’s it! No soap scum remover, no special counter spray, no single-use products designed to clean only blinds or fans or walls. The pros know that these four simple products can handle any ordinary cleaning chore.

The reason we like microfiber cleaning cloths so much is that it cuts down the need for a special chemical cleaner for each job. You no longer need a bathroom spray, a shower spray, a kitchen spray, a polishing spray…all these things can be replaced with some quality cleaning cloths and a supply of water. Simple!

Get Motivated

You won’t find the pros pausing to follow television soap operas or check their e-mail. Amateur cleaners, too, should limit distractions as they clean. Turn off televisions and let the phone go to voicemail to stay focused on cleaning up … fast.

Use appropriate motivators to energize cleaning sessions. Play upbeat music for an energy boost (we love some upbeat music…really gives that extra oomph to get the job done!) Bookworms look forward to cleaning when a book-on-tape plays in the iPod.

Cleaning as a team with friends or family members can help you stay on task and ease the boredom of a cleaning session, so buddy up! Working with a parent is also the best way to teach a child skills he or she will need for life. (cleaning with help not only makes things go faster, but gives your family a sense of pride to keep it clean…so, you must get them involves if you want a continuously clean home)

Make Every Movement Count

Professional cleaners don’t circle a room more than once. Taking their place before the bathroom sink, they’ll spray and wipe the mirror, scrub the sink, wipe down counters and polish fixtures before they move one inch to the right or left.

Don’t get physical with your cleaning sessions—make every movement count. Stand fast and clean everything in your path before you move on.

Two Hands Are Better Than One

Professional cleaners don’t work as if one arm is in a sling, and neither should you. Get in the habit of using both hands to attack cleaning tasks.

Spray a mirror with one hand, wipe it down with the other. Scrub counters with two sponges or cleaning cloths, not just one. Dusting goes twice as fast when a lambs wool duster in one hand cleans nooks and crannies while the feather duster in the other skims flat surfaces.

While I agree that using two cloths to clean can make things go a little faster, it is also a good idea to keep one hand free to catch things in case they fall.

It is hard to catch a picture frame that suddenly falls from the wall if you have a bottle of cleaner in one hand and a cloth in the other.

You will have a lot more accidents if you don’t have one hand free…trust me!

Think Teamwork

Two people make a bed four times faster than a single cleaner working alone. Watch the pros at work. Working in teams, they make short work of an average home. (it only takes a couple of minutes to make a bed with two people. A lot longer with one. So, even if you are splitting up the work by room, it is good to take two minutes and help to save a few more overall)

Where family circumstances permit, make cleaning a family affair. Family members are more reluctant to mess up a clean house when they have been part of the effort!

Tidy Up for Next Time

At the end? Professional cleaners wrap up each job before they leave. Tools are returned to storage areas, totes tidied, spray bottles refilled and soiled cleaning cloths take a trip through washer and dryer. Goal: to be able to hit the ground running next time they visit.

Not knowing where all your cleaning supplies are is a hassle and will stop you from doing the job. So, if you need to use some supply during the week to clean up a little mess, make sure and put everything back to where it is supposed to be or you will be wasting time searching around the house for the broom/mop/cleaning supply.

Follow their lead!

At the end of each cleaning session, return tools and supplies to their storage places.

Check levels of cleaning products, noting any needed items on a shopping list; launder cleaning cloths and stow away the vacuum cleaner.

The finishing touch? Spritz the newly-cleaned home with scented room spray … and enjoy the squeaky-clean feeling!

Filed Under: Cleaning Products, House Cleaning Services, Professional Maid Services Tagged With: ecloth, house cleaning tips, microfiber cloths, professional cleaning products, professional cleaning tips

E-Cloth Cleaning Products

June 24, 2013 by Admin Leave a Comment

E-Cloth is the premium European cleaning products company who now make the products available worldwide.

In the US, people are still clinging on to the chemicals to clean their homes even after many studies that show chemical cleaning products have a dangerous effect on health.

In fact, on such study shows that stay at home mom’s have a 54% higher chance of developing cancer that those moms who work outside the home and it is due to the constant exposure of household chemicals on a day to day basis.

As a “green” and non-toxic cleaning company, Atlanta Eco Cleaners limit the use of even our toxic free products as much as possible and use the e-cloth microfiber technology to clean with just water.

The microfiber technology was first used in Sweden to clean hospitals and schools without chemicals and is scientifically proven to remove over 99% of bacteria with just the microfiber cloth and water alone.

Even though America is way behind Europe when it comes to health and cleaning products, the shift is going to eventually come and people are moving away from the chemical cleaning products even though they are front and center when it comes to advertising on television and elsewhere.

The household cleaning products industry is virtually unregulated and no-one knows what is in half of the cleaning products that are on the supermarket shelves. In fact, even the “green” products themselves, like Simple Green can be the worst offenders when it comes to your safety.

We have had a great experience in the use of our e-cloths and recommend them to all our clients for daily household cleaning without the chemicals. The e-cloth prices are relatively inexpensive compared to most microfiber product offerings and have more fibers per square inch that anything else out on the market, meaning they can capture more dirt and bacteria with every wipe.

To try out these products you can visit the E-cloth cleaning products store and have them shipped directly to your door with free shipping. (Another feature we like compared to the competitors)

Filed Under: Cleaning Products Tagged With: cleaning products, e cloth, e-cloth cleaning products, microfiber cloths