To Do It By Hand...Or Not

So the question remains unanswered...or answered with many viewpoints. Does running the dishwasher use more water and energy then washing your dishes by hand? Well, here's my answer. It depends. Before you hit the 'X' at the top of the page give me a chance to explain.

Running water non-stop to rinse your dishes either before putting them in the dishwasher or after washing them in a sink full of water by hand uses a lot of water. Unless you are very conservative, running a sink full of hot, soapy water and rinsing under the running tap could use as much, if not more, water then running your dishwasher.

Newer dishwashers are now more energy efficient and therefore are meant to do the job using less energy therefore assisting you in being more 'green' and saving green. I'm sure if you can run some water in a medium sized bowl, wash all your dishes, rinse in 'super' speed and air dry it's possible to use less then your energy star rated dishwasher.

But, for most people, myself included, it's probably a sure bet that's not going to be the case. So, here are a few easy tips to help save energy and wash your dishes 'GREEN'.

1. Only run the dishwasher when it is completely full.

2. Use a plastic scraper to dispose of food particles on the dishes rather then rinsing under running water.

3. Change the setting on your dishwasher to 'air dry' rather then a heated dry.

And there you have it. My personal opinion on hand washing vs. using a dishwasher. :) Don't you feel much better already?!

It's an insect not a spider
it has 6 legs instead of 8
3 on this side 3 on that side
and it's crawling on your plate.

1 ant, 2 ants , 3 ants 4
our picnic is their grocery store
5 ants 6 ants 7 ants 8
they are crawling on my plate
8 ants 7 ants
stomp around
6 ants 5 ants
on the grounds
4 ants 3 ants
on the run
2 ants 1 ant
no more fun.

Don't despair! Ants in your house doesn't mean you are a bad house keeper. Here's a great, very frugal way to get rid of them.

Grease/Protein Ants:
Mix 1 tsp boric acid and 1/4 cup bacon grease or butter and dip cotton balls in jar (see instructions below)

Sugar Ants:
Mix 1 1/2 tsp boric acid, 1/3 sugar, and 1 cup water

Soak cotton balls in solution and put in small bottles/jars with a lids - poke ant size holes in lids and lay jars on side under sinks or behind appliances. This is good to prevent pets from getting to it.

Place your pets food bowl in a larger dish (ex. pie plate) filled with water (like a moat) to keep ants out.

I place the jars on my counters too at night when I go to bed or anywhere I see them.

*****Keep out of reach of children and pets.******

Wondering why you must keep it away from pets and kids and it's supposed to be low toxic?
Read this.

A New 'Friend' For Tea

After months of researching, I finally decided to purchase a Bissell steam mop. I really, really like it! I liked it so much I decided to share a cup of tea with her. :P

For general cleaning I just use the steam mop after a thorough sweeping. For tougher jobs I use my homemade all purpose cleaner to spray the areas that need a 'pre-soak' and then plug in my new friend and within moments (30 seconds) she's rearing to go! When finished, toss the washable microfiber pad in the wash for the next time.

I've used it on my ceramic tile and our concrete that has been painted and coated with poly-urethane. It's great! It's easy! It's better for you and better for the environment!

Easy Breezy Green Cleaning

For daily cleaning all you need is a clean rag and warm sudsy water...I just squirt a small amount of dish soap (preferably one w/o surfactants like 7th Generation - I use Ivory) on a rag and get it wet to wipe down table/counters etc. This will work in the bathroom for daily maintenance or use the below spray.

General cleaning in kitchen and bathroom - 1 cup vinegar, 2 tsp. liquid castile soap, fill spray bottle with water (optional 5-10 drops of essential oil such as orange or lavendar) Use this for everything and I mean everything...all surface all purpose cleaner. Leave a bottle in each bathroom and the kitchen. It only takes a minute to make!

For disinfecting things such as a counter where you just cut raw meat or a bathroom- take 1 dark colored bottle of pure 3% peroxide (the cheap spray bottles at walmart-the spray part unscrews off the clear bottle it comes on and fits perfectly on the large peroxide bottle) and one spray bottle of pure Heinz distilled vinegar (it must say made from grain or it's toxic). The combination of these two sprays simultaneously are stronger and more effective then chlorine bleach and if your child drank either or both they would be fine. Use this as a fruit/veggie/meat wash. You don't even have to rinse if you don't want!

I use the above sprays and just go crazy, one in each hand, spraying once a week, sink handles, faucets, counter tops, etc...just to disinfect and use a warm sudsy rag the rest of the time. I'm not sure if there's an effect on certain surfaces so test a small area if unsure. :)

So see?! It's not hard to clean green! One all purpose cleaner and a bottle each of pure vinegar and peroxide. You don't need a million homemade potions for separate things!

A 'Green' Clothesline Pin Hanger

So, I'm hanging out the laundry yesterday and thinking, 'Oh, I really need to look into making or buying one of those cool clothespin hanger thingees.'

Then, what happens next? I go to the library and check out this book called 'Organic Housekeeping' by Eleen Sandbeck and what awaits me inside? A cool idea for this gadget.

It literally took me about 2 minutes to make. My empty milk jug was already rinsed and calling out 'Please re-use me!' ;)

So, I snatched her up, *cut a hand sized hole in the front and cut through her lil handle that had previously been grasped by chocolate chip cookie laden hands, and wah-lah! She smiled with glee and so did I.

I proudly hung her on the line filled with wooden pins and there she was, no longer bound for the recycle bin.

You fancy crafty gals can doll it up any way you'd like. I'm more of the not so crafty, don't care as long as it's doin' the job kinda gals.

*Note where the hole is cut - it's the best place to keep everything sturdy and hanging properly on the line.