It's Water-Wise Wednesday with Frannie the Fish {Ways to Protect and Conserve Groundwater - Natural Alternatives}

It is week seven in our series The Groundwater's Foundation Top 10 List of Ways to Protect and Conserve Groundwater at Home.  This week is dedicated to using natural/nontoxic household cleaners whenever possible.  This week's goal goes hand-in-hand with Frannie's previous blog about reducing chemical use.  The cleaner recipe Frannie shared a few weeks back is just one of many natural alternatives you can use in your home!  There are a number of natural and nontoxic ingredients that are great for cleaning.

Using natural products for cleaning is an inexpensive and environmentally-friendly alternative to using harsh and potentially toxic cleaners.  Using natural products helps protect the environment for fish like Frannie by decreasing the demand for harsh cleaners and also decreasing the pollution from production, use, and disposal of these materials.

Here are some common environmentally-friendly cleaning ingredients and what they do:

• Baking soda - cleans, deodorizes, scours.
• Lemon - antibacterial.
• White vinegar - cuts grease, removes mildew and odors.
• Cornstarch - can be used to clean windows, polish furniture, shampoo carpets and rugs.
• Rubbing alcohol - disinfectant.

Depending on what you want to clean, you will use different ingredients and in different amounts.  Find more ingredients and recipes on Eartheasy, a website dedicated to sustainable living.  Be sure to ask an adult for help before making or using a cleaner.

This week Frannie is going to make a super simple, natural cleaner for the wood floors in her home.  Follow along with Frannie!  

Here is what you'll need:

• A bucket or bowl
• Equal parts vegetable oil and vinegar 
• A measuring cup
• An old rag

Here's what you do:

 1.  Mix the vegetable oil and vinegar.

2.  Test the mixture in a small, hidden spot on the wood floor.  Apply a small amount to the test area and rub in well.  Remember: a little dab will do you!

3.  If the floor looks spick and span in the test area, you can use it to clean the rest of the floor!

Share the steps you take to utilize natural products in your home to protect and conserve groundwater!