10 Eco-Friendly Spring Cleaning Tips

Spring is already here and if you haven’t already done your round of Spring cleaning, now is the time. Remember, Spring cleaning is more than just dusting or straightening up. It is a whole process. A process which, if done right, can help lighten, brighten and freshen up your home more than you might imagine. But it’s not only your home that benefits from a good Spring cleaning, you will benefit as well!

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So, here are 10 eco-friendly Spring cleaning tips:

1. Before you start any cleaning, you have to decide you are willing and able to let things go.

2. Now onto an oldie, but goodie. How to make a non-toxic cleaning kit. If you are truly going to do some eco-friendly Spring cleaning, you need to ensure you are getting rid of dust, dirt, grime and lingering chemicals without adding more toxins and chemicals to your home.

3. As far as cleaning rags, it’s best to make your own. Old t-shirts, socks, towels, etc. are great for cleaning. Don’t waste your money on buying one-use rags when you probably have plenty of perfectly good ones lying around.

4. However, before you start dusting let’s work on getting rid of a few items. Go room by room, figure out what items you don’t really need or use. Put them into two major piles: trash and giveaway/sell. Once you’ve gone through every room, get rid of the trash and either sell or donate the remaining items left in the pile. Craigslist.org and Freecycle.org are also great ways to get your old items to someone new.

5. Now that you’ve cleaned up some of clutter lying around, go look in dressers, closets and cabinets. Look for those items you haven’t used in months (or years). Yes those. It’s time to get rid of them. Good rule of thumb: If you haven’t used it in at least 6 months, then you don’t REALLY need it.

Follow these declutter steps so next time you won’t have as much “stuff”.

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6. Now it’s time to get some dusting and cleaning done using the non-toxic, natural cleaners I mentioned above. Remember, elbow grease is your friend here. Another tip is use Mother Nature. Open your windows and air out your home. A fresh breeze blowing through can remove odors and keep cleaning smells at a minimum.

7. Now that you’re in the Spring cleaning mood, how about taking another step forward and do a little detox on your home. Get rid of those chemicals, old medicines, toxic cleaning supplies, etc.

8. Don’t forget to Spring clean your diet too! While you’re taking eco-friendly steps to Spring clean your home, wouldn’t it be smart to spring clean your diet too? Take a look at what you have in the house, what you are eating, what you should be eating, etc.

9. On that note, since Spring cleaning is all about cleaning and freshening up our homes and lives for Spring and Summer, it just makes sense to include the garden in our clean-up. Don’t you think? Just look at some of the benefits of gardens and gardening. (And if you don’t have a garden, start one.)

10. Last, but not least…get yourself a few indoor plants. Houseplants have been proven to improve indoor air quality. A couple of well chosen houseplants and your Spring cleaning freshness will last a lot longer. Check out these 15 houseplants on NASA’s list of air purifying plants.

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These tips should help you through your next round of eco-friendly Spring cleaning. And if you’ve got a personal favorite Spring cleaning tip, we’d love to hear what it is. Happy cleaning!