Cleaning Product Reviews

Cleaning Product Reviews of popular "green" products

Here are reviews of some common "green" cleaning products that I have used.

These are not stringent scientific tests but rather my own subjective impressions of the products from using them at home over a period of time.

I try to assess how well they contribute to green living, and how practical they are.

If you have comments you would like to see added, or you would like to review a product yourself, please use the contact page.

All the products reviewed here are recommended as environmentally safer and less damaging to health than conventional products.

I do not directly sell any of these products, so I have no axe to grind.I'm only posting reviews of products that I consider to be worth the candle!

Laundryballs, Washballs

Kleeneze washballs

Cleaning Product Review:

Kleeneze are a British firm, now also operating in Holland.

I used a washball from them for about 5 months. I thought it was initially rather expensive (just under £5) but it lasted and lasted. It worked well and there were no problems with the glue of the plastic casing at high temperatures.

It was not refillable (unlike the Aquaball, see below) and the ball was rather easy to lose track of, as it was quite small and white: hard to find in a pile of white laundry. Perhaps the fact that it is not refillable is compensated for by the longevity of the ball.

My verdict: very good value.

Twenty First Century Health Washball (Aquaball)

Cleaning Product Review:

These washballs come in a stylish pack of two, with extra refills for when the inner clay balls wear away with use. There is also a stain remover included which seems to work well. (See below for stain remover reviews.)

My first ball - a spikey green plastic - fell apart in the wash after about six washes so I wasn't so impressed with that. However on reading the packaging I found that I should be using it at no more than 80 degrees Centigrade, so perhaps I erred there.

Most of the washes I do using washballs have been at 40 degrees or below but I do prefer to use higher temperatures sometimes. I wrote to the company to complain about the disintegrating ball and they kindly sent me 2 replacement shells.

I am still using the other ball and it is fine. It does not get lost so easily as the Kleeneze one, being larger and bright green. The balls inside the washball lasted as well as the Kleeneze ones.

The business of re-filling is a little tricky, if like me you are not so deft! I lost the screw-top lid inside the ball on my first attempt and had to fish it out with tweezers. Now I always use wry-nose pliers to hold the lid securely, just to be sure!

I've been using these washballs now for about a year and I find they are just great for most washes.

See my page on washballs for more details on how to use them.

The cost for the package was just under £15 (local health food shop). You can also order them on-line. They are available quite widely, including in north America.

These washballs are quite attractive objects, so keep them out of sight of the kids and the dog!

My verdict: excellent but tricksy to refill - for me at least!

Washing up liquid detergents

Ecover Washing-up Liquid Detergent with Camomile and Marigold

Cleaning product review:

This washing up liquid is pleasant and mild to use. The scent is delicate and subtle, a bit lemony I think.

The liquid performs pretty well. It's a bit thin compared to standard washing-up liquids, so you need a good squeeze for any real grease. The product information claims that it is low in bubble production but this does not affect its cleaning powers.

The price is a bit steep compared to standard washing-up liquids that you find in any supermarket. However, there are some outlets which refill your empty bottles for you, so this brings the price down a bit.

What is the difference?

Ecover washing-up liquid is low in ionic surfactants and contains no artificial fragrances. Ingredients are mainly plant based, such as citric acid.

However, it does still contain sodium laureth ether sulphate (SLES) which has a questionable record when it comes to human health.

This chemical is in almost every standard cleaning product and is responsible for the foaminess. There are some alternatives and I will be reviewing products which do not contain it soon.

Overall, there are fewer harmful residues left on your skin or your dishes after using this product.

Ecover's factory is run on ecological principles and they have received recognition from the United Nations for their contribution to the care of the environment.

My verdict: good but pricey

Dishwasher Products

Dishwasher Gel Detergent "Clear Spring" from Faith Products

Now this is the first time I've used an environmentally-friendly dishwashing product and been impressed!

This gel is colourless and odourless and it does a great job. The dishes come out sparkling clean and best of all there's no odour at all. Very often with conventional dishwasher products you get a slightly chemical smell when you open the drawer. Not something that inspires confidence!

It's really easy to use too. Just squirt the gel into the receptacle and close the door. No opening fiddly little packets and getting the granules on your skin. The packaging is fully recycleable, of course, too.

You can buy a litre pack to start and then refill from a 5 litre bottle later for a more cost-cutting approach. A litre should do more than 30 washes, (depending on how hard your water is and how dirty your dishes are, of course). I reckon that's not bad value for money.

My only quibble with this product is that it does not include a full list of ingredients. Sodium hydroxide is the only ingredient mentioned on the label. Sodium hydroxide is caustic soda, so you should be careful not to let it in contact with your skin, even though the amount included is very small (see below).

However on their web site a full list of product ingredients is offered: Sequestrant: 15-30% (safe stabilisers used in food products as preservatives); Sodium silicate: 5-10% (a stable chemical that forms an alkaline solution in water); Sodium hydroxide: less than 1% (caustic soda breaks down easily in air or water); Xanthan Gum: less than 0.5% (another safe food stabiliser).

Clear Spring Dishwasher Gel is available in the UK for £3.99. I understand that the company does export, too.

Eco-friendly Stain Removers

Ecover Ecological Stain Remover

This product has a lovely scent and in the short time I've used it I have been impressed with its ability to deal with a wide range of stains.

It will deal with grubby worn-in dirt as well as the usual range of spilt food and drinks on clothing. It's not much use on printer ink - but then what is?

The bottle comes with a dispensing lid of plastic bristles which you use to rub the fluid into the fabric.

I tested a heavily stained item with a conventional stain remover(Shout)as well as the Ecover one. I could find no difference in their performance - they both cleared everything.

At £2.49 for a 200 ml bottle this is reasonable value for money.

My verdict: good product

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