#SayYESto the Great British September Clean
It’s the Great British September Clean and whilst the aim of this cause is to reduce litter, end waste and educate others, we also want to acknowledge the benefits that having a clean home and environment can bring.
Having a clean home and helping the environment can do wonders for your mental well-being. So we’ve included a couple of top tips from our team.
But before we get to the tips, we’d like to say something:
The Great British September Clean is actually about much more than cleaning your home. However, little changes that you make in your home can have a huge impact on the environment over time. Whilst we want to encourage people to get active when it comes to keeping their community clean, to know the importance of recycling and to know the importance of picking up your litter, we also know that everyone has to start somewhere. So give some of these tips a go to get you started.
More information about the Great British September Clean can be found here.
Harks - Team Manager
Window cleaning doesn't need to be a laborious chore, especially with the Karcher Window Vac! Make your own natural solution with 1/4 lemon juice, 1/4 vinegar and 1/2 warm water and get a squeaky clean finish and that lemon zest freshness!
Amy - Keyworker Lead Officer
Use household bicarbonate of soda to remove odours from your carpet. Sprinkled on its own or mixed with half a spoon of your favourite essential oil makes a cheap, animal friendly way of removing pet, cooking and smoke smells – the box is also fully recyclable. When vacuumed it de-odourises both your vacuum cleaner and later on your bin!
Georgia - Communications Officer
My family and I are obsessed with fizzy drinks! We drink SO many of them. The problem is, they always come in plastic can holder things that are really bad for the environment, especially sea turtles! So we ALWAYS cut them up to make sure they can't hurt anything. We always put the plastic and the cans in the recycling too. If we see the plastic can holder things out on the street, we'll always pick them up, take them home and cut them up as well.
Krishna - Delivery Coordinator
I use olive oil to loosen stains, grease and grime. But you don’t need to use your fancy olive oil for cleaning; I buy the olive oil by the gallon for regular cooking which I use for cleaning as well.
The best place to use olive oil for cleaning purposes is the kitchen on stainless steel appliances, like splashbacks and kitchen cabinets. It works wonders!
I first of all remove grease with vinegar, then use a spot of olive oil on a paper towel and work it into my splashback in a circular motion. This removes every spec of grime and leaves the splashback amazingly shiny!
Another way I use olive oil whilst cleaning is to mix it with lemon juice (one part juice to two parts oil) and rub it over cabinets as well as wooden tables and chairs.
It leaves the kitchen smelling wonderful and lemony! Plus, I love it because it avoids harsh chemicals.
Mel - Finance Officer
I use a microfiber cloth to wipe taps after showers – it keeps them shiny and helps prevent lime scale build-up. I love using them because they're reusable too so it's a win-win!
Faye - Keyworker
I like to use distilled white vinegar as an alternative to fabric softener. It's a much more natural alternative to regular fabric softeners and I love how it makes my clothes feel!
Collette - Keyworker
It’s easy to remove stains from a plastic chopping board, however to remove stubborn stains from a wooden chopping board is entirely different… The joys of cleaning! So here's quick environmentally friendly tip, add salt to a board and rub with a lemon, leave for a few minutes and rinse away… Hey presto! You can also use lemon for lots of other cheap cleaning jobs and its a natural alternative to cleaning chemicals.
Nancy - Data and Impact Analyst
My tip is hand-knitted dish cloths; they are long-lasting and washable, making them a great eco-friendly alternative to plastic sponges/scourers. My gran is a keen knitter and has been making them for years; if you too are a keen knitter or fancy trying out a new craft, there's lots of free and simple knitting patterns online, as well as YouTube tutorials.