Natural Cleaning Products

Lye, fat and water are the three basic ingredients that combine to make soap. Lye dissolves protein and oily deposits, lending itself to cleaning applications in the home as well as being one of the main ingredients in making soap. Many commercial oven cleaning applications use lye. It can be used as a paint stripper, but on wood it will raise the grain. Lye dissolves protein and oil — meaning it can degrade soap and hair — making it useful as a drain cleaner.

Wood ash lye has a different chemical makeup than commercially produced lye. The chemical name for lye made with wood ash is called potassium hydroxide. The commercially available lye crystals are sodium hydroxide. These two different chemicals cannot be substituted in equal measure. Read recipes carefully to see which type of lye is used or you could be disappointed with your results.

Homemade lye is best made using ash from hardwoods like maple and oak or by using fruit trees such as apple. Evergreens and pine trees are not suitable woods for ash for this purpose. The wood must be burned at high temperatures with lots of oxygen so that the wood is completely consumed leaving white, paper thin ash, not chunks of charcoal.

You will need enough ashes to fill a lye-safe, waterproof container (non-metal) to within three to four inches of the top rim. Ash containers may be large (wooden barrels) or small (5 gallon buckets).

Get 2 containers that are not metal. The first vessel will contain the ash while the second will catch the lye water. Near the bottom of your ash bucket, fashion a small hole. To stop the hole Use a non metal object such as a cork, wooden tooth pick, or a small dowel.

In the bottom of the ash container, place a layer of clean river gravel. Grass, hay or straw should then be added and packed 4 inches thick. Pressing down firmly, fill the rest of the bucket with your wood ashes. Be sure to stop 3 or four inches below the top.

At least five gallons of soft water will be needed, possibly more. Having only trace amounts of minerals classifies water as soft. This water can be acquired by use of a specialized filter, or from peat or, sandstone or lava rock sources like granite. You could also use distilled water. Rainwater is a natural source of soft water.

Be cognizant that the location of your container should be well away from animals or children that could upend it. The drainage can be caught in a glass jar, wooden bucket, or an enamel coated pan. Don’t use metal or the lye could burn a hole in it. Find a position for this catch container that is close enough to the ash bucket to prevent unnecessary splashing during drainage.

Lye may cause blindness. Ingestion of lye can be deadly. Potassium hydroxide (lye) is caustic and can burn anything that it touches, reacting especially to fats and oil on skin. The chemical action of lye with fats and oils creates salts which can result in severe burns, permanent injury and scars. Note that lye burns may not hurt right away because the burn may be so severe as to have damaged the nerves (pain receptors) in the skin.

Safety precautions should be undertaken before beginning. Check to be sure the space where you are working is well ventilated. The telephone numbers for poison control and emergency medical services should be at your fingertips. Wear protective clothing. Rubber cleaning gloves and protective eyewear are a must along with covering for your arms and legs. Keep vinegar nearby in order to neutralize any skin burns. Do NOT wash with water following contact with this substance as this will merely exacerbate the corrosive affect.

Use a broom handle or dowel to create an indentation in the packed ashes. Boil one of the gallons of your soft water. Carefully use the full gallon of boiling water to wet the ash. The ash and water will spit, spew and bubble. Wait until this simmers down before adding another gallon of soft water. The ashes may settle to a lower level. Add more ash to the container to keep it filled. Repeat this process until the ashes in the container are covered with water. Close the lid on the container.

Clear the opening at the base of the container so that the liquid can drain into your second vessel. Draining the ash bucket could take as much as 24 hours.

Take the runoff from your ash bucket and pour it through again on day two and day three. Recycling the water through the ashes increases the strength of your lye.

A variation of this method is to leave the bucket sitting without draining it. Cover the container and allow the water to sit for about 3 days. Make sure it is in an area where it can’t get spilled. After this time you should drain the bucket.

The drained liquid is lye water also known as potassium hydroxide. A fresh intact egg placed into your lye can test its strength. If your lye solution is the right potency, the egg will float exposing a nickel or quarter sized portion of its shell above the surface. This equals an area of 2 to 2 1/2 centimeters in diameter. An egg that sinks means that the lye solution is too weak and won’t work in soap recipes. Dilute your lye solution with more rainwater should the egg bob on top of the surfaceindicating that your solution is too strong. Be sure to dispose of the egg after use.

Heating weak lye water will strengthen your solution by reducing the water content. Enamel finished pans are safe for this as long as they are never again utilized in cooking foods. Be careful when heating lye as it can be scorched. The solution is strong enough when a chicken feather touched to the heating lye starts to dissolve. Set the pan of lye water aside to cool.

Store lye water in jars with plenty of head room to allow for safety in pouring. Close jars firmly and store them in an unlit, cool area where curious children haven’t any access.

Dispose of the old leached ashes in a hole dug away from high traffic areas. The ashes should be completely cooled before you cover the hole.

To make potash crystals, place the lye water in a safe container. You’ll find that glass is a good choice for this project. Left in the sun, uncovered, the water will evaporate and crystals will form. Follow the same storage precautions with potash crystals as you would the lye water.

This and other skills are discussed in the new book, The Vision by Debi Pearl, the compelling new novel from international best-selling author who also co-wrote To Train Up A Child and the Good and Evil comic.

Whether you have a bagless HEPA filter, a pre-filter, or disposable bags, they all need to be changed at some point.  With the average life of a vacuum cleaner, you can expect to spend the same on either collection system for filters, but if you value your time, you can expect to spend quite a bit more on a bagless system.

To keep your bagless vacuum carpet cleaner operating at peak levels, you’ll need to empty the dirt container when it is full and perform regular maintenance on the filter.  The type of filter the vacuum uses will determine just how much service will be required, although most use a pleated HEPA filter.

Cleaning
Even though the claim of better airflow performance with bagless vacuums is true in a sense, over the life of the vacuum you’ll get the same, or maybe even better performance from a bagged vacuum cleaner system. 

With bagged vacuum cleaners, the performance will start at 100% with each new bag then slowly drop as the bag starts to fill.  Just how quickly the performance drops depends on how well the bag is constructed.  With the average vacuum and the average bag, you may replace the bag every 3 – 4 weeks with 90% of performance the first week, 70% in weeks 2 and 3, then 50% of less in the fourth week.

The short cycle will insure that you get a 100% peak carpet cleaning every 3 or 4 weeks from the vacuum cleaner.  The filtered cyclonic machines have filters that are designed to last 6 months, 12 months, and even up to 18 months before they need to be replaced.

Pets
If you have dogs or cats, whether you see it or not, almost all domestic animals shed their fur on a regular basis throughout their lives.Pet owners often wonder as well, which vacuum is the best to remove pet hair.

For pretty much the same reasons that fur sticks to the carpet, it will also stick to your bagless vacuum’s pleated filter cartridge.  The fur will reduce the performance of airflow, and is also a pain in the neck to clean off the filter. 

Over time, the fiber that makes up the filter can retain odor from pets, even if you clean the filter well.  If your filter requires replacing only once a year, you could end up with a vacuum that spits odors that will stink up your house pretty bad. 

Bagged up
Those vacuums that use bags will often provide for neat disposal of a full bag.  There are some brands such as BOSCH that actually engineer bag disposal into the system.With BOSCH canister vacuums, the replacement of bags is a single dust free step.  The new mega filt bags have a built in closure system that upon removal, will slide shut and trap the dirt and debris  inside of the bag, making removal quick and easy.

Still, there are many people out there who love bagless machines.  Bagless vacuums will continue at a slow place to gain market share, and people will continue to buy them.  For many, a bagless vacuum can be the right vacuum to have.

For the party times, a little wine and jokes are fun. Splashing a glass of wine on to the carpet is a common ‘accident’ almost everywhere in US and may be in Europe too. A globe of fire passes through the heart of the host, my precious carpet! Red wine stain removal from light colored cotton is not going to be an easy task. The researchers from chemical manufacturers have made attempts to remove red wine stains from colored fabrics for many years.

The ‘tips’, ‘techniques’ and ’solutions’ for red wine stain removal ranges from application of fresh water to hydrogen peroxide, white wine and detergents of varying kinds. Apart from water, everything else can have negative effect on the piece of fabric that you want to keep and display as your favorite for a long time. If your pure white fabric has a stain you can use hydrogen peroxide to clean it. The bleaching property, which can remove almost any original color of fabrics. These cleaners will give you the desirable result you where looking for. You do not want to see is some irreparable damage to your favorite carpet.

There are many carpet cleaning products available on the market today. These typically clean stains and the red wine stain is one of them. Act quickly after spilling the red wine over the carpet, to avoid letting it soak for several minutes. The results can be less satisfactory if you wait for an hour to clean the stain. Carpet cleaning detergents have specific instructions on how to use them. Several household items like alcohol (for cleaning purposes), mild soap etc are suited for the purpose of immediate cleaning of wine stain from fabrics of any type. To check for color loss test an area around the edge first, if you are not sure about the result you may receive.

You may at times need to pay high sums to professional carpet cleaning services. To remove all kinds of stains on all types and any color fabric, you may need to hire a professional carpet cleaner. Professional cleaners are hired when there is excess stains and after you find it is next to impossible to make the fabric look like a new one. Most professional carpet cleaners have handled different stain and fabric cleaning assignments in the past. You can be confident that your professional carpet cleaner removes the dirt and stains.

Back to the topic of red wine stain removal. You may try to clean the cotton by yourself. If you have a fabric stain, you can flush out the wine from inside out by spraying water with a liquid soap solution. Bad results can result if you try to remove the dried stain yourself.

Now there is a new challenge to overcome your favorite piece of furniture or hardwood floor. A clear mark on wood stain coated hardwood floor, left a new challenge caused by a tipping of an orange juice glass. Wood stain orange juice stain removal is not that a tough task as you might think.

Just rub the area with a cloth dipped in warm water. Also add some liquid soap to the water so that the stain is easily removed from wood stained furniture. Do you want to retain the wood stain but not the orange juice stain? This is exactly what you can do before it is too late.

If the orange juice stain is pretty old, you will need to repeat the process a few times.

If orange juice spilled on your carpet what would you do? At home gatherings and party places this is a common accident. Orange juice can leave permanent marking on carpets if you ignore it. The first thing you can do is get a towel paper to blot the orange juice away, without pushing it into the carpet.

Do it quickly before it is too late. If you can, turn the carpet inside out so that you can flush the stain from inside with cold water. To avoid a stain from quickly fasten to the fabric use hot or warm water. Anyway it is not a big problem. To lather pour some water with liquid carpet cleaner and mix.

Pour more water and blot the water till the soap residue is removed. After you finish let it dry. If you still find orange juice stain in carpet, you will need to use some carpet cleaning shampoo.

Whenever you want to clean any surface, always start with cold water. With a cloth dipped into water rub away the stained area. Do not use too much of water if the surface is wood. Wood protecting coatings protects the wood from stains and wear. Without much effort fresh stains on the surface are easily removed.

Regular cleaning, possibly on a daily basis or at least two times a week will help you manage the carpet with as little stain as possible. If stain or dust starts to accumulate, it can become very difficult to clean.

There are also times when you need to go for a professional carpet cleaning service. You simply do not like to spend big bucks on carpet cleaning equipments and may not have the expertise in safely and efficiently using carpet cleaning chemicals. Look into hiring a professional carpet cleaning service in case you need help with deep cleaning.

Wood stain orange juice stain removal rarely qualify as a good reason to hire professional cleaning service. Try to immediately get rid of the problem to ensure your household displayable items wear its new look for many years.

Read more articles at http://carpetcleaningtips-hooddoctor.blogspot.com/

I have two young children and two dogs that wander our household, we are in constant need of a carpet cleaning machine. We’ve tried all different paths, from spot cleaners to renting large pull machines, and each has its pros and cons.

Spot carpet cleaning machines are the newest and easier way to get out those tuff spots. Spot carpet cleaning machines are the size of a hand held Dirt Devil, which where designed for cleaning small places, and not an entire room. Their cleaning solution and suction reservoirs are rather tiny, so if you’ve got several small places to clean you may need to empty and reload the reservoirs on a small carpet cleaning machine ordinarily. In our home pet stains and juice spills which are quite common, having a compact spot cleaner is wonderful for everyday use. After purchasing my carpet cleaning machine it seems that every day it is being dragged out for multiple mishaps.

You can purchase full size carpet cleaning machines which are also avaible. These pull along machines are not very practical for everyday use on spills and pet stains, but they do labor well for the occasional overall room cleaning that isn’t targeting places and stains. The full size carpet cleaning machine tends to be bulky, but to be able to do his or her jobs they need to be. Paying for a full sized carpet cleaning machine will save money over renting machines or hiring services, if you have the storage space paying for a carpet cleaning machine will be the way to go.

Pull along fullsized cleaning machines is a option to cleaning carpet. These are available for rent from home improvement stores, some drug and grocery stores. Generally, you rent these rug cleaning machines for a twenty four hour period for approximately twenty dollars. Carpet cleaning solution is not included in the rental price, so you will need to purchase it also. It is a inconvenience to go and rent a carpet cleaning machine from the store, but even worse is having to return the bulky thing. Nevertheless, if you do not have storage space or do not clean your carpets generally, it’s a great deal.

We have found the number one solution for our needs to be a fusion of a spot cleaner and renting a full sized carpet cleaning machine every six months. Examine your particular needs and make your acquire or renting decisions accordingly. It is now time to learn how to clean carpet.

One of the common nuisances that can affect a home or surrounding area is the presence of pests.These pests can come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and other varieties.

For example a home may have an infestation of ants, the presence of rodents, spiders, etc.

In addition, a vegetable garden or flower garden may have other pests that cause destruction.  Examples of these types of pests could include moles, rabbits, squirrels, etc.

To deter these pests there are many products on the market.  One of those products is an ultrasonic pest control repeller.If considering this device it is important to know what is a utltrasonic pest control repeller what features to consider before purchasing this device.

What Is An Ultrasonic Pest Control Repeller

An ultrasonic pest control repeller is a device that markets itself as an electronic solution to repel common pests that are found in households.  These common pests can include mice and rats or other common pest control issues.

Specifically this ultrasonic pest control repeller generates sound waves that are ultrasonic in nature.  Generally, these sound waves are in the 45,000 Hz range.  Theoretically, the high-frequency sound waves, which cannot be heard by human ears, emits this high pitched sound which makes these types of pests feel uncomfortable.  Ultimately, due to this distressing sound, the mice or other rodents are repelled from the transmitting area. 

In addition, these devices are plugged into any ordinary electrical outlet located within the home or other structure.In addition, because of the high level frequency that is used, the high emitted sound waves do not cause distress to normal household pets such as dogs, cats, etc.

Features

When considering the purchase of an ultrasonic pest control repeller it is important to take into considerations a number of features.  Those features can include the service area that the high frequency covers and where the device can be used.

Specifically, when investigating and doing one’s homework prior to purchase it is important to find out what the effective transmitting range of the device is.  For example, many of the ultrasonic pest control repellers transmit up to a range of 2,000 square feet.  Therefore, if the area of concern is larger than this recommended area, then the customer may need to purchase more than one repeller to cover the entire area needed.

Another feature that the customer may wish to research in regards to purchasing this product is the electrical consumption required to operate the product. 

Additionally, some of the best ultrasonic pest control devices have a feature that allows for the frequency and pulse sequences to automatically adjust.  This particular feature can be more effective over a ultrasonic pest control repeller that only emits one single sound.

If you take pride in your garden in can be very frustrating when pests damage your plants since it makes you feel that you have worked hard for nothing. Most people react to these pests by purchasing chemical pesticides. Research has linked many of these pesticides with health issues such as birth defects, nerve damage, infertility and cancer.

Pesticides also cause harm to the environment and animals around us, and that includes our pets. That is why natural garden pest control is always the best option. Fortunately there are many natural garden pest controls that horticultural enthusiasts can try. However it also helps if you can accept the probability that there will be some damage since there really is no such thing as a perfect garden.

Soil And Plants

If your soil is fertile and your plants are healthy your garden will be able to flourish even if there are a few pests. You can keep your soil fertile by using compost and mulch. It is also a good idea to stick to plants that are indigenous to the area you live in. When plants are nurtured in their natural environment they tend to flourish. Bear in mind that certain plants also make natural garden pest controls. Basil, marigolds, lemon grass, sage, oregano, green bean, catnip and onion plants are just a few of the natural insect  controls that keep undesirable bugs at bay.

Garlic Fire Spray

Some gardening aficionados hold the opinion that garlic fire spray is the best natural garden pest control around. You can make this spray by combining garlic, chili peppers, vegetable oil, soap, water and kerosene. The spray is a little smelly but the odor evaporates quite quickly. You will need to spray it again after rainfall. Garlic fire spray is a good natural garden way for ants control, grubs, caterpillars and most small insects control.

Fish Fertilizer

For some reason that is not fully understood certain insects do not like fish fertilizer at all. It can effectively get rid of mites, caterpillars and certain nematodes. Unfortunately fish fertilizer does have one major drawback. It leaves an unpleasant fishy smell around your garden for a day or two and some people find this difficult to endure. You should probably avoid using this natural garden pest control if you do not have the most understanding neighbors.

Attract Natural Predators

Attracting the right predators to eliminate unwanted insects is another good natural garden pest control. Insects like spiders, praying mantis, ladybugs and dragonflies can control the number of unwanted pests in your garden. You can attract these creatures with plants such as cilantro, geraniums, yarrow, angelica, cosmos and caraway.

For most of history we have had an us against them mentality when it come to the control of unwanted pests. It is a kind of scorched earth philosophy. Often we approach pest control like a man killing an ant with an elephant gun. To kill mosquitoes we blanket entire areas with chemicals causing serious breathing problems for elderly people and young children. To stop aphids we blanket fields with insecticides that not only kill their targeted pest, but can actually take nutrition out of the food we grow, thus harming us in the process.

We must find methods of organic pest control management. Therefore we need to seek out organic pest control service so that we can stop hurting the environment and ourselves.

A Sane Approach

Instead of a blanket eradication, organic pest control management offers a targeted approach, addressing only the threatening pests while leaving everything else, including ourselves unharmed. By understanding the various pest populations and the most effective deterrents for each you can be sure you are dealing with the problem and not contributing to it.

Organic pest control management is all about using natural methodologies to control these pests. It is all about finding balance. Understanding that those things we deem pest play a role in the environment as well. Certain species, if eradicated would cause a broken link in the food chain that can result in damage to humans. This can be seen in the disappearance of bees which are the primary source of pollination for most food crops. While bees can have dangerous stings, their benefit is unassailable and organic pest control management takes that into account.

Dealing with Fear

We need to understand that pest control may involve a trade off. Those pests we deem offensive often provide necessary functions such as the removal of waste and processing or organic matter that if built up would pollute the environment. The lowly termite is an example of this kind of trade off. That which in nature is beneficial can cause untold damage to human habitation. Organic pest control management understands that it is just as effective to relocate a pest as it is to kill it. That can be better to balance things out.

We need to overcome our fear of insects and arthropods, particularly spiders. It is spiders that most effectively insect control because they feed on more damaging pests. Fear is no reason for eradication. Using organic pest control management can help us not throw out the baby with bath water. We need to control pests, but we also need to be selective in what we do. No one else can control the damage to the environment. It is up to us to use organic pest control management to save the earth.

In this post I will make an attempt to solve a problem that bothers thousands of home owners around the world, that is, the issue of cloudy mirrors.

If you own a full length mirror as part of your closet and it is now old and looks very cloudy then you are not alone. I used to own one myself; I can bet that you neighbour has owned one too. Like me at some point, you might have tried everything you can to clean it to no avail.

So what do you do if you are not planning keep it? Is there really a way to clean it? As a decorative mirrors junkie I can share a few tips on how to go about doing this. You can use these suggestions for a variety of mirrors including unframed, oversized, compact, large including tri fold wardrobe mirror.

You can simply clean them with some water. Just warm the water or even to boil and then try to clean it. Do not add anything to the water i.e. it must be pure. This can work pretty well on a plexy glass.

Vinegar and a newspaper can work well too. I mean it could be that someone once tried to clean it with something that was oily.

Try a spray cleaner like Windex for some more alternatives. One thing I must mention here is that spray cleaners are good for some french antique bathroom mirrors and not for others. This is why you should not worry too much if this option does not work for you – just move on to the next option.

If you are having difficulty with having them clean by using any of my recommendations, then probably there are other reasons why it is cloudy. For one if could be that the silver on the back of the mirror is peeling off. You can simply fix this by having it re-silvered especially if you really can’t get rid of it.

This article will provide some useful information on how to use decorative wall mirrors around your house. If you have been thinking about doing but were not sure about how to actually do it then you have come to the right place.As you read below you will begin to get some great ideas on how to use mirrors with ease.

There are lots of advantages for using mirrors to decorate your home. For example, if you feel like your house is not well lit they can help add some natural light. Also if you are looking for an extra space then you should consider them.

What this all means is that you can use mirrors to “enlarge” a small room. As a cherry on top – they can be used to add some class and style to your house.

Here is a quick list of how to position them effectively

• You can put them in a corner, say maybe on a table top or even above the fireplace. You can also place them at a wall that faces the doorway especially if you have a very small passage from the entrance.

• You can place the mirrors e.g. french antique bathroom mirrors at an adjoining wall to give a sense of space.

• If you have a short hallway then you should place it at the far end to extend the hallway.

• If you want to widen the space around the staircase then consider placing them side by side along the staircase

• They can also do well when placed in the kitchen, bathroom or in the bedroom. This of course depends on the specific need.

• Do not position the mirror such that it reflects some clumsy part of your house. I mean who I am sure you wouldn’t want to have your mess duplicated all over the house?

Regardless of your choice – be it cheap unframed mirrors, antique, unframed, floor, wall mirrors or what ever type if proper placement methods are used they will make your home to look like a dream.