Week X: Chemistry

Investigate the chemicals...

I've got a shmorgishborg of products underneath the sink, a spectrum of chemicals ranging from the benign to the outright toxic.  I'd say I prefer to use more natural products, but when it comes down to it, I kind of just use what's around and try not to overthink it.  I think it's OK to be mindful of the cleaners you're using and to "use with caution" when necessary.  For the most part, I wear vinyl gloves or something similar when I do the deep cleaning, and try to remember to crack a window for ventilation.  On the safer side of things I have vinegar and castile soap, and on the more toxic side things like bleach, Kaboom (have no idea what this is but most likely some sort of bleach compound), stainless steel cleaner (contains petroleum distillates), and a product called CLR (propylene glycol ethers and other solvents).

Examples of "safer" alternatives
I said I would post some of the recipes I use for DIY household cleaners, and here they are as promised:

All-Purpose/Bathroom Cleaner
1 tsp borax
1 T castile soap
2 T distilled white vinegar
2 cups hot water
10 drops tea tree oil
(mix ingredients in a spray bottle and go to town)

Toilet Cleaner
Glug a good cup or so of distilled white vinegar directly in the bowl and clean per usual

Tub Cleaner
Shake a good amount of baking soda in the tub, then dowse your sponge with vinegar.  Scrub to a good lather then use water as needed to spread.  Rinse.  I've also used half a lemon in place of the sponge and it works well.

Dishwasher Soap
1 part borax
1 part washing soda
(mix the equal parts and add to main cup - try adding vinegar to rinsewater; honestly I've tried this and don't care for the results but it's the only recipe I have for this application)

Drain Cleaner
1/2 cup baking soda
1 cup distilled white vinegar
add both to a good amount of boiling water and pour down the drain, cover and let it sit for several minutes before flushing with hot water

Hardwood Floor Cleaner
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1 gallon warm water
(make sure to rinse after)

Kitchen Floor Cleaner
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1 gallon warm water

Laundry Detergent
1 part borax
1 part washing soda
(or just use the batch of dishwasher soap you made above, same thing)

Window Cleaner
2 tsp distilled white vinegar
1 quart warm water
(add to spray bottle; this is about the same ratio as the hardwood floor cleaner, so you could bottle some then)


Bragg's Amino Acids...the probable truth

(reposted from www.happybellies.net)

[Griselda Blazey] has a B.S. in biology, an M.S. in biochemistry, a post-doctorate in endocrinology, and teaches cell physiology/nutrition at Life Chiropractic College West. Here is how she believes that Liquid Aminos are made…

“Soybeans are treated with hydrochloric acid to create free amino acids. Any remaining acid is neutralized with sodium bicarbonate This creates sodium chloride. Which produces a salty taste. This modern bio-reactor method produces a product by rapid hydrolysis. Rather than complete fermentation. This process takes just 2 days. It uses an enzyme called glutamase as a reactor. This means that the final product contains large amounts of a kind of un-natural glutamic acid found in monosodium glutamate (MSG).”

At some point Bragg's was forced to remove the "No MSG" from their label, and now just side-step the discussion.  In general, hydrolyzed vegetable protein = MSG.