Today we are sharing our best tips for environmentally friendly and toxin-free cleaning at home before May 1st. We haven't made any drastic lifestyle changes, but have instead focused on phasing out plastic and using more natural alternatives. We have also removed cleaning products that are not non-toxic and instead started using VästerbottensSåpa, a pure product based on reusing cooking oil from restaurant fryers.
Last edited on May 8, 2024
We clean environmentally friendly & detoxify our home this first of May
Detoxification and environmentally friendly cleaning sound like a big project, a new lifestyle and a bit of fanaticism BUT it doesn't have to be that difficult.
Here at home, we are not in any way fanatical, nor have we made any major lifestyle changes, we have just phased out.
What we have thrown away is plastic! We have actually reduced our plastic use and made sure that the children do not eat or drink from plastic mugs, plastic cutlery, plates, bowls, and kitchen utensils such as ladles and spatulas have been replaced with glass, metal, and porcelain. Sure, a glass sometimes breaks, but it can be worth it.
We also try as far as possible to buy locally grown, locally produced, and organic.
It wasn't that difficult, nor did it happen in a day, but now that it's done, it feels really good. It means that we can live with other things slipping in the times we don't eat at home, the majority of the meals are still eaten at home and it feels like the main thing is that it is just food and no toxins then.
The next area that has undergone a change is this with cleaning! Here we have also phased out, stopped buying cleaning materials and products that are not non-toxic. This happened by itself when we started the production of VästerbottensSåpa. The more we have learned about chemicals and cleaning products, the more skeptical we have become of glossy spray bottles and strong scents.
VästerbottensSåpa, which is based on a recycling system where we purify cooking oil from restaurant fryers and saponify it into soap, is a very pure product. The raw material, the base of the product, is a food, corn and rapeseed are not dirty industrial waste.
Now half of you are saying that you have worked at a grill and that it is disgusting! (If I had a 5 krona for every time I've heard that?!)
Here's how it is!
1 . We do not empty a large barrel where ALL sorts of things have been dumped!
– The restaurants empty the oil back into the container it came in through a fine sieve! We take care of this quite quickly and then purify it in our factory – Såperiet in Siksjönäs.
2. Have you who have worked at a grill seen the tall oil that wood soap is boiled from?
– No, exactly! It is a brownish-black viscous sludge that is left over in the pulp mills – yes, it also smells of pulp mill!
It must also be purified before it is saponified, but both resin and sulfur are included, which also end up in the soap.
3. What happens to fat from fryers that is not taken care of by VästerbottensSåpa?
-Well, it is transported long distances to be reworked or burned.
By recycling, we not only get a pure product but also do the environment a service.
Back to the soap! By cleaning everything, yes, actually everything at home with VästerbottensSåpa, we are also completely sure that it actually gets CLEAN and not "smeared" with chemicals. We have also replaced all brooms, dish brushes, cloths, and scouring sponges with organic and handmade. Today we have brought out the garden furniture, there is a lot of snow left but a small snow-free spot and sun, sun, sun still made it feel like a good idea!
Wood becomes both clean and re-greased by VästerbottensSåpa, which is a superfatted soap (like linseed oil soap), and after a winter in the storage room, it was much needed! On clean, soap-scented garden furniture, it was then time for the year's first coffee outside!
Lovely and enough new energy to start shoveling out the garden 😉
Have a continued pleasant May 1st everyone!
// Sara Idenfors
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Questions and Answers
- What have you phased out to make cleaning more environmentally friendly?
We have phased out plastic and replaced it with glass, metal, and porcelain, especially when it comes to children's tableware and kitchen utensils. In addition, we have stopped buying cleaning materials and products that are not non-toxic.
- What is VästerbottensSåpa and why do you use it for cleaning?
VästerbottensSåpa is a superfatted soap based on recycled cooking oil from restaurant fryers. We use it because it is a pure product and does not contain harmful chemicals.
- How does the recycling system for cooking oil from restaurant fryers work?
The restaurants empty the cooking oil back into containers through a fine sieve, then it is purified and saponified into soap in our factory – Såperiet in Siksjönäs.
- How do you clean garden furniture with VästerbottensSåpa?
We clean garden furniture with VästerbottensSåpa, which both cleans and re-greases the wood. It is especially needed after winter storage.
- What is your next step after cleaning and restoring the garden furniture?
After cleaning the garden furniture, we feel ready to start shoveling out the garden and enjoy the year's first coffee outdoors.
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