Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Works for Me Wednesday... "Green" Tile Cleaner!

I've got a few things working for me these past few weeks (and a few not...) but here's one I'm very excited to share with you, because it not only works great, it's eco-friendly!!
We have a farmhouse table in our kitchen with a white tiletop. Not my first choice, but it was a hand-me-down, so we welcomed it with open arms. The table has two leaves which we always have in, and we have a farmhouse bench to go alongside for the kids. I love the fact that it's made of sturdy oak, but the tile...I'm not a fan. It's very difficult to clean and keep clean. I'm an advocate of white vinegar and baking soda, but that would always leave a streaky film and wouldn't get everything out of the crevices of the grout. (I know y'all are thinking "use a tablecloth!!" but we've gone that route and with constant spills, stains, and our entire meals ending up on the floor courtesy of a certain three year old that thought of each tablecloth as his superhero cape...it just wasn't "working for us"!!)
So for the longest time I was a fan of SoftScrub. It was the only cleanser that got it sparkling white, and wiped clean. I hated the smell and the fact that it was so toxic to our indoor air. While I grew tired of the thought of another day of baking soda and vinegar, I had an epiphany of sorts... Dishwasher detergent gets my dishes all sparkly, the "graininess" of the powder acts like a scouring powder...why wouldn't it work? And, the best thing....I use Seventh Generation all-natural, chlorine-free dishwasher detergent...so it's green!
I've found my new solution, folks! The table came out brand, spankin' new. With a damp dishrag or paper towel, sprinkle about a tablespoon of detergent on your tile surface, and scrub away! I know some even have tiletop counters in their kitchen. This would work great! I haven't tried it in a bathroom yet, but seeing the results I had on my tiletop table, I don't see why it wouldn't work as beautifully. I'm sure it would even make a great scourer for the toilet, too! If you have any experience with this, let me know!!


6 comments:

  1. Great idea - we use Seventh Generation dishwasher powder as well...

    Jamie

    ReplyDelete
  2. That does sound like a great idea.
    WE have dark grout on our counters, but I just know there are germs lurking...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great idea!

    If you do decide to try a tablecloth again, the flannel-backed vinyl kind is easy to wipe clean (I know vinyl is evil, but these tablecloths last 10-20 years) and you can prevent the superhero cape issue by tightly folding the corners under the table and pinning them in place with jumbo safety pins.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a great tip!

    I really enjoyed looking around your blog and would absolutely love it if you would stop by my new blog!
    Eliza's Blog

    ReplyDelete
  5. Do you think it would work as well on tile floors?

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm not really sure about the tile floors...I can't see why not? But it may be messy! Let me know if you try it!!

    ReplyDelete