It is a tradition for families to clean their homes and the areas surrounding them before the start of the lunar new year. The word ‘dust’ in Chinese is a homophone for ‘old’, thus cleaning the house is symbolic of driving away the bad luck of the previous year to allow for a fresh and new start.
Our common cleaning habits often result in a number of environmental sins including the use of harmful chemicals, single use wipes as well as single use plastic bottles, which might end up in the natural environment.
Nevertheless, a few simple tweaks can easily make our spring-cleaning routine more sustainable at little to zero additional cost. Learn more below about how we can reduce our environmental impacts whilst carrying out daily chores at work or at home.
Home-made cleaners can be created with ingredients that we may already have in our kitchen such as lemons, white vinegar and baking soda. Using these natural ingredients can minimise the use of chemical cleaning agents and reduce the environmental impacts of our spring cleaning. These ingredients can be purchased in bulk as well as from zero waste stores. Additionally, these cleaning agents can reduce the levels of unhealthy toxins from entering our home too.
Antibacterial and natural deodorisers
All-round cleaning solutions to clean stove tops, microwaves and other small appliances.
Tips: The lemon peels can be used to freshen the air in your kitchen and home too!
Stain-removers and disinfectants
Work well to remove grease in the kitchen and to clean mold and mildew in bathrooms.
Tips: Even works well to freshen up leather products.
Surface cleaners and mild abrasive, scouring agents
Mix with water to clean stainless steel, water stains and hobs, as well as to remove hardened or greasy matter from dishes and pans.
Tips: Can also be used to clear clogged drains by mixing with vinegar.
Use environmentally-friendly tools to go with our eco-friendly cleaning products
As great as it is to use natural solutions to wipe and clean, the tools we use matters too! A sponge is a common cleaning tool but most of them are made of plastic which will slowly degrade into microplastics. Whilst paper towels and wet wipes are extremely convenient, they also come at a cost to the planet. Instead of using endless amounts of paper towels and wet wipes, use reusable cloth instead. This means fewer trees being cut down.
Declutter the wardrobe in an eco-friendly way
Whilst it may be easier to simply throw out old clothing that we no longer want, keep in mind that doing so will simply add trash to landfills. Hence, instead of tossing out unwanted or frayed clothing, why not take some time to organise, clean and donate to a local charity. Alternatively, we can drop them off at the collection box at Lot 10 (washroom entrance at GF and 2F; car park autopay entrance at the 5F) or KL Sentral (KLIA Ekspres Arrival Hall). If there are items that are not in good condition, consider repurposing them into rags that you can use to dust and wipe with, or to wash the car.
