Water Conservation Tips

Rivers, lakes and ponds need a break from toxins which are killing the aquatic life and causing unsafe drinking water.

Each and every person in a household, office or factory can help.

Less costly, more effective and much safer cleaning agents!

Peroxide/Vinegar/Salt

Hydrogen Peroxide is one of the few easily available effective germicidal chemical which kills germs by oxidation process. There are varied Hydrogen Peroxide Uses- both Home Uses and Medical Uses.

Hydrogen peroxide, a chemical substance found at your nearby drug store for as little as a few cents may not seem like much, but it is an amazing product that can do almost anything. There are both home uses of hydrogen peroxide and medical uses of hydrogen peroxide. Some examples of hydrogen peroxide uses in the home are disinfecting kitchens and bathrooms, disinfecting a toothbrush when someone has a cold, mixing with tap water (which has virtually no oxygen in it) and using it to water plants with, adding to your dishwasher to aid in cleaning dishes, mixing with baking soda to clean carpets with and many other home uses.

What is hydrogen peroxide?

Hydrogen peroxide is simply a water molecule (H202) with one extra oxygen molecule. This one extra oxygen molecule may not seem like it does much, however, it can actually do very, very much. For example, there are some bacteria and other germs that haunt our daily lives, the presence of oxygen is a death sentence for some of these organisms. Thus, there are many diseases that are very, very inexpensively treated by just using a few drops of either regular 3% or food grade 35% hydrogen peroxide in a glass of water or inhaled.

However, extreme care must be taken when handling and using food grade hydrogen peroxide. Several precautions must be taken:

Unlike 3% hydrogen peroxide, it is very important to keep it refrigerated.
It must be diluted with water, only several drops at most with an eight ounce glass of water.
Extreme care must be taken when handling a container of food grade hydrogen peroxide because in pure, undiluted form it can severely burn the skin.

So, when carrying a bottle of food grade hydrogen peroxide, make sure the lid is on tight, and the bottle is upright. Keep any unopened bottle or container with this mixture in it away from children.

Home uses of hydrogen peroxide

One of the main uses of hydrogen peroxide (3% grade unless otherwise noted) is in maintaining your dental hygiene. Toothbrushes can be soaked in hydrogen peroxide between uses to eliminate germs. A small spray bottle full of hydrogen peroxide can be kept in the shower to be used as a disinfectant and used after each use.
In addition, this can be done for toilets and bathroom sinks when people have colds or other contagious diseases. Two oz. put in the dishwasher to prevent spreading of colds or other diseases.
Hydrogen peroxide is great for adding to plant water to provide them extra oxygen. This is good because tap water has lost much of its oxygen after being passed through pipes for such a long, long time.
This is also good for cleansing fruits and vegetables. Just put some salt and 1/4 cup of hydrogen peroxide into a sink full of cool water and use to rinse the food with.
There is one company that has used hydrogen peroxide as a sterilizer to use in hospitals including patient rooms, surgical and other medical equipment, and even to safely and effectively sterilize— ambulances! This is a major breakthrough because previously it was nearly impossible to sterilize the inside of an ambulance. With this procedure they make sure the outside of the ambulance is tightly closed and use hydrogen peroxide in a vapor form to sterilize the inside. When finished the ambulance is opened and dried. The hydrogen peroxide separates into water and vapor all by itself. There is very little wiping needed.

Previously there was a necessity to wipe down every item and every compartment inside the vehicle and this took a long, long time.

Medical uses of hydrogen peroxide

It is again important to note that all of these procedures are done with only the 3% solution. Several very good medical uses are infections (usually in the skin and mouth), cold sores, mosquito and other insect bites, and pimples. For most of these minor problems, all one has to do is either pour a small amount from the cap, use a small tissue, or even just put on your finger and rub it on. Minor infections and cold sores disappear quickly.

Putting some in the ears helps breakdown excess earwax and prevents or gets rid of ear infections. For colds, put a VERY small amount of hydrogen peroxide and fill the rest of the cap with water and while holding one nostril closed, breathe it into the other nostril. It will go down up the nose and down the back of your throat, blow your nose immediately. Do this once or twice a day as needed until the cold goes away. However, if it burns too much dilute it more or do a quick follow up with a cap full of plain water (no hydrogen peroxide).

By Jayashree Pakhare
Published: 5/5/2007

Vinegar Uses:

Vinegar naturally cleans like an all-purpose cleaner. Mix a solution of 1 part water to 1 part vinegar in a new store bought spray bottle and you have a solution that will clean most areas of your home. Vinegar is a great natural cleaning product as well as a disinfectant and deodorizer. Always test on an inconspicuous area. It is safe to use on most surfaces and has the added bonus of being incredibly cheap. Improperly diluted vinegar is acidic and can eat away at tile grout. Never use vinegar on marble surfaces. Don't worry about your home smelling like vinegar. The smell disappears when it dries. Here are some uses for vinegar in the rooms of your house. Use it in the…

Bathroom - Clean the bathtub, toilet, sink, and countertops. Use pure vinegar in the toilet bowl to get rid of rings. Flush the toilet to allow the water level to go down. Pour the undiluted vinegar around the inside of the rim. Scrub down the bowl. Mop the floor in the bathroom with a vinegar/water solution. The substance will also eat away the soap scum and hard water stains on your fixtures and tile. Make sure it is safe to use with your tile.
Kitchen- Clean the stove top, appliances, counter tops, and floor.
Laundry Room- Use vinegar as a natural fabric softener. This can be especially helpful for families who have sensitive skin. Add ½ cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle in place of store bought fabric softener. Vinegar has the added benefit of breaking down laundry detergent more effectively. (A plus when you have a family member whose skin detects every trace of detergent.)

Lemon Juice

Uses:
Lemon juice is another natural substance that can be used to clean your home. Lemon juice can be used to dissolve soap scum and hard water deposits. Lemon is a great substance to clean and shine brass and copper. Lemon juice can be mixed with vinegar and or baking soda to make cleaning pastes. Cut a lemon in half and sprinkle baking soda on the cut section. Use the lemon to scrub dishes, surfaces, and stains. Mix 1 cup olive oil with ½ cup lemon juice and you have a furniture polish for your hardwood furniture.
My favorite use for the fruit is to put a whole lemon peel through the garbage disposal. It freshens the drain and the kitchen. Orange peels can be used with the same results.

Baking Soda

Uses:
Baking soda can be used to scrub surfaces in much the same way as commercial abrasive cleansers. Baking soda is great as a deodorizer. Place a box in the refrigerator and freezer to absorb odors. Put it anywhere you need deodorizing action. Try these three kitchen ingredients as natural cleaning products in your home.

Salt

That salt shaker you have in the kitchen cupboard offers you more uses than you could have ever imagined, well beyond the singular one we all know about of adding flavor to food. Learn how to kill poison ivy, stop grease fires, make an anti-bacterial defoliant and a tired foot soak, and 19 other fun ideas!

Famously, salt provides an inhospitable chemical environment for most bacteria, including Salmonella, E. Coli, and it serves double duty against bacteria in that it also removes water from food and cells, making it harder for bacteria to grow without moisture. Hence the old-fashioned use of "salt curing" for the preservation of meats. A brine of 10 percent salt will normally prevent the growth of all pathogenic bacteria, which is the reason why meat-preserving brines were popular before refrigerators, and why a saltwater gargle is to this day recommended if you have a sore throat.

SIMPLE SOLUTION: Salt is formed when acidic and alkaline materials combine and are neutralized. The resulting neutral pH is unique and offers many uses.
Because of its neutral pH, salt is also used purposely to kill off vegetation, and does a better or worse job at this depending on how sensitive the vegetation is to shifts in pH.

Salt also is a good non-abrasive scrubber and provides many uses in the home and for the body for this reason.

KITCHEN USES

Brass, Silver, and Copper Cleaner: Make a paste of salt and vinegar, scoop it onto a soft cloth, rub the metal, rinse, and buff dry.
Drain Deodorizer: Mix ½ cup of salt with ½ cup of hot water, and pour it down the drain periodically to eliminate odors and cut through grease buildup.
White Marks on Furniture: Combine a teaspoon of salt with enough olive oil to make a dry paste. Scoop some of the paste onto a soft cloth, and then rub into the white marks until they are gone.
Grease Cutter: Scrub greasy pans first with salt before washing with a detergent.
Deodorize Cutting Boards: Dip a damp cloth in salt and rub it into the cutting board.
Prevent Food from Sticking: Rub the pan with salt. This will also prevent smoking.
Refresh Coffee Percolators and Pots: Add 4-5 tablespoons of salt to and processing as if there was coffee in the pot.
Clean Sponges: Soak in cold saltwater after you have washed them.

HOUSEHOLD HINTS

Deodorize Shoes: Sprinkle salt into the shoes at night; brush out in the morning.
Drive Away Moths and Ants: Sprinkle areas the pests travel with salt.
Brighten Colors: Add ½ a cup of salt to colored wash loads to enhance the colors. Note that salt is used to set dyes, so it works as a fixative.
Eliminate Mold and Mildew Stains: Scrub with salt and lemon juice, then set in the sun. Wash, rinse, and dry.
Put out Grease Fires: Cover the fire with salt. (Don't use water on grease fires.)

ANTISEPTIC AND PERSONAL CARE USES

Sore Throat Gargle: Add 1 teaspoon of salt to a glass of warm water. Gargle.
Teeth and Gum Cleaner: Pulverize salt with baking soda (1:2 ratio).
Mouthwash: Combine equal parts of baking soda and salt. Add 1 teaspoon to a glass of water, rinse out mouth.
Bathe Your Eyes: Make a salt solution of ½ teaspoon of salt to 1 pint of water. Soak a soft washcloth in the mixture and lay it on closed eyes.
Puffy Eye Help: Use the mixture, above, on puffy eyes, but soak longer.
Foot Soak: Fill a pail of warm water to just the right temperature. Add ½ cup or so of salt. Soak your feet for as long as it feels good, rinse.
Dry Salt Scrub: Exfoliate dead, dry skin, by giving yourself a massage with dry salt.
Removing dry skin: After bathing and while still wet give yourself a massage with dry salt. It removes dead skin particles and aids the circulation.

GARDEN USES

Weed Killer: Sprinkle salt along the cracks of patios where weeds are, sprinkle with water, then pull out the dead weeds and dead grass.
Poison Ivy Killer: Dissolve 1 cup of salt in 1 gallon of hot water. Pour onto the poison ivy. Note that fresh bright green shiny, poison ivy leaves are the most vulnerable to this solution.

By using these cleaning and week killing agents, you save money and prevent toxin in your water which inevitably will come back as it recycles. All toxins do not leave the water!

Bluestone Conservatory

Restoring and protecting the Bluestone River.