Inspired Giveaway : Rub A Dub Dub
Ever since Hilde explained what soap nuts are and how they work last week, it seems I’m not the only one who’s been making a bee line to the grocery store to examine this unique, green solution to laundry soap. Hilde certainly knows her stuff. After all, not only has she been using (and raving about!) soap nuts, I realized she’s been using them longer than I’ve actually been doing my own laundry. So soap nuts are definitely on our must try list. I don’t suppose they’re something you would like to try are they?
If your answer is a squeaky clean yes, guess who’s come to town.
Enter buysoapnuts.com. They’re offering one lucky reader 500 grams of soap nuts and fabric bags to go with them. That’s enough soap nuts for 150-200 standard loads of laundry! Wowzers.
Soap nuts aren’t available in a lot of communities. I know my mom still struggles to find green products in her town. So it’s pretty cool that this website is making soap nuts available to the masses. Thank you, buysoapnuts!
If you would like the mailman to stop by with enough soap to keep your machine well fed, here’s how to enter this fantastic giveaway:
THE PRIZE: One winner will receive a free 500 gram bag of soap nuts (that’s 1.1 pounds) and three fabric washing bags valued at $22.00 US.
SHIPPING: Buysoapnuts.com will ship to any US or Canadian address.
HOW TO ENTER: Leave a comment below with your favorite green or simple cleaning tip. Handmade solutions? Tricks for scum in the tub? Or is your all-time favorite the same as ours – a whole lot of old fashion scrubbing?
DEADLINE: Entries must be received by Tuesday, March 16 at midnight EST. The winner will be announced Wednesday.
Loads of luck! (get it?)
Not quite sure what soap nuts are? Check out this aptly post named: What are Soap Nuts?
March 12th, 2010 at 9:25 am
Once you find a good basic green spray cleaner, my favorite tip is how you use it: spray it on the surface you want to clean and then WAIT!
Sometimes I just want to rush in and scrub but if I just give it a little pause (while I spray something else) then the water and cleaner have time to penetrate a little and it makes the whole scrubbing process easier.
March 12th, 2010 at 9:41 am
My favourite green thing right now is to wash my hair with baking soda & water, and rinse with apple cider vinegar and water. No more shampoo/conditioner!
I haven’t been able to find soap nuts where I live in northern BC, so this giveaway is extra awesome, thanks!
March 12th, 2010 at 9:57 am
My favorite green self-cleaning solution is to make a toner out of green tea, mint, lemon juice, and just a drop or two of honey. It’s fabulous, easy, smells good, and keeps in the refrigerator for months!
March 12th, 2010 at 10:04 am
Vinegar + old newspapers = greenest, cleanest windows you’ll ever have!
(Yay, give-aways!) ; )
March 12th, 2010 at 10:08 am
About a year or so ago, I started cutting up our 100% cotton old white t-shirts into paper towel cut size squares. I use these for everything to do clean up around the house. The cloths surely help to make my mirrors and glass just sparkle, and I no longer panic for the need of paper towels!
March 12th, 2010 at 10:12 am
I’m amazed at how many things baking soda cleans–and does a great job too! I use it for everything from sinks to jewelry!
March 12th, 2010 at 10:15 am
Put a few drops of lavender oil in the vacuum bag/canister. It makes the house smell so much fresher without a bunch of chemicals in the air.
March 12th, 2010 at 10:19 am
vinegar baby! on all things! xo
March 12th, 2010 at 10:32 am
I’m a fan of using salt water and lemon to get coffee mugs clean- helps the stains come right out! :)
March 12th, 2010 at 10:41 am
We have found that vinegar works for just about everything. It’s the miracle substance. But I’m wondering if it would be replaced in my heart by soap nuts?
March 12th, 2010 at 10:58 am
It looks like I am playing a stuck record, but I got two books a while back. One on vinegar, the other on baking soda. I like to dump some baking soda down the drain, every once in a while, followed by a cup of vinegar. It sizzles and foams and cleans the drains.
My dad used to brush his teeth with salt and soda. He smoked and was worried about his teeth yellowing. They never were.
When we rinse with Plax, we add a bit of hydrogen peroxide and swish. It whitens teeth and rids mouth of germs. Make sure you don’t swallow. I’m just sayin’
I love your giveaways. Thank you for this generous offer. I want to try these.
~a
March 12th, 2010 at 11:12 am
My green way to combat mold on tiles in the bathroom: mix one part hydrogen peroxide (3%) with 2 parts water in a water bottle and spray directly on the moldy spots. Wait an hour, and rinse. Ta-da! :)
March 12th, 2010 at 11:20 am
My favorite tip is to use homemade soap for everything — facewash, shampoo, bodywash. Sometimes I use it on dishes, too. I love the way it smells. I love that I can tuck a bar in the closet to scent all my linens. I love that I’m supporting a local artisan when I buy it. To me, it often feels like a luxury, because the soap is so good.
March 12th, 2010 at 11:28 am
Since this is a laundry themed post, my favorite tip is to use vinegar in place of fabric softener in the washing machine. Just add a good amount. It not only rinses all the detergent away, but also gets the stink out of your clothes.
March 12th, 2010 at 11:41 am
Great giveaway! And my favorite green cleaning method is just anything with white vinegar. That stuff is magical!
March 12th, 2010 at 11:42 am
We also use vinegar and baking along with eucalyptus, tea tree, lavender and lemon essential oils for every home cleaning need. I’ve never had to buy anything else – they work!
I guess my favorite “cleaning” tip is to use dry powdered milk as a face wash. I keep it in a jar in the bathroom and use about a teaspoon to clean my face (make a paste with water first). It leaves my skin feeling soft and has helped to balance my complexion.
March 12th, 2010 at 11:46 am
I have to go with the population on this… vinegar baby! It cuts through everything!
March 12th, 2010 at 11:52 am
Definitely save and reuse old toothbrushes! I have all these nooks and crannies on the edges of our granite countertop and on the inside corners of our cupboards. I use old toothbrushes to get in the cracks and brush all the dirt away! Just make sure you label them “for cleaning only” and keep them out of reach of little ones who might want to put them in their mouths. Come on soap nuts!
March 12th, 2010 at 11:54 am
Looks like I’m just going to be echoing what everyone else has said. Sometimes the best things are what people used before the latest and greatest came out. I will give this tip, though – instead of silver polish, try a paste of baking soda and water. Let sit briefly and then rub.
March 12th, 2010 at 12:03 pm
I have a lot of hardwood floors and have invested in some microfiber clothes that I use with my Swiffer vacuum and for dusting. I also found a cloth (can’t remember the brand) that cleans windows with no cleaner and just goes in the wash so it can be used again and again. Love using materials that have no cleaner and can be used over and over!!
March 12th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
Here’s a slightly ickier green tip than all these lovely laundry suggestions! Keep a bucket in the shower, and when it’s filled enough, use the water to flush your toilet. You “repurpose” some of the water wasted in the shower, and save water on the toilet flush.
I’m very excited about this giveaway, as I’d love to try out these soap nuts. :) Hope whoever wins them will also let us all know how s/he likes them!
March 12th, 2010 at 12:10 pm
I buy ‘green’ laundry powder & eke it out by using it half & half w/baking soda (sometimes w/an even higher percentage of baking soda). This may or may not work depending on the composition of the water in your area–but I haven’t noticed any difference in the cleanliness of my clothes… & I’d say baking soda in our water system is better than even any green detergent.
Of course if I win the soap nuts I won’t have to use this tip any more. :)
My other favorite thing is, as so many people have said, vinegar.
March 12th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
I use vinegar to clean my bathroom. It is nice to know when my baby girl crawls on the floor she is not getting chemical residue all over her hands.
March 12th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
We have a silver bucket in the kitchen sink to catch water and then we use it to water our one year old trees May – September, when it doesn’t rain as much here. And during the winter months, I use it to water our indoor plants and to refill the flushing toilet. Not only is it good for the environment but it also saves us money on our water bill!
March 12th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
Vinegar, baking soda, and a bit of elbow grease, are my go to choices for cleaning just about everything. And Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap, is really good for body and home.
March 12th, 2010 at 2:00 pm
I swear by lemon or orange oil, baking soda, or Sun and Earth.
Sweet giveaway!
March 12th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
I use microfiber cloths to clean with hot water that has lemon or baking soda in it. Natural and the microfiber can be washed over and over.
March 12th, 2010 at 3:11 pm
I love baking soda, vinegar, and Castile Soap for it all.
Currently using ECOs for laundry detergent, but would be intersted in the soapnuts.
March 12th, 2010 at 4:23 pm
Does it count if it’s something we read on your blog? Because my favorite green cleaning trick is to dust with a damp rag and not with “dusting spray” or Pledge. It works surprisingly well, it’s cheap, and it reduces the amount of chemicals in our house.
March 12th, 2010 at 5:03 pm
Vinegar for old hard water marks (Which there are A LOT of in MT< as you know!), vinegar as a floor cleaner, vinegar as a hair conditioner, and lastly…vinegar in my favorite salad dressing:). I guess we use a lot of vinegar….
March 12th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
I have some nice microfiber cloths that I use to clean pretty much everything. Good cloths and water are all it takes to get so much dirt off of so many places.
March 12th, 2010 at 9:01 pm
My favorite green cleaning tool is my microfiber cloths. It makes me crazy to think how many times I sprayed cleaning solution on a faucet or counter that really just needed to be rubbed with a microfiber cloth!
March 12th, 2010 at 9:12 pm
I know it’s uninspired, but baking soda is amazing as a mild abrasive cleaner. I’d love to try soap nuts! Thanks for the contest, Katie!
March 12th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
Ditto for all of the above vinegar and baking soda users! I save the lemon halves after I’ve zested and juiced them, turn them inside out, sprinkle some baking soda in the sink and use the lemon half as a scrubber. (then they go in the compost) I also use bon ami for serious scrubbing.
We hand wash our dishes and save every drop of rinse water to put on the garden in the warm months and to water indoor plants or flush the toilet in the winter. I use the soapy dishwater to mop the kitchen floor.
We keep a stack of old cloth napkins and pieces of t-shirts in a basket on the kitchen counter as reuseable “paper towels”
March 13th, 2010 at 3:13 am
awesome contest b/c they are definitely on my to-try list! btw – I would have them sent to a friend who would send them to me =)
my favorite: Using a vinegar-soaked rag to dissolve all that build-up on our faucets. Gosh, I hate cleaning up after hard water, but this seriously works!
March 13th, 2010 at 9:20 am
Ooh, Aimee, I totally second the microfiber cloths. :) I know I already posted here earlier, but I LOVE mine. When we moved house ours got lost in a movers’ mix-up and I felt so yucky without them!
March 13th, 2010 at 9:48 am
My favorite “green” cleaning thing I do is to scrub my butcher block with lemon and sea salt. I love the way it smells and I don’t feel like I am cutting our produce on a bunch of chemicals!
March 13th, 2010 at 10:10 am
My favorite green tip: Hanging laundry out in the air to dry instead of using the dryer. Nothing like the smell of freshly washed sheets and bed things dried in the sunshine. :)
March 13th, 2010 at 11:00 am
I never use sponges, I think they are gross. I use handtowels with the scrubby side for dishes. This way you can wash them thoroughly after each use. Other than that, I keep things very simple: Old rags, vinegar, baking soda, my house is very clean without chemicals!
March 13th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
I use a half/half mixture of water and white vinegar in a spray bottle to get out carpet stains. Easy-peasy and it always works!
Thanks for the giveaway. I am really curious about soap nuts!
March 13th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
I love baking soda as a scrubbing agent and vinegar to clean the floor.
March 13th, 2010 at 3:11 pm
I like adding vinegar to the rinse cycle in the wash so I don’t need to use fabric softener :)
March 14th, 2010 at 11:37 am
I’d love to try the soap nuts. To clean the tub I use a ‘green’ cleaner and borax, which cuts down on the scrubbing.
March 14th, 2010 at 8:09 pm
My favorite tip: upgrade your furnace filter and put filters on your air registers. It’s amazing how much cleaner my place is since I made those two quick changes.
I have been fascinated by soap nuts for a while now and would LOVE to give them a try!
March 15th, 2010 at 4:09 am
I would LOVE to try soap nuts, they’re so neat!
My favourite green cleaner is a sprinkling of baking soda, with some vinegar poured overtop. It fizzes away the spot without too much trouble. And I just love to watch the fizzing!
March 15th, 2010 at 11:52 am
My favorite way to clean is with a microfiber cloth & water! It cleans so well & quick. Love it! You can fly through the house & then spend a bit more time in the bathroom & kitchen since you want more then water in those 2 rooms :)
March 15th, 2010 at 12:47 pm
I second, third and fourth all the vinegar, baking soda, castille soap users!
I also use apple cider vinegar on my hair and have loved what it’s done. I’m using what I have left of my shampoo and then am going to try the baking soda/water method to wash it.
Love this give-away!
March 15th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
I’m just now getting into green products, so I don’t have many favorites yet, but I’m sort of excited to clean out my coffee maker with a mixture of vinegar and water. Thanks for this giveaway, I’m really intrigued by soap nuts!
March 15th, 2010 at 8:49 pm
I love using baking soda, vinegar and lemons!
I would love to try the soap nuts!
March 16th, 2010 at 6:07 am
You can clean almost anything with baking soda, vinegar, or lemon juice!
March 16th, 2010 at 8:09 am
My favorite green cleaning tool isn’t in a bottle–it’s the idea of cleaning as you go. I’ve found that swishing a brush around the toilet everyday lets me avoid using a harsh cleaner all together. My oven doesn’t need a ‘deep clean’ if I wipe a spill out from it as soon as it’s cooled down a little but before it’s completely cold. So many chemical cleaners are only necessary if you wait to clean!
March 16th, 2010 at 8:11 am
Nothing beats good old baking soda and elbow grease to clean a dingy stainless steel sink.
March 16th, 2010 at 8:11 am
Does not cleaning count?
March 16th, 2010 at 8:13 am
Every now and then I pour boiling water down the drains to keep them clear!
March 16th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
I am so interested to try soap nuts! My favorite green cleaning products would definitely be baking soda and vinegar. You can use some combination of the two to clean EVERYTHING!
March 16th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Half a lemon and get a little dish of baking soda. Use the first half to scrub the tub and tile, and the second half to do the sink and toilet and give a quick rinse. Boil the peels when done in water to freshen the kitchen. Works great and somehow leaves no residue, sticky or otherwise. I would love to confuse my fellow Brooklynites with soap nuts at the laundromat! Thanks for the contest!
March 16th, 2010 at 2:47 pm
You can clean basically everything with various combinations of baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and water. The only thing you have to be careful with is marble – lemon juice can eat away at it.