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I clean with a steamer. It doesn't project particles, and it's extremely good at disinfecting. I also use a vacuum cleaner with exceptionally low dust re-emissi
by nextos 9y ago
I clean with a steamer. It doesn't project particles, and it's extremely good at disinfecting. I also use a vacuum cleaner with exceptionally low dust re-emission. And an air purifier.
The only "chemicals" I use are an extremely mild lactic acid based cleaner and a pre/probiotic on toilets and kitchen tops. And I don't use any fragrances anywhere.
My allergy problems have disappeared. I really recommend this approach. Cheap chemicals are a disaster for ones health.
Microfibres are cool, but I've seen inconclusive evidence they might shed asbesto-like particles. So I'm waiting for better testing.
- smaili 9y agoCare to point to Amazon(or other sites) product pages? May be useful for some of us looking to buy.
- bitwize 9y agoWindex sells lactic acid cleaner readily available in stores. It's the yellow stuff, it looks like pee but it does the job.
- seanmcdirmid 9y agoIs that the same as windex vinegar? That’s what we use as our low-level cleaning agent.
- Paperweight 9y agoAlmost all household cleaning sprays use lactic acid. Its smell is less irritating than acetic acid, so presumably you can inhale more of it until you cough...
- tarp 9y agoMy friend started a company that sells high pH water for cleaning/disinfecting. https://phurwater.com/science/ https://phurwater.com/science/
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- GavinMcG 9y agoWhat on earth is high pH water? Water has a pH. If something has a high pH it's not water.
- mirkules 9y agoAccording to the company's documentation it is basically (hah!) a pH 11-12.5 solution of sodium hydroxide, aka lye: http://phurwater.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/MSDS-Cleaner-and-Disinfectant.compressed.pdf http://phurwater.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/MSDS-Cleaner... You can call this water insomuch that it contains water (kind of like wine)
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- kerkeslager 9y agoSo basically, you can pay $22 to have them mix an unknown amount of NaOH into 32oz of water, or you can buy 5 lbs of NaOH off Amazon for $19[1] and mix it into water yourself. A lifetime supply of "phurwater" for less than the price of a single bottle, without even shopping around--this was the first search result on DuckDuckGo. What incredible crap. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Grade-Sodium-Hydroxide-Micro-Beads/dp/B00YPKD3Z0 https://www.amazon.com/Grade-Sodium-Hydroxide-Micro-Beads/dp...
- raverbashing 9y ago"A fool is born every minute..."
- hartator 9y agoI am curious as well what steamer and products you are using?
- nextos 9y agoI use a Kärcher SC3 steam cleaner. It's cheap (~€100) and pretty good. Even the SC2 is decent. As an alternative, Polti high-end ones are excellent. They invented domestic steamers, and I've seen some used at hospitals. The have accessories for e.g. steaming your mattress to get rid of dust mites. I use a Miele C3 Silence vacuum cleaner. It's the cheapest (~€220) Miele vacuum cleaner that has top (A class in EU) filtration. More expensive models just buy you more accessories. Sadly, Mieles are super expensive in the US, and you can't do arbitrage due to different voltage. Nilfisk made in Denmark used to be extraordinary, but now they are pretty mediocre. /u/touchmyfuckingcoffee is a very famous vacuum technician in Reddit, and he recommends Miele and Riccar. He doesn't like bagless. Neither do i. Worse filtration and a mess to dispose if you are allergic. I use a Coway 1008 DH air filter. It's cheap (€400), efficient, and uses low energy. IQAir has great reputation, but in some tests it has shown mediocre performance [1]. Perhaps these tests are not measuring particles in the smallest range, where IQAir claims to excel. I've seen some guys from IQAir at HN, perhaps they can clarify. For house cleaning I use stuff from Sonett. Bio-D is also good, cheaper and easier to find. I also use probiotics from Chrisal. In the US, these might not be easy to find. I'm sure there are equivalent brands there. Check their ingredient lists. Bio-D cleaning stuff is so safe their hand soap is basically the same formula as their countertop cleaner. Many items are certified by Allergy UK. I'm happy to hear any other recommendations from fellow allergics. I also found a two-stage filter for my shower (Sprite + Vitamin C Sonaki) did wonders to avoid spraying chlorine into my airways and reduce inflammation and itchiness. [1] https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-air-purifier/ https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-air-purifier/
- hartator 9y agoThanks man! What do you think about the Hepa filters in Roomba robot vacuums?
- 9y ago
- stephengoodwin 9y agoWhen you say that you clean with a steamer, do you mean something like a garment steamer?
- nextos 9y agoSee my post below. The principle is similar, but implemented on a device for that purpose: a steam cleaner. There's also a cloth attached to scrub dirt. Hospitals use this regularly.
- outlace 9y agoPer the hygiene hypothesis, I wonder if your allergies got better because you’re exposing yourself to more (generally harmless) microorganisms and hence challenging your immune system more. Since I’m sure lactic acid doesn’t sterilize as well as some strong bleach or other chemical.
- kpil 9y agoThe idea that allergies somehow are caused by our sterile lifestyle is suspicious at best. It's might just be an appeal to nature - "all natural ingredients" fallacy. I claim that an individual has never before - in the history of mankind - been exposed to so many and different microorganisms as we are now. Comparing my daughter to my granddad, born 99 years before her, she probably meets as many "new" people per week - if not day, as he did in a whole year when growing up in a reasonably average community not far from a large city. Me and my wife works in large organisations, and it's representatives are visiting or are visited by hundreds of people from around the world - every week, as do many - most in fact - of the other parents in her school of about 1000 students. I have lunch in a canteen where approximately 3000 people eat every day, and we all are slopping around in the food warmers and salad bar sharing the utensils and pawing the bread with our halfheartedly washed hands. On the way to our offices and schools we commute with thousands and thousands of people, all sniffling and coughing it seems. The interconnectedness of it all is just - mind boggling. We are never more than 2 steps away from someone that were on the other side of the world, yesterday. Hopefully not in an Ebola zone. A hypothetical "natural" state, where you sleep in a stack of hay with your pigs, and meet one "outsider" twice a a year doesn't seem to tax the immune system even a fraction of what we have to deal with today. Even it's a lot of microorganisms, it's yours (and the pigs) - unless some pigeons shit in your haystack/bed.
- fulafel 9y agoThe body of scientific evidence supporting the hygiene hypothesis is pretty strong.
- kristiandupont 9y agoI am reading An Epidemic of Absence (http://www.moisesvm.com/ http://www.moisesvm.com/) which explores the hypothesis and it presents a plethora of cases and studies that support it. I have not searched for counter points but it seems pretty solid to me. I can recommend the book by the way.
- dghughes 9y agoI recall reading an article a few years about the aerosolization of minerals in the water vapour and how inhaling them cause lung damage. It could have been a tabloid-ish thing I don't recall where I read it but I often think about it when I am enjoying a hot shower.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- noja 9y ago> I clean with a steamer What about mold?
- Broken_Hippo 9y agoIf you are using the steamer regularly, this shouldn't be an issue (after all, they use steamers to get rid of mold and the temperature is enough to kill most molds). If you are going to let it sit for a while between uses, care for it properly, including letting all the hoses and implements dry completely.