Getting a Little Nutty with the Laundry Soap

I finally tried soap nuts. Ever heard of them? They’re gnarled nuts just a size larger than an acorn. They usually turn up at natural food stores and occasionally farmers market stands or craft booths run by hippies. Sometimes the nuts are sold loose and sometimes in little packages with directions.

Their natural oils purportedly work magic in the washing machine rendering clothing sparkling clean without any detergents. The package I bought from a woman at the Sweet Potato Festival who also sold beautiful alpaca wool caps and homemade hand and body soaps said to toss 2 or 3 in an average load. They can be used 5-7 times. There were no specifics as to how you know they are “used up”.

I’ve had my packet of soap nuts for a few months. They seemed like a great idea until I got them home and prepared to toss them in my washing machine. I paused to consider the power of vinegar. I use vinegar as a fabric softener. Not only does ¼ cup per load work beautifully to eliminate static cling and soften fabrics, but it also removes “teenager smell”. If you have teenagers then you’re familiar with this smell. It’s not quite as bad as BO, but it is also not necessarily a pleasant scent. I think it is a combination of hormones, the repeated wearing of favorite clothes, and the stench of junk food coming out of their pores. Deodorant cannot combat this and it permeates their clothing. At any rate, as I said vinegar removes this smell beautifully.

Sidebar: Vinegar, besides being a most powerful and effective cleaning agent, is a natural deodorizer, which I know seems odd given its own strong smell. Spray it in trash cans, diaper pails, and refrigerators to remove the smell. I just spray the bottom of trash cans and let the vinegar evaporate taking the stink with it. Or you can just leave it for 30 seconds before wiping it out.

Because vinegar is such a powerful acid I worried that it would strip the soap nuts of their natural oils and render them ineffective. So I’ve left the soap nuts sitting on the dryer for months now. When I encountered a soap nut vendor again, I asked about vinegar and soap nuts. She looked at me curiously and said she didn’t think vinegar would hurt the nuts. But she didn’t say it confidently enough to give me confidence. So the nuts have been sitting.

This past week I decided to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. (It’s a wild life I live.) I added 3 soap nuts to a load of darks, including a dirty glove (note picture) that has been sitting on my porch for several months because no one knows who it belongs to and without its match I can’t even give it to Goodwill. I also added vinegar to the fabric softener dispenser and ran the load like I normally would.

When I removed the clothes from the washer they appeared clean. The glove was especially clean. There were two problems though. First, after putting the clothes in the dryer, I couldn’t find one of the nuts. I pulled out all the wet clothes and shook them to no avail. I reached in to the washing machine and felt under the spinner. No nut. I didn’t want to run the dryer if one of the precious nuts was hiding in the clothes afraid the ‘natural cleaning oils’ might cook on to the clothes or lose it’s magic altogether, plus I only had six nuts to begin with. I stepped back to consider my options and heard a “crunch”. Found the nut. Sigh.

The second problem was actually more serious than the cracked nut. The clothes appeared clean, but they still smelled like teenagers. Not good. Apparently the power of soap nuts trumps the power of vinegar. Or perhaps the vinegar works best with my homemade detergent. I dried the load of clothes and the smell was diminished, but I could still tell it was there. I am confident my kids won’t notice it, living in the smell as they do. But still.

So my soap nut experience wasn’t the best. I’m not a believer, but I’ve met plenty of people who are and I can say that soap nuts do seem to clean the clothes, if not deodorize them. If you don’t have teenagers, they might be a nice natural way to wash your clothes. For now, though, I’m taking a pass on the nuts. If you’ve had a better experience, I’d love to hear about it!

The Wonders of Lemons

I’ve been thinking about lemons lately. Partly because I was remembering all those little tiny lemon trees everyone seemed to have in their foyer when I was growing up. And partly because I read recently about some uses I’d never heard of for lemons. I’m not sure why lemons are synonymous with faulty equipment and grumpy people, because in reality they are incredibly versatile and amazingly useful. There are many more uses for lemons beyond keeping your guacamole from turning brown or the water in the fancy restaurants from tasting bad. I’ve uncovered all kinds of information on and uses for lemons, so read on.

First, buying a lemon. A lemon with some green on it is not a bad thing. Temperature change is what makes a lemon’s skin turn from green to yellow, so just because it’s showing some green, doesn’t make it a bad lemon. Lemons should feel heavy in your hand and give a little when you squeeze them. You don’t want a lemon with thick, hard skin – it will be less juicy.

Lemons are powerful sources of Vitamin C. If you eat a whole lemon (not just the juice), you’ll have your day’s supply of vitamin C. The juice contains only about a third of the days supply. I remember making myself drink the juice of 2 lemons dilluted with water as a part of scheme to cleanse my system. It was not an easy feat, I made all kinds of odd faces and noises, but I did it. I'm not sure I felt particularly "cleansed", but I did feel a sense of accomplishment. I've never tried it again.

Lemons contain citric acid. If you’ve ever done any canning, you’ve probably used lemon juice as a preservative. (Maybe that’s why it’s so good for you – maybe it preserves us too.) It’s good for keeping raw fruit from turning brown. Spritz a little lemon juice on apples when you pack them in your kids’ lunches and they won’t turn brown by lunchtime.

Lemon peel is a great way to liven up a salad, dessert, sauce, or soup. When a recipe calls for lemon zest, it’s best to stick with real live lemon rather than the dried version in a bottle. The taste just doesn’t compare. Same goes for the “real lemon” you see in the store in those green bottles or plastic lemons – it’s juice that has been reconstituted and mixed with preservatives. The taste is not the same at all. Stick with real lemons or your recipes will suffer. If you’re going to eat the rind, you should opt for organic lemons whenever possible.

And here’s a tip for juicing. To get the most juice out of your lemon start by rolling a room-temperature lemon under your palm to break down the fruit a little inside. If it’s really hard, heat it in your microwave for 20 seconds. Another trick is to freeze the lemons overnight and then thaw them out. Each lemon should produce 2-3 tablespoons of juice.

When cooking with lemon juice, add it at the end of the cooking time or after the dish has cooked to minimize the loss of vitamin C. Here’s a completely aesthetic use - when cooking fresh vegetables, squeeze lemon juice over them to keep their colors bright.

Love this tip from recipes.com: If only a few drops of lemon juice are required, poke a toothpick through the skin of a lemon and squeeze out the small amount needed. Insert the toothpick back in the hole and place the lemon in a plastic sealable bag. Refrigerate to use at another time.
Another beauty from recipes.com: For fluffier rice, add lemon juice to the cooking water. (Fluffy rice is not generally a concern of mine, but maybe you like your rice fluffy. Just trying to be helpful.)

Lemons will keep about 2-3 weeks in your fridge. If you think your lemons might go bad before you need them, consider juicing them and freezing the juice in ice cube trays. You can then pile them in a bag and keep them in your freezer for future use. Before you juice those lemons, you can also grate off some zest and freeze it in an airtight container for future use.

Now, on to the lemon’s amazing cleaning abilities!

1. Cut a lemon in half and dip it in salt for a gentle abrasive you can use on brass, copper, or stainless steel pots, pans, and sinks.

2. Rub a lemon (without salt) on aluminum to brighten it.

3. Lemons tossed in the disposal will deodorize it.

4. To remove stains from a Formica counter top, squeeze fresh lemon juice over stain to cover it and let it soak 30-45 minutes. After soaking, sprinkle spot with baking soda and scrub softly. Rinse with clean water.

5. Remove food stains and odors from hands by rubbing with a cut lemon.

6. To remove laundry stains from whites, mix 1 part lemon juice to 1 part cream of tartar and apply the mixture to the stained area. Let it stand for a few minutes and then remove with a wet sponge.

7. To remove rust from a surface, sprinkle the area with salt and then squeeze fresh lemon juice over it. Allow to sit for several hours (over night if necessary).

8. For rust on washable clothing, apply salt and lemon juice to the rust stain and then place it outside in direct sunlight. Expose it to the sun until the stain disappears, keeping it moist with lemon juice during this time.

9. Add 3-4 tablespoons to your humidifier to deodorize it.

10. Dab lemon juice on a cotton ball and place in your fridge to deodorize it.

11. Use a cut lemon half and rub it over your cutting boards to deodorize and help sanitize them.

12. To get rid of ants in your house, squeeze lemon juice on your thresholds and window sills and any cracks or crevices where the ants are getting in and scatter lemon peel outside your door.

13. Here’s another great one from Reader’s Digest: Lemons are effective against roaches and fleas: Simply mix the juice of 4 lemons (along with the rinds) with 1/2 gallon (2 liters) water and wash your floors with it; then watch the fleas and roaches flee. They hate the smell.

14. Remove underarm stains by rubbing them with equal parts lemon juice and water.

15. To remove rust and mineral deposits from cotton t-shirts, add one cup lemon juice to washer during wash cycle. Heck use it as a whitener on any laundry – it’s safe and effective and better for the environment than bleach.

The things lemon can do for your health and beauty:

1. Use as a cough suppressant, mix 1 part lemon juice and 2 parts honey. Do not give to children under the age of 1 (that’s a honey thing).

2. To sooth a sore throat, drink honey and lemon tea. (also helps a cough)

3. To create highlights in your hair, add ½ cup lemon juice to ¾ cup water, apply to hair and then sit in the sun. (this seems like a much better option than chemically highlighting your hair. Plus it’s a heck of a lot cheaper!)

4. To lighten dark spots on skin, apply lemon juice directly and allow to sit for 15 minutes before removing.(If this works you could save a lot of money on the dermotologist!)

5. Clean and whiten your nails by soaking them in a lemon juice bath (juice from half of a lemon with 1 cup of water).

6. Use as a mouth wash. Swirl lemon juice around in mouth. Swallow it if you’re game for longer lasting fresh breath and lots of vitamin C.

7. For poison ivy, apply directly to affected areas to reduce itching and rash.

8. Apply lemon juice directly to warts for several days. The acid in the lemon juice will eat away at the wart and remove it.

I’m not sure all of these modern lemon miracles work, but lemons are cheap and won’t hurt you, so it’s worth a try! Anyone have some more lemon tips?

The Virtues of Vinegar

Cleaning is not my favorite activity. Is it anybody’s? My house is serviceably clean, it’s not going to make anyone sick, but it isn’t ready for a photo shoot by a long shot. Other than health, the only reason I clean is because otherwise I might go nuts. I can’t stand clutter, yet I am surrounded by it. My kids create it. It’s three against one, so I am almost always on the losing end. I just can’t keep up and many days I stay outside where I’m happier and I can’t see it. Still, cleaning is a necessary evil.

I used to go in for every new cleaning product that promised to make cleaning easier and faster. I tried everything that came along and usually loved it for about a week. Then it got pushed to the back of the closet with the other dozens of bottles, sticks, cloths, and powders. These days my cleaning closet has only a few things in it. I’m saving a ton of money and cleaning the way my grandmother did.

I was motivated to clean out the closet for the same reasons I was motivated to clean up our diet – health. In my battle to reclaim my youngest son’s health, I started with the household cleaning products figuring that the air we breathe affects every molecule of our being. We disposed of all toxic cleaning solutions, detergents, shampoos, and soaps. Reading up on alternatives, I discovered that many of the things our grandparents cleaned with are all natural, safe, and work as well, sometimes better, than their modern equivalents. Vinegar can do anything! You name it and vinegar can do it. If you google it, you’ll find site after site extolling the many uses of vinegar.

I use vinegar as my primary cleaning agent. I have spray bottles filled with it stashed all over the house. I use it for kitchen counters, the kitchen table, bathroom counters, sinks, and fixtures. It really makes stainless steel shine. It also works wonders on mildew stains and tile. We have a bathroom ceiling in the older section of our house that constantly grows mildew spots. (Someday it will have a bathroom fan installed in it, hint, hint.) When we first lived in this house I chased after those spots with every kind of bleach out there, only to end up with a headache from the fumes, foggy contacts, and tired arms. Nothing would move them. Then I discovered vinegar and walah! I just spray and they wipe away. A miracle (I’m easily impressed).

I use vinegar to remove any kind of stink from shoes, equipment, trash cans, coolers, and the inside of the free freezer we received that had been closed up for a year. It cleans tile and wood floor, and diluted with water does an awesome job on windows. My younger kids love to clean windows and now I don’t have to worry when I give them a spray bottle and tell them to have at it. Vinegar can’t hurt them. No more worries about Windex wars. Vinegar is a great fabric cleaner too. It removes food, crayon, and God-knows-what-else stains from my couch cushions.

I go through lots of vinegar in my laundry room. Vinegar works great as a fabric softener. It won’t hurt fragile fabrics and it removes any smells. I put about a half cup in the fabric softener dispenser and another half cup in the bleach dispenser with every load.

The best thing about vinegar is that costs only about $2 a gallon. Talk about a deal. On the things that can’t be cleaned with vinegar I use borax, murphy’s soap, and hydrogen peroxide. If you worry about killing all the germs in toilets or on counters, spray some hydrogen peroxide – it’ll kill anything. You can also use the hydrogen peroxide on your fruits and vegetables if you don’t trust plain water. Hydrogen peroxide has no taste and no real smell, so you won’t even notice it.

I’m sure you’ve discovered your own uses for vinegar and other natural, inexpensive cleaning products. I’d love to hear about them – I’m always looking for ways to do things faster, easier, and cheaper. This week I’m making my own laundry detergent. I’ll say right up front that I’m skeptical about the cost savings and the amount of time it will take. But a friend makes her own, so I’m inspired to try it too. I’ll let you know how that works out.

One amazing side effect of losing all the toxic fumes in our house is that my oldest son’s asthma has been nearly non-existent since we cleared the air. And talk about kid-friendly organics - when friends visit with toddlers I never have to worry because pretty much everything in my cleaning closet and under my sinks is edible.