Welcome to Eco Eve’s column, where you’ll find a treasure trove of practical tips and innovative ideas for living more sustainably. Eco Eve is dedicated to helping you adopt environmentally friendly practices, from green cleaning solutions to everyday habits that reduce your carbon footprint. Join us on this journey to make a positive impact on our planet, one small step at a time.

Avoiding Microplastic Contaminants

Plastics degrade when heated or frozen, and with age. Tiny particles enter our food, waterways and ecosystems, potentially affecting our reproductive and metabolic health. It is thought that 33% of dust in a typical home consists of microplastics from synthetic textiles. Debate continues about whether Poly Vinyl Alcohol (PVA/PVOH) in cleaning products and dishwasher pods istruly biodegradable.

Simple Ways to Reduce Microplastic Exposure at Home

Eliminating plastic use at home is challenging, but simple changes reduce our exposure and promote a healthier environment. Here are some suggestions:

Soft plastic, microwave and zip-lock bags – opt for glass/ceramic/fabric containers for storage and microwaving food. Hand-wash any plastics to prevent degradation in the dishwasher.
Synthetic fabrics and clothing – preference natural cotton or linens for clothing/furnishings.
Nylon toothbrushes – opt for bamboo or natural bristle toothbrushes. If using a nylon toothbrush, rinse your mouth after brushing and replace frequently.
Plastic cutting boards – replace with wood.
Plastic-lined takeaway hot-drink cups (contain HDPA) – use metal ‘keep’ cups.
Bottled water – use refillable metal or glass bottles.
Tea bags/coffee pods – buy loose-leaf tea leaves or ground coffee.
Synthetic cosmetics – opt for natural beauty.
Cling wrap – use beeswax wraps.
Plastic carry bags – replace with fabric bags.
Limit use of products containing PVA.

DIY Gluten Free Almond Milk and Almond Meal

Avoid added sugars, and aluminium and plastic packaging that can’t be recycled, and save money by making almond milk and almond meal at home.

Recipe

Cover a packet of organic Australian almonds* with water. *Avoid bitter almonds.
Soak for 8 hours.
Drain and rinse until water runs clear.
Place soaked almonds in a blender/food processor and cover with water, adjusting the volume of water according to personal taste.
Blitz for 1-3 minutes, depending on the processor’s speed. Blitzing for too long creates superfine pulp, which requires more effort to strain; not processing for long enough makes the milk more watery and less creamy.
Strain using a tea-towel, muslin cloth, or nylon stocking.
If desired, sweeten with vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, or honey.
Add fruit, dates or bananas to make a nutritious smoothie.

Using Leftover Almond Meal

Use as a gluten-free flour substitute in baking breads, crackers, biscuits, cakes, or salad croutons.

Store in an airtight container for 1-2 days in the fridge.

For a longer shelf life, dehydrate and grind into a fine flour, and refrigerate in an airtight container.

DIY Vinegar from Apple Scraps

With multiple uses around the home, this zero-waste, natural alternative to store-bought apple-cider vinegar makes a:

wash to remove chemical residues from fresh fruits and vegetables
digestive tonic
salad dressing
pickling solution
clarifying hair rinse
trap to kill fruit fly

Ingredients (Makes 1 Litre)

1 kg apple scraps (include cores, pips and skins)
75 g (1/3 cup) caster sugar
1 litre, or so, dechlorinated or filtered water, springwater or rainwater. Alternatively, boil and cool tap water and leave to stand overnight in an open vessel.

Instructions

Place apple scraps into a large, wide-mouthed jar with water.
Add sugar and stir with a wooden spoon.
Secure the vessel’s mouth with a clean teatowel/muslin and tie with string/elastic band (prevents contamination from flies).
Place in a cool, dark place, out of direct sunlight, to ferment.
Check and stir every few days.
As it ferments, bubbles of foam will form on the surface.
Once the bubbles stop and the apple scraps fall to the bottom, strain and transfer to a clean glass bottle.
Store in a cool, dark place for up to one year.

Forage for Edible Weeds

Summer rains trigger weed growth in the garden, but foraging in the community for edible weeds, like dandelions, is gaining popularity. Part of the sunflower family, dandelions support pollinators and bees, may improve soil health, and have nutritional benefits.

“Because edible weeds haven’t been bred the way commercial crops have,” says Sydney-based nutritionist, Catherine Saxelby, “they have higher concentrations of natural vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients.”

Rich in antioxidants, vitamins A and K, folate, and calcium, dandelions are anti-inflammatory and can help manage blood sugar. Add young leaves and petals to salads, stir-fries or green smoothies. Roasted dandelion root tea aids digestion and may remedy constipation. Flowers can flavour a gourmet vinegar. Add them to kombucha or bread, or incorporate flowers in homemade soaps and lotions.

Ask your doctor first if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Never eat anything you cannot positively identify.
Ensure edible weeds are pesticide-free.

While dandelions are safe and non-toxic, those with allergies need to exercise caution. Always follow dosage guidelines of a maximum 4-10 g of fresh or dried leaves / 2-8 g dried roots daily.

The edible dandelion variety is a hollow-stemmed plant with large, pointed, tooth-like leaves. It flowers in a singular, full, bright-yellow head. Because several non-toxic but inedible look-alikes exist, careful identification using multiple characteristics and a reliable field guide is essential before consuming any wild plant.

Summer Worm Farming Tips

Allow worms to eat most scraps before adding more. Avoid avocado skins, seeds, corn husks/cobs, garlic, onions, leeks, chives, shallots, citrus, and meat. Coffee grains maintain pH levels and can be fed daily.
Worms require a small amount of eggshell or grit to aid digestion. Dry eggshells in the oven (when cooking something else), then grind to a powder.
Add cardboard as a bedding base when starting a new worm tray, to stop worms falling through.
Dilute extracted worm juice with water for garden use.
Maintain a consistent temperature and moisture levels – place worm farm in a shady spot. Freeze scraps before feeding. Add only a thin layer (2.5 cm maximum) of scraps to minimise heat generated from decomposition.
Squeeze worm bedding in your hand to check moisture level. Too dry? Mist with water. Too wet? Add brown leaves or shredded newspaper.
Ensure bottom worm farm tray drains to stop worms drowning/becoming smelly.

Composting Awareness

During the City of Moreton Bay’s Composting Awareness Week 2025, residents shared tips for transforming food and organic waste to nutrient-rich garden compost.

Monique King recommended chopping organic waste scraps into smaller pieces.

Tracey Coe explained that smaller pieces provide more surface area, which is beneficial for the microbes and worms. This speeds up decomposition and prevents bad smells from accumulating in the compost heap.

Varuni Samarawickrama said not to add bones or meat to the compost heap, adding, “If the compost smells like ammonia, add carbon-rich elements such as straw, peat mass or dried leaves.” Adding the brown leaves absorb the moisture.

Jenny George recommended considering the placement of compost piles, locating them in spots that are not too hot or cold “with lots of drainage and not too close to your house or neighbours.”

Find out more about composting.

Sharing Waste Locally

Are you looking for more food scraps for your chickens?

Perhaps you want more garden compost to enrich the garden?

The solution – find a neighbour or community garden accepting or donating food scraps and garden waste with Peels.

Peels is a free website connecting neighbourhoods for community composting. By facilitating food waste and compost sharing in communities, Peels helps reduce landfill and builds sustainable, interactive local networks.

To share food scraps with neighbours, community gardens, and local businesses, sign up to Peels and find a host or donor near you. Then simply arrange the drop-off/collection of scraps and organic garden waste.

Peels fills the gap left after Sharewaste, a similar platform, closed.

Peels Volunteer, Danny White, says people want to divert food scraps from landfill where council FOGO collections aren’t yet in place.

Local composting keeps valuable resources within the communities, enriching the soil.

Learn more here.

Ways to Reuse Coffee Grounds

Tenderiser – the natural acids and enzymes in coffee grounds tenderise tough meat fibres – add to a dry meat rub several hours before cooking the meat.

Garden – Compost coffee grounds, then sprinkle a thin layer around plants. The nutrients enrich the soil, retain water, decrease heavy metal content and repel fruit flies, beetles and slugs.

DIY Sustainable Firepit Fuel – coffee grounds burn hotter and longer than regular firewood. Mix dried grounds with melted wax, treacle (molasses) and sawdust, press into a loaf tin/mould forming a log. Allow to cool and solidify. Or mix grounds with candle wax – when lit, the candle’s aroma deters insects by masking scents that attract mosquitoes to the human body.

Deodoriser – To absorb bad odours, add to old socks and place in smelly shoes, gym bags and wardrobes. Great for spoiled food odours in the fridge and removing onion or garlic smell from hands.

Eco-Cleaning – Sanitise sinks, cookware and grills before washing.

Hair – Use grounds to darken brunette hair and remove dead skin or product buildup from the scalp before shampooing.

Coffee grounds also make an inexpensive dye for fabrics, cellophane and paper, or as a base for growing mushrooms.

Alternatives to Problem Plants

Invasive weeds are problematic, non-native plants. Their seeds are spread by birds, animals, humans, vehicles, or the release of ballast water. Arborists estimate one-third of invasive tree species in Moreton Bay were first introduced as garden ornamentals – the African tulip tree, for example, kills native bees.

Unchecked, invasive plants smother bushland, degrade animal habitats, choke waterways, and can lead to foul smells arising from excess algal growth near the shoreline.

Under Queensland’s Biosecurity Act 2014, all residents have a general biosecurity obligation to take reasonable and practical steps to control invasive weeds and manage restricted species on their property. This includes sagittaria, water hyacinth and fireweed. Plus, if your property abuts an environmentally significant area – lantana, camphor laurel and madeira vine. Birds spread the seeds of camphor laurels, and this plant can be especially detrimental to waterways, out-competing desirable native vegetation. For many invasive species, there are eco-friendly alternatives:

Replace Camphor laurel with Brush Box, native figs, lillypillies, or black bean trees.
Alternatives to Lantana include Native Lassiandra, tea-trees or the Hairy Bush Pea.
The broad-leaved pepper tree is a restricted invasive plant, meaning penalties apply unless measures are taken to minimise the risk. Instead, plant tuckeroo, satinash or weeping lillypilly.

For more information, visit biosecurity.qld.gov.au

Plastic Waste Innovations

Companies like PLOYS create earrings from recycled beach microplastic and have, to date, recycled 1667 kg of pool toys, creating water-resistant purses, totes, book bags, raincoats and funky home décor. Send punctured pool inflatables, air mattresses, rubber boats and broken umbrellas to PLOYS and receive a $10 credit, or drop off at the Tarragindi Community Gardens (Wellers Hill Bowls Club). Visit ploys.com.au for more information.

Kids Craft

Involve the kids with a DIY craft project – create their own waterproof swimming bag or pencil case at home from old pool toys. Download instruction sheets and patterns at ploys.com.au (small cost applies).

Hard to Recycle Items

Precious Plastics use innovative processes to repurpose items usually dumped in landfill. Drop off plastic bottle tops, triggers, laundry bottles, coffee cup lids, yoghurt/ice cream containers, sauce bottles and plant pots to 28 Manchester Terrace, Taringa. For more information, email plastic@d-wizz.com

Tip: Remove labels from plastic bottles without wasting water – leave inside a car parked in the sun for an hour. Labels will peel off.

Medication Blister Packs

Chemist Warehouse at Mango Hill, Capestone and Redcliffe accept blister packs for recycling. The aluminium heads are used in steelmaking, and the plastic is recycled into PVC decking and fencing materials.

Natural Mildew and Mould Removal

Humid wet weather brings mildew and mould.

Eradicate mould naturally with vinegar. Distilled white vinegar kills 82% of mould spores.
Mildew on clothes – Spritz with distilled vinegar before washing. For spot cleaning, moisten with lemon juice and salt. Dry in the sun.
Bathrooms – Undiluted vinegar is effective in cleaning shower recesses. (Avoid using undiluted vinegar on metallic fixtures, granite, marble and some wood). Spray undiluted onto mould. Leave for two hours. Scrub with a brush and wipe clean with water. Dispose of all cleaning cloths into the bin after use (they contain mould spores).
Mildew on books or paper – Sprinkle with cornflour. Let sit for a few days, then brush off.

Scenting Vinegar

To avoid that vinegar smell in the home, add 15 drops of oil of cloves into a spray bottle and top with water. Spray onto mould. Leave for two hours, spray a bit more, then wipe away. (Avoid using clove oil around pets).You can also scent vinegar with citrus peel (orange, lemon or grapefruit). Leave for a week before using.

Eco-Friendly Vinegar Glass Cleaner

Use equal parts white vinegar and water to spray onto glass. Wipe with a lint-free cloth for a streak-free finish.

The Magic of Lemons

With the onset of cooler weather, lemons are a favoured remedy for colds or flu. Research suggests lemons may also support heart and digestive health, while their natural acidity makes them useful around the home.

Clean windows and chrome fittings with half a lemon dipped in salt.
Rub chopping boards with cut lemons to eliminate garlic or stubborn odours.
Mix lemon juice to a paste with salt and baking soda to remove red wine spills.
Replace the dishwasher Rinse-Aid with a cut lemon for a streak-free wash.
Lemon peel repels insects when placed outside an external door.

Health Benefits of Lemon Juice

Aids digestive health, eases heartburn and bloating.
An antiseptic that aids wound healing.
Stimulates the liver and kidneys.
May help to kick-start metabolism.
A useful skin cleanser.
Contains calcium, magnesium, potassium and vitamin C.
Aids iron absorption from dietary sources, helping to protect against anaemia.

Grow Your Own Lemons

Lemon trees thrive in large pots in a sun-drenched spot in the garden or courtyard. Fertilise regularly. As well as reducing retail packaging waste, growing homegrown lemons offers bees a pesticide-free food source.

Save Money and Get Organised!

Give empty shoeboxes or delivery cartons a second life as storage containers around the home:

Use them to store pencils, bin bags, dishcloths and foodstuffs, or keep baking trays tidy.
Keep shelves clean – store cooking oils and spices on a shoebox lid that doubles as a disposable tray. Replace as needed.
Divide and separate messy utensils, serving spoons and cutlery with a shoebox lid or two in the utensil drawer.
In the bathroom and laundry, small cardboard delivery or shoeboxes are perfect to hold detergent and household cleaners.
Keep a tidy wardrobe – stack shoeboxes vertically with rolled-up leggings or shorts or horizontally in drawers for folded underwear or socks.
Stuff shoeboxes full of less frequently used items, label the front and stack on an upper shelf.

How are ‘Yellow Bin’ Recyclables Processed?

Council’s kerbside collections transport the matter from our yellow lidded bins to a Material Recovery Facility (MRF), where it is sorted and sold. Contamination of recyclable material complicates the sorting process.

Trommels, sieves and rotating discs separate paper, cardboard and glass from other containers. Magnets remove steel and eddy currents repel aluminium matter off a conveyor processing belt. Optical technology sorts paper, glass and plastics based on density and colour. The sorted materials are baled and sent for reprocessing.

To find out more, go to www.moretonbay.qld.gov.au/Services/Waste-Recycling/Collections/What-Happens-to-My-Recycling

DIY Natural Fly Catcher

DIY Fly Catcher Photo Credit Damian Castellini — DIY Fly Catcher by Credit Damian Castellini

Insecticide sprays are harmful to the environment. It’s easy to make your own pesticide-free DIY fly-killer.

Cut a two-litre plastic bottle in half. Invert the upper half (the part with the neck) and flip it upside down inside the base. Fill with water and honey, fruit juice or leftover wine. Flies cannot easily fly vertically, and thus get trapped inside and drown. Replace fluid after a week or as needed.

You can also decorate the bottle with a little wrapping paper or collage to hide the flies.

Make Your Own Disinfectant Wipes

Combine one cup water, ¼ cup white vinegar and eight drops each of tea tree, eucalyptus and lemon essential oils. Mix thoroughly.
Place 15-20 squares of old fabric or cloths in an airtight container.
Pour the mix over the cloths and allow them to soak up the solution.
After use, wash and repeat.

Eco Eve: Tea Time – DIY Herbal Tea

Save money, reduce waste and enjoy the nutritional benefits of herbal tea straight from the garden. The leaves of common home-grown plants can be used, fresh or dried, to make tea infusions. Plus, used tea leaves can be composted or spread around the garden to deter pests. Mice, cats, and some insects hate the smell of tannins.

Preparing Herbal Infusions:

Boil the jug, then collect several sprigs or leaves from the garden – early morning is best. Rinse and steep the leaves in hot water (that is just off the boil) for 5-10 minutes, depending on the strength required. Strain. Add honey or lemon as desired.

Lemon Leaf Tea and Avocado Leaf Tea: Fresh or dried, a brew of either avocado or lemon leaf tea can help with digestive issues, stress and respiratory problems.

Strawberry Leaf Tea: This infusion boosts digestion and immunity, detoxifies and regulates blood sugar and helps promote bone and cardiovascular health. Drink hot or cold. Dry excess strawberry leaves in a cool, ventilated spot, dehydrator or oven. Store in an airtight container. Grind down the dried leaves to a powder and add to smoothies for a nutrient boost. Make a facial rinse or compress for soothing skin irritations and inflammation with a cooled infusion of strawberry leaf tea. The antioxidant properties may help to prevent premature ageing.

Parsley, Basil, Mint or Chamomile Tea: Collect several sprigs. The more leaves, the stronger the flavour. These herbs can be dried or ground for use in cooking or drinks.

N.B. Always use leaves that are clean and free from pesticides or chemicals. Consult your healthcare professional if you are pregnant, breastfeeding or have health conditions before use.

Eco-Eve: Lettuce Reduce Food Waste

Queensland summers are synonymous with alfresco meals and crisp, leafy green salads are not only a visual delight, but they can help keep you hydrated in the heat.

Not just low in calories, lettuce contains no cholesterol or fat and may even prevent memory loss. Plus, research shows that eating side salads before and with meals can fill the stomach, helping with weight loss. Nutrient-wise, lettuce is full of antioxidants, vitamins K, B9 and folate.

When lettuce is purchased pre-shredded or stored in plastic, it is often limp, unappetising and has lost much of its nutritional benefit. The following tip will keep Cos, Romaine, Iceberg lettuce, and other leafy greens, including kale and spinach, fresh and crisper for longer, eliminating food wastage and saving you money.

How to Keep Leafy Greens Fresher

Take one or two pieces of aluminium foil and cover the entire head of lettuce.
Wrap the lettuce tightly and ensure it is completely covered with foil. Do not wash before wrapping.
Keep refrigerated.
Remove lettuce leaves individually as needed. Wrap the remainder and return to the fridge.
Wash only the portions you need and dry the leaves using a salad spinner or clean tea towel.
Enjoy anytime.

Eco-Friendly Kitchen Cleaning

Ovens are notoriously difficult to clean. Make the task easier by sprinkling any spills in the oven immediately with salt. When the oven has cooled down, brush off the burnt food and wipe with a damp cloth. Clean oven glass by rubbing with dry bicarb soda and a damp cloth.

Soda water or vinegar will remove marks on a stainless-steel sink.

Equal parts vinegar and water brought to the boil will rid a kettle of lime deposits.

Lemons are great for sanitising chopping boards or ridding the rubbish bin of unpleasant odours.

Freshen and sanitise plastic bottles by rinsing overnight in a mix of bicarb and water.

Eco-Friendly Gum Leaf Wedding Confetti

Instead of purchasing plastic or paper confetti for wedding celebrations, collect some dry gum leaves in pink, grey and sage hues. Using different shaped hole punches to create eco-friendly biodegradable confetti.

This would also look great as a nature-themed table decoration for Christmas.

Eco-Eve: A Second Life for Eggshells

Often discarded without a second thought, crushed eggshells can be re-purposed in the home, laundry and garden to create supplements for pets, DIY beauty treatments, cleaners or garden fertilisers, saving the household money.

Before tossing eggshells in the rubbish, consider these ways to reduce, reuse and recycle:

Growing tomatoes? Crushed eggshells in the planting hole can prevent tomato ‘blossom end rot’. Sprinkled around garden plants, eggshells boost calcium to the soil and will enrich and balance a home compost heap.
Crushed eggshells create a barrier in the garden against slugs, snails, or even a pesky neighbourhood cat.
Make a natural exfoliating face mask by grinding eggshells into a fine powder and mixing them with egg whites. Apply to the face and let it dry before rinsing off.
Add a small mesh bag filled with crushed eggshells to the washing machine to remove clothing stains and keep white clothes bright and white.
Deodorise and absorb odours with a bowl of crushed eggshells in the fridge or pantry.
Create a gentle abrasive cleaner with eggshells and a little soapy water to scrub pots, pans, and other surfaces without scratching.
Eggshells will reduce the acidity of coffee and enhance the flavour when added to the grounds before brewing.
Mix warm water and detergent with ground-up eggshells and apply to a stinky drain, scrubbing away any residue to keep the pipes clear.
Sterilise, crush and mix eggshells with a small amount of birdseed for a calcium boost for pet birds and dogs.

Handy Home Hints From Grandma

Old toothbrushes clean rotary beaters, graters, utensils and stubborn toast crumbs in those hard-to-reach spots or corners and clear and remove lint buildup from sliding door and window tracks.
Dust allergies in the family? Empty the stick vacuum or dust bag onto newspaper sprinkled with a little water. The dust will not scatter. Wrap and dispose.
Soak discoloured shoelaces in sour milk to whiten.
Planting marigolds in your garden will deter rodents.
Rub a fresh lemon, cut in half, over hands to remove onion smells or to help sanitise wooden cutting boards after cutting meat. Lemon skins work well to control rubbish bin odours.
Grubby hands after working in the garden or yard? Add a teaspoon of sugar to the soapy lather and wash well.
Believe it or not – Worcestershire or barbeque sauce is great for cleaning copperware!

DIY Natural Cleaners for the Fridge

Remove odours and clean the fridge’s interior and exterior with a solution of one litre of warm water and one tablespoon of bicarb soda.
Neutralise and prevent mould in refrigerator seals and shelves with a soft cloth or an old toothbrush dipped in vinegar. Dispose of after use.
If you like the vanilla scent of branded fridge cleaners, rub the fridge interior with a cotton swab or ball soaked in vanilla. It’s inexpensive and effective.

Don’t Bin Your Batteries

The Bad News

More than 400 million batteries are used throughout Australia. Only 15% are recycled, resulting in 8,000 tonnes going to landfills, where toxins may leak into the environment and community, contaminating soil and water supplies. This poses significant health risks to wildlife and humans.

Batteries also present a fire risk when overcharged, short-circuited, submerged in water or damaged. They should not be disposed of in household waste bins, as they may cause fires.

The Good News

Aside from hazardous waste, used batteries contain valuable resources, including manganese, zinc, lithium, cobalt and nickel, which can be recycled and used by the fertiliser and chemical industries.

Ecobatt is an Australian-owned company that recovers precious materials like copper, aluminium and steel. It recycles household batteries, power tools, farm and storage batteries, phone and computer batteries and button cells. Batteries from electric and hybrid cars, e-bikes, buses and trucks are safely collected. Use their recycle calculator to check the environmental benefits of battery recycling.

Recycling Batteries Outlets

Ready to do your part? It’s as easy as dropping off your used batteries at Battery World, JB Hi-Fi, Bunnings, Drakes, Mitre 10, Aldi, Total Tools or at Return-It Containers for Change on Flinders Parade, North Lakes.

Find more drop off points here.

Keep Vegetables Fresher

Line the vegetable crisper with a paper towel to absorb excess moisture that leaches from vegetables. This also makes cleaning the fridge easier.

For wilted veggies, sprinkle them with cool water, wrap them in a teatowel, and refrigerate them for an hour or more.

Keep lettuce fresh (with outer leaves on until ready to use) by wrapping it in a paper bag instead of the supermarket’s soft plastic. The paper absorbs the moisture while plastic creates it. If you do use a plastic container for your lettuce, line it with a paper towel.

You can rejuvenate soggy lettuce by adding lemon juice to a bowl of cold water. Soak lettuce for an hour in the fridge.

Storing Garlic

Store peeled garlic cloves in a bottle of cold-pressed virgin olive oil to prevent them from drying out. When all the garlic has been used, the leftover oil makes a tasty base for salad dressings.

Pep Up Your Plants

Cooled, leftover brewed tea works wonders as a fertiliser for ferns.

DIY Glass Cleaner

Save money by making your own window cleaner.

For streak-free glass, add the following mix to a bucket of warm water:

½ cup ammonia
1 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons of cornflour

Tip: Easily see which side of the window has any smudges by using horizontal strokes for cleaning inside and vertical strokes for outside.

Eco Eve’s Tips for DIY Kitchen and Bathroom Cleaners

As bathrooms are humid and steamy, they attract mould and mildew. Why pay for branded cleaners when products around the home are cheaper, less harmful to the environment and work just as well?

DIY Powder Cleanser for Showers, Sinks and Tiles

Bicarb-soda works beautifully as a powder cleanser in the kitchen and bathroom. Sprinkle it on a wet sponge and wipe over. Rinse with water. As a bonus, the bicarb will freshen drains as well. Add a few drops of essential oil (e.g. lemon, ylang ylang or lavender) for a sweet scent.

Tip: A large car sponge can save time and energy when cleaning shower walls and screens.

Stubborn Stains on Taps and Showers

Using a sponge, wipe shower glass over with white vinegar, then rub over with a damp sponge sprinkled with bicarb-soda. Rinse well. Squeegee the glass for a streak-free screen.

Stubborn stains from hard water or scale deposits around taps are challenging to shift.

Instead of reaching for chemical cleaners:

Mix bicarb-soda and vinegar into a fizzy paste and brush on with an old nail or toothbrush.
Leave for 30 minutes, then rub over gently and rinse.
Add a little shampoo, shower gel or dishwashing detergent if you like.

Mouldy Shower Curtains

If your shower curtain isn’t machine-washable, soak it regularly in warm water in a bath or sink with five tablespoons of bicarb-soda. Slosh the curtain around, then hang outside to dry. Lay or hang flat to dry to prevent mould from recurring in the folds.

Read more stories from The North Lakes Guide print magazine here:

Eco Eve: Living a More Environmentally Friendly Life!