Bleach why do we use so much of it?

I stick to lemon and white vinegar,coke for down the toilet,i hate the smell of bleach.

Here in Germany bleach was unknown, at least my mother-in-law had never heard of it. As opposed to France where eau de Javel was used liberally and exclusively, from what I gather.

It is available here now and I mix up a mild solution of 1 litre water and 30 ml of bleach in a spray bottle to disinfect the kitchen worktops and sometimes to squirt in the loo when I've cleaned it. I don't use loo cleaner any more.

As part of my eco campaign I've rediscovered the loo brush, just scrub a bit every day and even try not to flush as often, sometimes a spoonful of baking powder will revive the sparkle.

On Gransnet some years ago someone recommended a few drops of water in a vase of cut flowers to keep them fresh, which I did for a while. But now I have a bottle of a proprietary liquid for that, which I use once the little sachets have been used up.

citric acid does....because vthe stains are caused by particles sticking to limescale. ...bleach will not get rid of limescale. citruc acid is eco and cheap.

I use bleach only for the loo - what else removes those ugly stains at the bottom of the pan?

I use a non chlorine bleach, no horrible smell and safer to use. I am slowly changing my cleaning methods to use more environmentally friendly ways. My laundry egg arrives next week so see how I get on with that.

Germanshepherdsmum

I don’t use bleach. The most noxious cleaning product I use is Harpic in the loos.

Harpic is hydrochloric acid. In which way is that preferable in our rivers and seas than bleach?

Larry5 I use Dettol anti mould spray. It does contain bleach but I use very little and works well.
Apart from that I rarely use bleach. I use Milton sterilising tablets in the bathroom drains and other cleaners. I don't think its a good idea to use a lot of bleach. And I hate the smell.

I may have mentioned about a cleaning course I did at college few yrs ago whilst trying to set my own cleaning company up.

I did Level 1/2 we were never allowed to use bleach, we had to use other types of sprays but not bleach, bleach eventually takes the coating off your toilets/sinks and causes pitting, therefore your toilet surface becomes less shinny so to speak, becomes dull and lets limescale etc stick to it more easily.

I do very very occasionally (maybe one every 3 mnths) use a fizzy bomb thing that you drop in the bowl and it fizzes, its brill for getting rid of limescale, it really does work.

I never use bleach. citric acid is best for loos. .If you live in a hard water area..guaranteed to get of the limescale. .its the limescale that goes brown at the bottom of the loo..,cheap too. .does the kettle as well!

What do they put in our water? Chlorine? I don’t use bleach anymore because there are other cleaners that are not so harsh but I guess we all need something in our drinking water. Especially those countries that recycle sewage.

We don’t have mould anywhere but white vinegar or borax are both supposed to work to remove it.

We don't use it much either

If you don't use bleach what do you use to get rid of mould in the bathroom? We keep our windows slightly ajar and have an extraction fan but we still end up with minor amounts of mould for which I use bleach but if anyone has any suggestions what to use instead of bleach I would be glad to hear them.

Who are the ‘we’ being referred to? I use bleach once in a blue moon if a stain needs removing. I never use it and prefer other eco-friendly products.

TBH I don’t use much bleach at all.
Handy for getting stains out of any white cotton or linen, though, like my white linen table napkins (used only when we have guests, just for us a sheet or two of kitchen roll will do ?)

The loos get loo cleaner, I don’t actually disinfect kitchen or other surfaces, never have, and nobody’s died. A wipe with a spray of Flash or similar has to do.

Hetty58 love those links, especially the vitamin doughnuts!

Hetty58

MayBeMaw, I was making a different point - that they don't kill bacteria in the short time they're on our hands.

And I was merely adding to it.

MayBeMaw, I was making a different point - that they don't kill bacteria in the short time they're on our hands.

I don’t use bleach. The most noxious cleaning product I use is Harpic in the loos.

I never use bleach.

Bleach is not an acid, it is an alkali (sodium hydroxide) and is not mild. In a former life I was a lab technician.

Hetty58

MayBeMaw, antibacterials - a good example of today's false advertising. We don't need them in hand or dish soap - and they don't work anyway, unless left on for an extended time.

And any “leaving on” is in fact counterproductive as the article explains
Unlike these traditional cleaners, antibacterial products leave surface residues, creating conditions that may foster the development of resistant bacteria. For example, after spraying and wiping an antibacterial cleaner over a kitchen counter, active chemicals linger behind and continue to kill bacteria, but not necessarily all of them

Only Eco products here too.

MayBeMaw, antibacterials - a good example of today's false advertising. We don't need them in hand or dish soap - and they don't work anyway, unless left on for an extended time.

I hate the smell of bleach so I don’t buy it. It reminds me of the swimming baths having lessons as a child!