The Guide
> Household
> Cleaning
> Floor Cleaners
Most cleaning products don't list ingredients. However, you can learn something about a product's hazards by reading its label. 'Danger/ Poison' - most hazardous; 'Warning' - moderately hazardous; 'Caution' - slightly toxic. Ingredients vary in the type of health hazard they pose. These include skin or respiratory irritation, watery eyes, or chemical burns, while others are associated with chronic, or long-term, effects such as cancer.
- Avoid:
- chlorine or ammonia, listed as active ingredients
- formaldehyde, terpenes, phenols, chlorine, organic mercurials, balsams, aluminium complexes, chlorine, organic mercurials, balsams, and aluminium complexes. These are known to have carcinogenic effects.
- detergents containing alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEs) - do not degrade completely and are known hormone disruptors.
- detergents containing phosphates - cause algal blooms in water ways
- Look for:
- biodegradable to AS4351, or better still, an international standard
- plant-based ingredients, instead of petroleum-based
- concentrated form
- specific ingredient information (such as solvent-free no petroleum-based ingredients solvent-free, no petroleum-based ingredients) rather than unregulated greenwash claims (such as natural and eco-friendly)
Most floor cleaners don't make a measurable difference when it comes to everyday cleaning. In 2020 Choice tested 15 popular brands, only to discover they all give pretty much the same result as hot water. Three of them were actually outperformed by plain water.
- Give floor cleaners a miss and just use hot water. See Choice's 2020 Shonky Award for floor cleaners Choice
- See Choice's 2020 review of floor cleaners Choice
Features: 100% Australian owned & made, cruelty free, plant-based, non-toxic
Founded in 2017, Koala Eco products are Certified Toxic-Free, certified allergy safe, vegan, no new plastic, environmentally friendly, biodegradable, not tested on animals, and Australian owned and made. The company donates to One Percent for the Planet. Available in health food stores and online.
Manufacturer:
Koala Eco
Features: 100% Australian owned & made, cruelty free, plant-based, non-toxic
Founded in 1989, Tri Nature's award winning range of eco-friendly cleaning and personal care products are Australian-owned and made, plant-based, accredited cruelty free, grey water safe and free of nasty chemicals.
Manufacturer:
Tri Nature
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