Cleaners

[goforette]

What are the safest floor cleaners to use when you have pets? I have the swifter wet/jet that I usually use and of course the girls aren't allowed on it until after it's completely dry - but they lick the floor (for fun and when they're chasing kibble) - Brystal sometimes has a sneezing fit a few days after I clean the floor and I'm worried that maybe I should be using something else. There is no caution on the label for children or pets - maybe the sneezing has nothing to do with me cleaning the floor. Should I be rinising the floor with water after any cleaner? I know swifter you just let it dry. I just don't want to make them sick if I should be cleaning with something else.

[Tracy A.]

The perfume/scent in household cleaners makes Mett & Bratt sneeze. Mostly hairpray, bathroom spray do this. In my wetjet I don't use their cleaner, instead I add 3 table spoons of Mr Clean and then fill with water.

[maggie]

I got an e-mail the other day about the cleaning solution for the Swiffer being almost like antifreeze, I have no idea how reliable that info is but thought I'd mention it. I have linoleum in my kitchen floor so it's very easy to keep clean with white vinegar!

I've been told anything with "pine" is bad for them also.

[Tracy A.]

I should add that I use Mr. Clean Orange..

[goforette]

I thought about doing like organic- environmentally friendly cleaners - (I know I probably sound like a nut) organic/holistic foods for the dogs - and now special cleaners... I just don't know how safe they are - I've heard after it dries it's okay - but they LOVE to lick the floors - I never thought to try white vinegar - do you just dilute it w/water? My floors are just laminate (for good old doggie abuse) so I'm not affraid that I'll ruin them with anything - just want to get some ideas if I should be using something else that is better to clean with around them. I know that my lysol antibacterial wipes are horrible around them - makes them sneeze immediately - so I quit using them. Even if I'm just using them on the kitchen table it sets them both off.

[maggie]

I don't dilute the vinegar because it won't hurt my floor or counter tops, I have a friend that dilutes it 1/2 vinegar 1/2 water, I guess I would test it first to make sure. Sometimes if the pups are nearby they might sneeze once but it's not a "sneeze session" and it doesn't go on & on.

I know what you mean about nutty behavior, I'm probably more careful about their food & surroundings/exposures than my own.

[jodi0553]

This is something I researched a lot when I got my puppy. I found that ammonia based cleansers are both mildly toxic and they smell like urine, promoting repeat accidents.

I don't use the Swiffer solution anymore mostly because they charge way too much for that stuff and you can pop the little bottle off and refill it with anything you want. However, the antifreeze rumor is just a rumor. <Disclaimer: I am a nerdy chemistry professor and can't help myself when I read about something I use being toxic, and I just have to look it up > I just looked at Proctor and Gamble's website and found that Swiffer's active ingredients are isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol, safe in small exposures) and a derivative of propylene glycol, which is actually considered a "greener" alternative to ethylene glycol, and that is the active ingredient in antifreeze. So no worries, there isn't antifreeze on your floor! In both cases, there is so little of the stuff that it isn't poisonous. Actually, I was shocked to find that the swiffer cleanser is "90-100% water" according to its official chemical listing. That's lovely quality control, if you ask me!!!

I use Citra-solv products (www.citra-solv.com) whenever I can in my house. They smell great and are all natural and biodegradable. My hubby likes to spray down the countertops with a cleanser after meals and I personally don't want bleach or ammonia near my food if at all possible. The also sell for about the same price as a traditional cleanser at a normal grocery store near where I live. They don't disinfect (like rubbing alcohol, ammonia or bleach), though, and my vet told me that a bleach based cleanser is the safest to use around the puppy areas.

Incidently, mine sneezes his head off around just about any cleanser, too!

[Eliz222]

We only have hardwood flooring, but I use vinegar and water solution too. I add about 3/4 water to 1/4 vinegar.

[chrissysb]

I use Simple Green. It's a great all purpose cleaner(I use it for the floor, counters, stove, etc) that "apparently" is Non-Toxic, Biodegradable, Non-hazardous, Non-flammable, and Non-corrosive. You can get a jug of it at Costco or Home Depot and keep refilling the spray bottle. Just my .02.