Comments on: GREENWASH YOUR FLOORS WITH THE SWIFFER

By: evlogi petrov

evlogi petrov — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 03:19:53 +0000

Not a greenwash, but definitely a greenwipe.

By: MLF

MLF — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 04:35:36 +0000

I, too, have been worried about the chemicals in Swiffers. This morning I took pieces of an old Land’s End turtleneck (all I ever use for dusting) and attached it to my swiffer mop. Voila! Just as effective as the swiffer with no chemicals. I have tons of old Land’s End turtlenecks – these will be cut to swiffer size and used on my mop. No more chemicals!

By: Maria Mortati

Maria Mortati — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 18:02:54 +0000

The only way to stem the incoming tide of greenwashing is to push our legislators to define green similar to organic food labeling.

By: Lois Dean

Lois Dean — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 20:34:08 +0000

I love my Swiffer – BUT I am cheap, too, and decided to use my bundle of
washcloths (12 for $5.00) that I purchase for cleaning, instead of buying
refills. One washcloth is a perfect fit. You can soak it in whatever you
choose, clean with it, rinse it out, use it again, then toss it in with all
your washrags at the end of the cleaning.

I like the design of the Swiffer – it is not sloppy like a mop is. Guess I’ll
try the vinegar next. The washcloths last a really long time and take a lot
of wear. I buy yellow and white checked ones so I do not get them mixed up
with the household ones. I use soap on the wooden floors, and whatever is on
hand for the kitchen.

I came to this website because I wanted to learn what chemicals are in the
Swiffers that smell so strong. Will someone respond in detail about the
chemicals and any potential harm they may be to pets, newborns, elderly,
persons with health risks?

We all go barefoot Thai style in this house, so we need to know if the residue
is harmful; also we have pets, and a newborn. I bought refills yesterday to do
a really thorough clean-up because of the newborn in the house. If there really
is a health issue we need to have a reliable answer spelled out.

By: Valeri Sewald

Valeri Sewald — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 18:51:39 +0000

I thought I would share my own solution to keeping the floors clean. Gaiam sells a mop in similar shape as the Swiffer, but allows for you to add your own solution. I find vinegar and water do wonders on the floor but also used the with an eco-friendly- cleaning solution, and Murphy’s oil soap for hardwood floors. You can buy washable microfiber clothes (5 per package) and thus cut down on wasteful paper ones. Its the only one like this I’ve seen – (made in Germany. ) For those who can’t give up theh convenience of the Swiffer set up, its definitely a friendlier solution.

By: kipling

kipling — Thu, 31 May 2007 23:08:41 +0000

I love my Swiffer – BUT I am cheap, too, and decided to use my bundle of washcloths (12 for $5.00) that I purchase for cleaning, instead of buying refills. One washcloth is a perfect fit. You can soak it in whatever you choose, clean with it, rinse it out, use it again, then toss it in with all your washrags at the end of the cleaning.

I like the design of the Swiffer – it is not sloppy like a mop is. Guess I’ll try the vinegar next. The washcloths last a really long time and take a lot of wear. I buy yellow and white checked ones so I do not get them mixed up with the household ones. I use soap on the wooden floors, and whatever is on hand for the kitchen.

I came to this website because I wanted to learn what chemicals are in the Swiffers that smell so strong. Will someone respond in detail about the chemicals and any potential harm they may be to pets, newbor

We all go barefoot Thai style in this house, so we need to know if the residue is harmful; also we have pets, and a newborn. I bought refills yesterday to do a really thorough clean-up because of the newborn in the house. If there really is a health issue we need to have a reliable answer spelled out. Thanks -

By: stephen krajicek

stephen krajicek — Tue, 08 May 2007 14:43:18 +0000

COMSENTECH, Inc manufactures the original terry cloth mop “SH-MOP” which uses both cotton and microfiber washable and reusable bonnets. SH-MOP is truly a green product. (800)874-6672

By: DT

DT — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 05:54:10 +0000

Nice write up. It seems Continuum’s process was never green in the first place, however would it not fix the problems if the cleaning sheets are made biodegradable in the first place? Other than the green over hype, does it say anywhere that the sheets are non-biodgradable? Perhaps we are all getting worked up over nothing? Anyone have the product and can comment?

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 13:58:20 +0000

ugh, i work for a Potbelly Sandwich Works and they are doing the same type of “greenwashing” to promote the fact that they serve salads now. Their salads come in gigantic plastic containters…they don’t offer a smaller size….

then for their promotion they are giving away magnets, lettuce shaped stress balls, and other useless plastic crap. the only good thing they are doing is growing lettuce heads in some of the stores.

oh yeah, and they don’t really recycle…they lead customers to believe that they do so by having seperate bins for garbage and glass.

By: Todd

Todd — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 16:52:24 +0000

Me. “Come on, be honest!!!” Your medical bills are higher than mine if you’ve paid any in the last 10 years outside of annual check ups.
How often do you eat off the floor and lick the soles of your shoes?
Do your homework. Vineger is an age old disenfectant – let it sit on the floor for 10 minutes or so before the rinsing wipe-down. Done. Use soap, i.e. Dr. Bronners, for removing dirt. Also best to stay away from chlorine bleach whenever possible.
I haven’t been sick more than maybe once in the last 15 years, and that was probably just an excuse to take a day off from work. Since I don’t eat off of the floor, nor with my feet, it’s unlikely that I’ll consume any germs that are on the floor. Coincidentally or not, I’ve also been a vegetarian for the last 15 years and I’m very physically active year round.
I also don’t use antibacterial soap which kills 99.9% of all germs, as they state. As it is, there are beneficial germs too. The use of antibacterial soaps degrades the natural processes in sewage treatment facilities (some germs kill other germs as part of natural decomposition) therefor requiring more and more chemicals to be pumped in to do the job, meaning more chemicals in our bodies of water, and so forth and so on.
Be honest, “Me”.

By: Cheshire

Cheshire — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 04:04:53 +0000

Simply, BRAVO.

One mop ,without the replaceably heads, is still my favorite next to a small washable rag.

By: SteveR

SteveR — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 22:50:26 +0000

Didn’t know that “stick mops” were common in Copenhagen too. I’ve seen them in Mexico and they are easy to make and work great.

By: Me

Me — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 21:14:15 +0000

vinegar and water

I would like to know how much your medical bills are each year!! Vinegar and Water do not kill germs, bacteria or disease. Come on, be honest!!!

I love my Swiffer! Wish I thought of it, well, in fact I did, but didn’t think people would want to waste paper like that. I don’t care anymore…LOL

Take care all. Good Luck …

By: Trevor

Trevor — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 02:14:31 +0000

This article caught my attention as I read about “greenwashing – making an unproven claim” and “trying to pass
off’” , “through branding, packaging, and mislabeling”. Then I got to the second paragraph and I started to
chuckle to myself. Thats where I noticed some real “irony”.
I appreciate everything thats being done in the field of green technology and saving the planet. But when I
read about it, I sometimes notice out of date “facts” or information. It’s being used as propaganda, and usually
undermines the intelligence of the whole article.
I’ve helped build modern landfills. Theres lots of regulations involved. There are third party testing agencies
involved. Three feet of non water permeable clay is packed in stages and tested each step of the way. A
heavy plastic liner goes on top, with welded seams, which are also tested. A foot of washed sand goes on top
of the liner to protect it. No longer does anything have a chance to “leach” into the ground.
This article aside, I enjoy inhabitat.com. And other sites or periodicles with similar interests. I would just like
to see the “green” argument be supported with more up to date info.

By: matt

matt — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 15:45:33 +0000

Almost 10 years ago I lived with a family in Copenhagen for a semester while studying there. They always cleaned their floors with a small stiff brush on the end of a broomstick, which could be used on its own for scrubbing, or to push a moistened rage around for “swiffing.” It always seemed like such an elegant solution to me, as did an awful lot of things in Danish culture (bikes, paying for your shopping bags, great public transit, etc.).

What really bugs me is that we (collectively) buy into the idea that cleaning and other daily menial tasks are just oh-so-difficult to perform. Once we believe the marketing department that there is a problem, we feel compelled to purchase their solution. There should be some small amout of pride involved in knowing one’s capability to take care of oneself without things like the swiffer. My freshman year in college, (1995), my standard rant was about the “salad shooter,” a solution without a problem if there ever was one. Now, its the swiffer, the various cleaning foams and sprays purported to reduce effort, the myriad chemical wipes that can all be replaced with a simple washable rag. The stuff that we throw away because we are afraid to turn a couple of screws and see what’s going on inside.