Question from Angelique

We have mysterious grease spots on our carpet. At least, my husband says they are grease, and probably caused by the people who installed our pool table. They actually feel kind of hard. My regular products didn’t do anything for them.

What can I use that is safe?

Debra’s Answer

I did a bit of research on this and the correct method depends on the type of material used to make the carpet. My best recommendation is to contact the manufacturer of the carpet and then evaluate the toxicity of the recommendations.

Personally, the best thing I can say is replace the carpet with less toxic flooring.

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Question from deanna96

Debra,

I posted a few days ago about the cleaning solution that Chem-Dry uses when cleaning carpets. I have found another company that says they use a mixture of citric acid, sodium bicarbonate, and sodium from a product they buy. Here is the link to the product they use: www.jondon.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=30963. There is also a link to the MSDS sheet. What di you think of this?

Thanks,

Deanna

Debra’s Answer

This product looks fine to me.

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Question from hanahmeg

I’ve been looking for new bedding for our new king size bed. Obviously it is not cheap, especially for organics. Is it possible that over time, and plenty of washing, that non-organic bedding could lose it’s harmful toxins? We purchased a bio-green (not organic, but non toxic) memory foam bed, and would like to keep everything non toxic, but also I am on a budget. Are there any bedding brands that maybe are not organic, but are at least low on harmful toxin levels?

Debra’s Answer

Nonorganic cotton sheets do not contain residues of pesticides. They are removed during processing.

However, nonorganic cotton sheets that have permanent press finishes emit formaldehyde. So you want to get plain cotton percale sheets, cotton flannel, or cotton jersey sheets.

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Question from LaniH

A remediation contractor sprayed two applications of Microban disinfectant in my ductwork (supposedly to help removed loose fiberglass that had been sucked into ductwork). When the heat was turned on and the house shut up in the fall, I became sick and had to leave my house within days and haven’t been back. My theory is that the Microban coated the ductwork and is breaking down as the heat passes through the ducts. My husband and son feel fine in the house but we have started looking for a new house to buy because I can’t live there. Do you have any idea how I can get this junk out of my ducts so that I could possibly live there again?

Debra’s Answer

It might burn out using the heater. In the past, I’ve contacted manufacturers to find out how to remove various substances. I suggest you do that in this case.

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Question from Patty

Does anyone have any recommendations for removing the fragrances that are from natural essential oils in a home that I am considering purchasing? The owner is now using only fragrance free products per my request but the fragrant odors still permeate the home. Has anyone had success in removing these fragrances to make a home completely nonfragrant? Thank you

Debra’s Answer

Readers, any experience with this?

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Question from rayrozen

There’s always been a lot of hoopla around using borax, but increasing studies are showing that it’s not all that non-toxic!

Please note I am in no way connected to this article except for the fact I think it is a great article!

Check out this article at

www.enviroblog.org/2011/02/borax-not-the-green-alternative-its-cracked-up-to-be.html

here is the text of the article:

Borax: Not the green alternative it’s cracked up to be

Debra’s Answer

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Question from Liv

I just bought many organic cloth diapers. It has a tag that states: Outer 100% polyester, Inner 100% organic cotton.

However, now I know that PUL is considered not safe for babies. I wonder how it is transferred to the baby. I mean, is it by outgassing? They don’t smell bad and besides, for maximum absorbency they recommend to wash them 5 times prior to use. Is it by leaching?

If the PUL is not next to my baby skin, is it still harmful? The diaper is the organic BumGenius cloth diaper. I cannot afford replacing them to just organic cotton diaper! I have also read that since the polyurethane is veeery thin it is not really harmful and they even mention PUL is breathable. Is that correct? By the way, I didn’t read that in BumGenius page but in some other webpages I found browsing.

Thanks!!

Debra’s Answer

First of all, polyester is not PUL. So if the label says polyester and organic cotton, that’s not PUL.

PUL is Polyurethane Laminate (read more about it at Q&A:Information on PUL fabric.

Soft plastics outgas, so baby can breathe the fumes and they can be absorbed through the skin. If the plastic is toxic, they are breathing and absorbing toxic fumes. However, again, polyester is not PUL.

Polyester itself has a fairly low toxicity, however, all polyester fabrics are treated with a formaldehyde resin that does not wash out. Since polyester is not waterproof, I’m not sure why they are using it with organic cotton.

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