I used to work with local communities along the coastal area in
the Andaman Sea, Thailand over 7 years. Since then, I stop buying any
chemical dishwashing and toilet cleaning detergent. And just try to be an
environmentally friendly in daily living. Learning by doing, experimenting and
practicing from day to day, I
now do my own products such as household multi-purpose cleaning
product,the toiletry product, organic fertilizer, and food preservation.
Adopt “minimum discharge” and “responsible garbage” policies is one of code of Conduct of Green Fins that we urges members to use environmentally friendly cleaning products on boats and in kitchen cleaning areas. You can make it yourself to reduce your operating cost, and be eco-friendly to our coral reefs. Even you are not Green Fins members, you can help the Earth by do it your own cleaning product as per instruction below.
Here is the recipe of the multi-purpose cleansing product that Green Fins use:
· 1 kg. of Texapon N-70 or the chemical name is Sodium Laurylether sulfate (SLES).
This is biodegradable product for cleaning, which is made from oil palm. Or using mild surface-active agent (surfactant) such as Lauryl Betaine, a synthetic vegetable-derived liquid. Note: If you use Lauryl Betaine instead SLES, you need to add Coconut fatty acid (CDE) 1% - 2% to make liquid more thickness.
· 0.5 – 0.7 kg of Salt (it makes the liquid sticky and cleansing)
· 10 Liter of effective microorganism (EM) mix made
with clean water
(sour fruit fermented with effective microorganism)
or 10 liter of sour fruit juice (boiled) such as kaffir lime, lemon, orange, pineapple, etc.
How to mix it?
· Put
N-70 or Lauryl Betaine + CDE and salt into a 12 – 15 liter bucket.
· Then
add 1-2 liters of EM mix and stir it in the same direction. Stir until mixed, then add more EM water.
· After that, slowly add salt to make the liquid more
sticky and stir until the salt
is completely dissolved. You can add coloring and Kaffir lime or orange scent
(food grade) to your taste. Leave it covered
over night. The color will clear and then put the cleansing detergent
into containers. The mix will yield about 10 liters of cleaning product.
Multipurpose cleansing product is used for:
· Clothes washing: soak clothes with water and cleaning detergent for
20-30 minutes.
· Car washing: mix 1 tablespoon cleaning product with 1 bucket of
water
· Mirror cleansing: mix 1 teaspoon of cleaning detergent with water
to spray the mirror, then wipe using newspaper.
When the Selective microorganism working, it became white layer |
How to make EM water?
Normally there are 2 ways:
1. Mix
up 1 part fruit waste, i.e. kaffir lime, lime, pineapple peel with 0.5 – 1 kg.
brown sugar: 2 parts of water). Cover the bucket
and store it for 1-1.5 months or
until a white layer forms at the
surface of the water (good bacteria).
2. Green
Fins purchases dry EM from a laboratory. This kind of bacteria is good for
making cleaning oil. 1 pack can
make 100 Liters of EM water, but you can reduce the
ratio. Mix up 1
part of fruit waste with concentrated dry EM and 2 parts of
clean/
non-chlorinated water (1: EM: 2). Leave it for 5-7 days, then you will see the white layer form on the surface. Use
only EM water. You can mix fruit waste with leaves
and soil (10 parts) to make fertilizer.
Effective microorganism mix can be used as a multi-purpose cleaner:
· Add some EM
water into toilet fluid to reduce the bad smell in the toilet, or use 1
part EM mix diluted with 20 parts
water to reduce the smell from a flush toilet.
· To clean a dirty floor apply EM mix to the floor or a toilet/shower room
and leave
it for 30
min. Then clean up the floor by adding some cleaning product and brushing.
The
living microorganism contains fruit acid, which is good for cleansing the floor
and
it is not harmful to human health or the environment.
Note: EM is not a chemical acid so it does not bleach your floor and make it as white
as chemical cleaners, but it’s safe for both human and environmental health when it is released into the water or soil.
Eco-friendly cleaning product training to Green Fins Ambassadors in Khao Lak, Phang-Nga, Thailand |