Currently, I have managed to kill BOTH vacuums that we own. Both are dead, meaning that the drifts of dog and cat fur grow ever larger as I look on in despair. Swiffers get used A LOT in this house. I love that they are kid friendly and they do a great job battling the dust and fur that coat EVERYTHING in this house. It is one of MANY P&G products that help me not look like a hoarder.
Another issue in our house is that the animals now outnumber the humans. Geckos and snakes don’t really smell, thank good so that leaves me with dealing with dogs and cats. The summer months are great for freshening the air the old fashioned way with doors wide open, but that is not always enough. No. 1 son is suffering from horrendous allergies this spring. He wakes up bleary and can barely see. So I have been spraying his bed and room with Febreeze Air Effects: Allergen Reducer. It seems to at least help him get a decent nights sleep. Febreze Air Effects Allergen Reducer reduces up to 75% of inanimate allergens that become airborne from soft surfaces, such as pet dander and dust mite matter.
For the rest of the house I have been trying out the Heavy Duty formula, but really want to try to see if there is a difference between those formula’s and the one specifically for pet odours. I don’t notice the smell of pets, but I do worry that I am noseblind, just like in those ads you see on TV. I have company coming this afternoon, so I suppose I shall have to ask them. Ulp. I do worry about ‘hidden’ odours. You know…what did the dog or cat leave in some unseen corner…..that terrifies me. The cat brings in mice and dead birds and I have a creeping horror of not finding them. We also have a senior cat that I have noticed likes to leave me small ..em…gifts in dark corners of my bedroom. GROSS!!!!
I have never been one to ‘mask’ smells with scents or care about scented sprays etc, the kids love the scents from the Febreeze Unstopable line, especially the candles. The smell is as good as the Downy Unstopables products, which the kids have really noticed in their clothing.
Speaking of laundry. I was cringing through these tips by Melissa Maker. How much are you doing wrong when it comes to laundry?
Top 5 Things to Never Do When Doing Your Laundry
- Never leave your washing machine door closed when not in use. This creates a damp and dark environment which is perfect for mildew. Instead, wipe the inside of your machine down after each use and leave the door ajar, it will never, ever smell!
- Never launder towels and linens with clothing. The fabric weights are different and they also require different heat settings. This means that when heavier fabrics are washed with lighter fabrics (like your tank tops), you will start to notice pilling and wear on your garments, not to mention that heat may not be good for all of your clothing. Launder these separately and your clothing will thank you.
- Never over-dose (or under-dose) detergent. Many Canadians tend to under dose or overdose their detergent portions. Use the markers on your cap as a guide, and compare the fullness of your machine to the marker on the cap – if it’s less than half full, use the least marked amount, if it’s brimming, use the highest marker. Your detergent has been designed with lots of R&D and they’ve indicated the ideal dosage for you to get the best wash results. Using too much detergent can leave suds behind and clothing will come out dingy, since suds cling on to extra dirt and redeposit that onto your clothing!
- Never use detergents that make lots of suds (especially for HE machines).I’ve played around with several detergents to understand how they work. Ultimately we want detergents which create the least amount of suds, since suds kick the machine into extra rinse cycles which lead to extra wash time (25 minutes. on average) and 10 gallons of water (on average). Tide HE Turbo is the best detergent I’ve found because it has Quick Collapsing Smart Suds technology, which is essentially a fancy way of saying that the suds break down super fast. This means your machine sees no reason to go into extra rinse cycles and using the right detergent will ultimately save you wash time and gallons of water! Once you re-think your laundry routine and set your machine up for success, you will absolutely love the results.
- Never throw everything in the dryer. Heat isn’t good for clothing, in fact, using the least amount of heat to get your clothing dry and free of wrinkles is the way to go. I recommend hanging nearly every garment, except for items like socks, certain underwear (i.e. nothing fancy), undershirts, loungewear, etc. If you have a garment you really care about, hanging it to dry will ensure that its fabric and shape will be preserved. To hang dry, shake the item out a couple of times once you’ve grabbed it from the wash, this gets rid of most wrinkles and debris, and then hang it to dry. Everything else can go in the dryer, and you will be able to use a low heat setting and run it for less time, therefore saving energy.
I learned the hard way about the door on the front loader, but I never over soap thank to those awesome little pods. The words separate and sort are sadly not in my vocab when it comes to laundry…what about you?
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