Editor for House and Garden Loves Get Clean

Zem Joaquin, Green editor for House and Garden, falls in love with Get Clean.

While cleaning products don’t usually garner excitement, I was downright giddy when I got a delivery from Shaklee. I’d been eagerly waiting to try out their Get Clean Starter Kit. I’d heard that the products smell significantly better than many organic cleaners (which are well intended and all, but sometimes smell like tossed salad or the cosmetics department the before Valentine’s Day).

Verdict - Yes, all of the products have a light, clean scent, not perfumy, really nice. My guests have professed passion for the hand wash at the kitchen counter, which smells delicious (not fruity or flowery) and has just the right viscosity and sudsing quality.

My true love is the automatic dishwash powder because it works so well, which is something I cannot say about its healthy competition. I’ve actually been very happy with all of the other products, especially the Fresh Laundry liquid concentrate.

Shaklee boasts that in third-party performance tests, it removed stains and dirt 30% better than competitors like All® and Mighty® and was better at spot stain removal than Shout® Triple Action and Spray’n Wash®.

Besides pulling double duty as spot remover and detergent, it is also super-concentrated, which is good for people with storage issues and the less-is-more crowd. Thirty-two ounces cleans 32 loads, whereas Liquid Tide® takes 100 fluid ounces to clean the same amount. (Also consider this: Shaklee estimates that by using the Starter Kit instead of the usual suspects at the supermarket, 108 pounds of packaging waste have been saved from landfills.) The detergent is free of hazardous chemicals and made from natural, sustainably sourced ingredients derived from corn and coconuts. Like other Shaklee products, Fresh Laundry contains no phosphates, nitrates, borates, or dyes and is safe for septic systems and greywater applications.

Even more thrilling is receiving the refills to the starter kit - the waste factor has really been reduced. These products are the real deal and can be purchased without becoming a member or signing up for something more than merely cleaning house.
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On her blog, ecofabulous.com, Zem Joaquin says, “ I have developed a different lens, which makes it impossible to view products as I had previously. I believe in cradle to cradle design, which means that everything that comes from the earth should go back to the earth either as a biological nutrient for should include a plan for the next incarnation of the technical nutrients.”

Zem is a board member of Global Green, certified by Builditgreen, and eco-consultant and green editor for House and Garden.