Conquer Spring Cleaning with These 5 Refillable Household Cleaners
By: Casha Doemland
Spring cleaning is just around the corner and with it, the mountain of cleaning supplies packaged in plastic bottles you've been hoarding underneath the kitchen sink.
Word of advice? Instead of stockpiling smaller bottles or taking advantage of 2 for 1 deals, start looking for products and brands that have a refill option. Because let's face it, it can take up to 450 years for plastic items to decompose in a landfill and another 80 - 200 years for aluminum. Not only are refillable household products easier on your wallet, but they can save you valuable time and storage.
Here are five totally awesome refill options that protect you, your home and the Earth from an overflow of plastic containers.
REPLENISH
Founded by Jason Foster, Replenish is the smart and unique way to refill cleaning products. Simply insert the refill pouch into the bottom of the bottle, push down until the measuring cup is full and then flip it around to add water. Easy enough, right? The innovation doesn't stop there though. Each of the refill pods is good for six bottles and is made with a mixture of both low and high-density polyethylene resin, as well as aluminum - all of which are recyclable. The upper bottle is made from Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) resin and, you guessed it, it can be thrown in the green bin. So, if you ever decide that your Replenish days are over, you know exactly how to dispose of it.
SPLOSH
With a tagline "easy to be good," Splosh makes it hard to say no. First-time customers begin by purchasing a starter box where they'll receive a selection of home cleaning goods, laundry detergents and soaps in a variety of scents. When you notice the containers are running low, simply order a refill. Once you've emptied the pouch, ship it back and Splosh will refill it or reprocess it into other products. Note, all of these products are naturally derived and easy on the planet. Additionally, since water is not an ingredient, they are 95% less bulky and help lower CO2 emissions.
THE REFILL SHOPPE
Set up as a brick in mortar in Ventura, CA, The Refill Shoppe has an incredible selection of sustainable goodies. For those living in other parts of the world, there's an online store just for you. Start by choosing a product, ranging from body soaps to all-purpose cleaners, and then pick your container (we recommend rolling with glass or aluminum). After that, pick a scent and wait for it to arrive on your doorstep. Once you catch yourself running low, order the refills online—two or more refills will qualify you for a soapscription where you can ship your pouches back free of charge. What more could you ask for in a zero waste product?
METHOD REFILLS
Even the most loyal of Target customers have seen Method in the aisles next to Dr. Bronner and Meyer's. Made with all natural, biodegradable ingredients like corn and coconut, this company prides themselves on putting the hurt on dirt. So, when you catch your ginger yuzu all-purpose cleaner on the empty side, don't sweat it. Simply head to Method's website and order a refill. All refillable spray cleaners arrive in 100% recyclable plastic, so don't forget to toss it in the recycle bin when you're done.
CLEAN HAPPENS
Brought to you by two successful winners of Shark Tank is Clean Happens, a company dedicated to crafting plant-derived cleaning agents. Think coconut and corn like Method, but with natural scents from botanical extracts. While most of the products are sold in plastic, it's exciting to know that they've switched to 5-gallon boxes for refills. Our inner-OCD Khloe Kardashian marvels at the very thought of how many containers we can fill. You get 99.99% of the product inside and the box can be recycled.