Cleaning products are two-edged swords. They have to be strong enough to clean, but the chemicals can be dangerous to our health. Deidre Imus has developed a line of green cleaning products that are used extensively on the East Coast at places such as the Hackensack University Medical Center. There are now two nationally distributed retail products available: Imus Greening the Cleaning Citrus Sage Glass & Window Cleaner and Imus Greening the Cleaning Citrus Sage All Purpose Cleaner (

Environmentally safe cleaning products are only good if they work. Early this year, I bought the Citrus Sage products and gave them to staff and friends to use. Everyone was enthusiastic. If you want to try these cleaners, they are at Linens-N-Things and Vitamin World or on the Web at

Most manufacturers have proprietary cleaners they claim "must" be used on their surfaces. If you don't want the proprietary solutions, try these. For light cleaning, use a Swiffer Wet, (800) 214-8734, www.swif fer.com, or nonammoniated window cleaner and a damp sponge.

Really dirty floors may require a solution of 2 or 3 ounces of a good organic cleaner such as Simple Green by Sunshine Makers, (800) 228-0709, to 1 gallon of water plus a bucket of rinse water. Keep floors as dry as possible. Water ruins laminate and deforms wood. Remove scuffmarks with a waterless hand cleaner such as Gojo (800-321-9647).

If you are on the fence between cleaning the carpet yourself and having it done, call in professionals with big truck-mounted cleaners. They move the furniture, do a better job, and their equipment removes more of the cleaning solution so the carpet stays cleaner, longer. If you want to do it yourself, try dry. There are many dry cleaning products on the market. The Capture Carpet Cleaning Kit is available at Sears, Lowes and Home Depot, vacuum cleaner stores and allergy control Web sites. The Host Dry Carpet Cleaning System, (800) 558-9439,

, uses a special machine to work the cleaning powder into the carpet. You can get it at stores such as Fleishman's Carpet in Detroit, (313) 534-9300; Creative Carpets in Royal Oak, (248) 589-3150; and Custom Floors in Troy, (248) 269-9575.

If the kitchen cabinets, dining room table or other wooden furniture are dull and sticky, pre-clean with Doozy Pre-Cleaner, (888) 851-8500,

. Spray on and wipe off with an all-cotton cloth. After cleaning, give them a protective coat of Doozy Furniture Polish.

Clean ceramic tile with KRC 7 by Chemique, (800) 225-4161. Bathtubs, sinks and shower stalls clean up beautifully with Works Bath & Shower Cleaner by Lime-O-Sol, (800) 448-5281. For mold, mildew and urine stains, use X-14 Professional Instant Mildew Stain Remover in the dark blue bottle by WD-40 Co., (800) 448-9340.

Rust stains disappear with CL
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