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Eco-Me Floor Cleaner | |
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Review Score | |
Ewg Rated | B |
Ingredients | Decyl Glucoside Leuconostoc Acetic Acid Grapefruit Seed Extract Potassium Sorbate Essential Oils |
Eco-Me's Floor Cleaner Concentrate is a highly effective for floors cleaner. It worked great on our tests on hardwood, lino and other soiled surfaces. Plus, the ingredients are as gentle as they come. Or they would be, if the 'natural plant essential oils' were enumerated. As is, this entry in the ingredients list is too vague. While I realize that Eco-Me isn't hiding toxic ingredients, the entire principle of this site is that full ingredient disclosure and transparency are better for the consumer. That's why this product is a 4 rather than a perfect 5. In summation, if you want an economical, safe, and potent floor cleaner made exclusively with natural plant-derived products, look no further. | |
Welcome to Safe Household Cleaning. Our mission is to review and promote the use of safer, greener, more effective household cleaning products. We provide thorough, scientific, unbiased reviews of sprays, polishes, scrubs, soaps, and all the other cleaners you use around the house.
Household cleaning is an important part of everyday life for homeowners, parents, and families. But if you aren’t diligent about which products you buy and use, you may be creating an unhealthy and chemical-laden environment inside your home.
That’s why we insist on ingredient transparency: we only review products that disclose their full ingredients list on the label. If you don’t know what’s in a cleaning product, there’s no way to ensure it’s safe for you, your family, and your environment.
Today we’re going to review Eco-Me’s Concentrated Floor Cleaner, made with natural plant extracts, in Herbal Mint.
According to the manufacturer this floor cleaner concentrate is made with family-safe, earth-friendly ingredients. They also claim it cleans dirt, grease, and grime, and is powerful enough for tough jobs.
I like the sound of that and couldn’t wait to get started!
About Eco-Me
Robin Kay Levine and Jennifer Mihaljov founded Eco-Me in 2006. They began the company because they perceived a need to remove harmful chemicals from their homes. The ladies were concerned that toxins in many household products could lead to disease.
Because of their personal experience with health issues that may have been caused by environmental health factors, founders Robin and Jennifer began creating products with a focus on family health and wellness, using premium-quality ingredients.
Their mission statement rings true to me. I like a small, authentic start-up with heart.
Eco-Me offers an extensive line of household cleaning products including laundry detergents, dish soaps, floor cleaners, toilet bowl cleaners, polishes etc etc.
Every single one of their products uses exclusively food-grade and plant-based ingredients.
Eco-Me also carries the GreenSeal.org ECO SCALE certification. GreenSeal is a nonprofit certification organization; they factor ingredient toxicity, packaging materials, and more.
The Eco-Me Herbal Mint Natural Plant Extracts Floor Cleaner is certified by PETA as cruelty-free, meaning no animal testing or animal by-products are used at any point in the formulation process.
All in all, Eco-Me is off to a good start with their company history and these credentials!
First Impressions
The herbal mint floor cleaner concentrate comes in a 32 fluid ounce (946 ml) recyclable screw-top bottle.
The directions recommend diluting one-quarter cup to a gallon of water for most jobs. Or alternatively, using the floor cleaner at full strength to spot-treat tough stains.
It’s for use on tile, stone, sealed wood, vinyl, linoleum, concrete, and any other sealed surfaces. As with most cleaners, you should test the cleaner in a small, inconspicuous area before you use it.
The smell of Eco-Me’s floor cleaner is mild and slightly soapy, with peppermint coming through the strongest.
There is a slight afternote of vinegar (acetic acid), but nowhere near as strong as their all-purpose spray cleaner.
How Well Does It Clean?
A cleaning product may sound perfect on paper, and it can receive all the accolades in the world, but let’s be honest: we need it to perform well, too.
I mixed 1/4 cup of the Eco-Me floor cleaner concentrate with a gallon of hot water. There were plenty of suds.
The first job was on hardwood floors. I recently unplugged and moved the fridge and freezer for some home renovation work, which resulted in some sticky and mysterious liquids leaking onto the surrounding floor.
With a sponge mop and Eco-Me’s floor cleaner, I made short work of the soiled floor. The wood looked nice and shiny afterward, which was probably due to the natural essential oils in the floor cleaner.
The next job was to get the linoleum floor in the mudroom clean. It’s an old house, and this linoleum wasn’t exactly in mind condition when I first moved in, so I knew it would require some elbow grease.
After a few passes with the sponge mop, the mud and grime came free with minimal effort.
The only way to make this linoleum actually look good will be to replace it, but I was quite impressed with the floor cleaner’s performance here.
Next up was a tough job: while doing some painting a while back, I somehow put a pouring lid on a paint-can incorrectly, which resulted in a big splotch of paint on the floor surface.
Yes, it looks pretty bad. So how did Eco-Me floor cleaner do at full strength with a scrubbing sponge?
It was 80-90% effective for removing the paint stain.
Not bad at all, Eco-Me!
What About the Ingredients?
Now that we’ve established the floor cleaner’s performance is good, I thought it was time to examine the ingredients in more detail.
Here’s what’s in Eco-Me’s herbal mint floor cleaner concentrate:
- Decyl glucoside (a plant-derived soap)
- Leuconostoc (a fermented filtrate of radish root)
- Acetic acid (vinegar concentrate)
- Citrus paradisi (grapefruit) seed oil
- Potassium sorbate (a food-grade preservative)
- “Natural plant essential oils”
The formula is free of sulfates, perfumes, dyes, phthalates, and harsh preservatives.
Highs
Decyl glucoside is a perfect surfactant choice for product like this. This glucose-based soap is plant-derived, biodegradable, unlikely to cause allergies or irritation, and it cleans effectively. It’s commonly used in body soaps, and most people tolerate it well.
Leuconostoc, or radish root ferment filtrate, is a solution containing gram-positive bacteria that is primarily used as a preservative. Antimicrobial peptides produced by the “good” bacteria prevent the growth of other bacteria or microbes in cleaning products. Interesting and uncommon–points to Eco-Me for originality.
Acetic acid (the concentrated form of vinegar) is an effective, sustainably produced, natural hydrophilic polar protic solvent. It has excellent cleaning and disinfecting properties. Compared to bleach (which kills 99% of pathogens) vinegar kills about 90% of bacteria and 80% of viruses and mold. Really, I prefer vinegar over bleach for most cleaning jobs, because bleach is overkill.
Lows
For me, the only downside of the entire formula was the unspecified blend of “natural plant essential oils.” Perhaps Eco-Me feels they are guarding valuable trade secrets, but for customers with sensitivities or who simply value knowing the full ingredient list, secrecy isn’t the best strategy.
The great news is that there is a fragrance-free option, should you wish to avoid using fragrances altogether. I would personally go for this option myself next time.
Do I Recommend It?
Yes, I recommend Eco-Me’s Floor Cleaner Concentrate. It’s highly effective for cleaning floors and other soiled surfaces and the ingredients are as gentle as they come. Or they would be, if the “natural plant essential oils” were enumerated. As is, this entry in the ingredients list is too vague.
While I realize that Eco-Me isn’t hiding toxic ingredients, the entire principle of this site is that full ingredient disclosure and transparency are better for the consumer. That’s why this product is a 4 rather than a perfect 5.
In summation, if you want an economical, safe, and potent floor cleaner made exclusively with natural plant-derived products, look no further.
Eco Me Floor Cleaner is on sale now |
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