It used to be that spring cleaning meant the harsh odor of bleaches, ammonias and solvents wafting through the house. But a flurry of specialty products armed with a more natural and lofty approach are aiming to make it feel more like a day at the spa.
There's an all-purpose cleaner that smells like pink grapefruit, a tub-and-tile scrub that reminds you of freshly mown grass, and a toilet polish in green-tea patchouli that you might easily mistake for an expensive talcum powder. Apparently, the drudgery of housework has become an opportunity for a little aromatherapy.
The question is, can these new-age cleaning products do more than evoke images of seaweed wraps and shiatsu massages? To find out, I plunged headlong into a world of plant-derived "surfactants" (which simply means a surface-active substance), essential oils and aromatheraputic scents.
My cleaning aide de camp Ed and I could have used a spa treatment after several scrubbing sessions where we tried out these products in a variety of scents, shapes and styles. That's because, in general, no matter which new-age product we used, none matched the cleaning power of a dose of Pine-Sol.
These cleaners aren't cheap — they can cost as much as $12 a bottle, compared with just a few dollars for traditional cleaners. But presumably prices don't matter to a demographic looking to spiff up their homes in ways their parents never dreamed of — by using products that have a number of key attributes over less-evolved cleaners. All of these new-style cleaners tout that they are largely biodegradable, aren't tested on animals, and aren't hazardous (i.e. fewer synthetic chemicals). Their lifestyle pitch also includes trendy natural fragrances and wickedly cool packaging, pretty enough to be displayed on the counter.
Several smaller manufacturers, such as Method Products Inc., the Caldrea Co. and Good Home Co., lead the market and are increasing their customer bases quickly. This has caused big cleaning-products companies, like the makers of the popular Simple Green, to get into the act with competing cleaners. This movement has even affected the giants of the cleaning-products industry, who have been trying to add less-antiseptic fragrances to their product line.
To whit: The Pine-Sol in my broom closet touts its "Orange Energy!" while my Palmolive lavender Aroma Therapy dish liquid declares that it is "anti-stress." (It is not.)
Perhaps the swankiest line of the new cleaning products is Caldrea. Its motto is "The Spirit of Keeping Home," but it's clear from the products themselves that we are talking mansions here. Sold at upscale specialty retailers, Caldrea's luxury products go for between $8 (for its dish soap) and about $12 (the all-purpose cleaner and stainless-steel spray).
In our test, though, the higher prices didn't always translate into a better experience. The stainless-steel spray (in a stainless-steel style bottle) looked good but left streaks across my trendy refrigerator. And its wipes, which had a lovely sweet-pea scent, were too dry to be of much use.
Its citrus mint ylang ylang (that's a flower) powder scrub was much more effective, with a clean scent and nonabrasive feel. So too, its dish soap, which cleaned greasy plates easily.
But another line, also made by the Minneapolis-based Caldrea, was much more satisfying, in both price and results. Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day, which pushes a more old-fashioned and thrifty image, has a mantra of "uncomplicated products for a clean and happy home." That rings true, with retro styling on its bottles and winsome tips on its labels (like advising the user to have a cup of coffee while waiting for the product to work). With prices running from about $5 for its window cleaners to $8 for its scrubs, Mrs. Meyer's line sells in stylish grocery stores like Whole Foods.
Almost everything from Mrs. Meyer's worked great, such as its excellent kitchen scrub, made with a powdery sand called silica and oxygen bleach. But the stainless-steel cleaner (using olive oil) was again a bust and left the surface dull. I prefer its zesty geranium scent over its lavender, which had the odor of decaying flowers.
Freshness is a big selling point for the New York-based Good Home Co.'s products, whose lovely fragrances were its most winning quality. Almost all of them seem to recall being outside in the midst of summer on some wonderful vacation. In fact, Ed correctly surmised that its strangely lovely blue-colored beach-house scent had the odor of Coppertone suntan lotion and salt water. Its pure grass was also a hit, but Good Home's big miss in the scent department is its cilantro, which disconcertingly smells like a dish of salsa.
All the Good Home cleaners worked decently enough — its creamy tile-and-tub cleaner was a dream on the bath, leaving no film on the sparkling ceramic. The floor soap was the weakest in this department. Ranging in price from $9 to $12, Good Home is available at specialty retailers like Restoration Hardware.
Even more widely available is the line from Method of San Francisco, which has been selling at major chains such as Target and Linens 'N Things and supermarket chains like Safeway and Kroger. It's a good move by these retailers, given that Method is the best all-around choice with great fragrances, nice cleaning ability and cheaper prices. (They range from $2 to $5.)
To confirm my good experience, I also handed out some Method products to neighbors and friends, and everyone raved about the experience. Particularly nice were the pink grapefruit all-purpose cleaner, the lemon ginger floor cleaner, and the pomegranate hand soap (in an unusual tear-shaped bottle).
Not everything Method made worked well. Its glass cleaner was thin and did not clean windows well enough. Its cucumber fragrance smelled too ripe. And while Method is best known for its upside-down dish soap bottle, which many love, I found it hard to use. But these are quibbles — in a race among all these products, Method comes out cleanest.
Another cleaner worth mentioning is the popular Simple Green, from Sunshine Makers of Huntington Harbour, Calif. Unlike the other cleaners, which are already prepared, you must mix its base cleaner with water (using bottles it provides) and then add a fragrance, which the scents of wild rose, lavender, citrus, green tea and jasmine.
You get a lot of cleaner for the money (it's $29.95 for the kit, which averages out to $1.75 a bottle), but as you might imagine, it's a pain to mix. The scents also have a medicinal quality, and the bottles have been simplified to the point of nakedness.
That said, the cleaning power was strong. It pulled up grime from the grout between tiles easily and left no film. In addition, the company asserts that it is safe enough to be used on dogs and horses. Without explanation, it doesn't recommend using it on cats. Apparently, felines aren't quite ready for cleaning enlightenment.