Let me first explain that I have two small children with kidney conditions and some immune system challenges as a result, and I like to keep at least the toilet and sink area reliably germ free. I'm not trying to make my bathroom or anywhere in my house a sterile operating room. And in fact the rest of my house is a cluttery mess, so I'm definitely not some neat freak. And my kids don't use an antibacterial soap.

But I would like to find something, even a home brew, that would reliably destroy the most common things such as influenza, strep, ecoli, salmonella, etc... any of these things could have a huge impact in my kids especially since their susceptibility comes through their urinary tract, i.e. kidneys, i.e. in the washroom. And the medication they take daily seems to suppress their immune system, making them all the more susceptible.

Can you recommend some greener, eco friendly, natural, biodegradable (whatever you want to call it) recommendations for ways to kill those nasty germs so I can stop using softscrub and lysol?

--Toilets, he's still using softscrub with bleach. OMG do I hate that stuff, but I don't know what else cleans and disinfects as well.
--Clorox or the pinesol wipes (then rinsed) for the ceramic tile floors and other flat surfaces like around the toilet seat, etc.

--We also have a slab marble countertop in the bathroom and haven't found anything that really "disinfects" stone... so we use a little palmolive liquid dishsoap on a sponge then wipe it shiny with Method's new stone cleaner and microfiber cloth. But I'd rather just have one step instead of two on the counters, and ideally something that will actually kill or destroy germs and not just wipe up the dirt.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer!
-kmama

Vinegar will clean and disinfect just don't leave the liquid on the marble. Open the windows and let fresh air in. The things you are worrying about are almost all killed naturally in a resonable period of time by air and sunlight if possible. Do some checking on the time the organisims you are worried about will remain alive when just dried and exposed to air. Sunlight is a major plus.

A good side effect of sunlight is that your childern will absorb calcium better if given a time in the sunlight for their bodies to change the sunlight to Vitamin D.

Depending on their ages letting them run arround without underwear but with pads on where they sit most may be of benefit. Talk to your doctor about this.

It might be that not using the stool but a invalid stool such as older people use may be an alternative to the regular stool until they are better. Bucket can be dipped in bleach or vinegar and water then air dried after each use.

Not knowing the ages and sex of the children hampers the use of some of these suggestions.

Anyway, back to the bathroom issue, I didn't realize that vinegar by itself would "disinfect". I will look into that.

Still looking for a recommendation or concentration of vinegar to use in the toilets, if there is one.

-k

If you're after a safe, greener, eco friendly, natural, biodegradable household cleaner, you might want to check out BioPure Probiotic Household Cleaning Concentrate by ONEgroup, the certified organics people.

The cleaner contains powerful probiotic bacteria, antioxidants and enzymes that break down grease, grime and dirt and neutralise odours. It can be used safely in septic systems and is fully biodegradable.

It works differently from antibacterial products in that it doesn't just kill bad bacteria, it uses good bacteria to create more good bacteria that dominates the bad bacteria. So your home stays naturally clean without the chemicals.

The product comes in a highly concentrated form so you will need to dilute it (check product label for best dilution formula) before using.

All the best with your children's health and I hope all of you stay healthy and happy.

I've also seen recommendations to follow back over the surface with h2O2.

If you start looking into those two, there are studies you will be able to use to judge their effeteness rates for yourself with.