Water steriliser – SteriPEN

15 October 2010 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.2 Travel Tagged 3 water, 3.1 Backpack 8 Comments

Its easy to give up bottled water in England but what of when you are abroad? in countries where the water is not so reliable? India for example.

I have travelled a lot in India and over the years have seen plastic pollution rise to horrific levels. A lot of that plastic rubbish is empty drinking water bottles many of them discarded by tourists. I refuse to drink bottled water because I don’t want to add to the plastic pollution.

But you might also want to consider this; some of the drinking water bottles in India, claiming to contain purified water have been refilled with tap water. There are recurring reports about this and it seems to be a fairly common scam. Empty water bottles are collected, refilled with tap water (if you are lucky), and the cap glued back on. To quote from but one source, “You cannot rely on the bottled water available in public places in India, because of the rampant refilling of used bottled water bottles by the racketeers in India.”

So what to do? The steri pen is my solution to that particular problem. Stick the sticky bit in a liter of water – switch on and 90 seconds later the water is safe to drink. Works by UV light.UV light destroys virtually all viruses, bacteria and protozoa. It weighs next to nothing and is tiny.

It kills

Viruses

A virus is a small infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of other organisms.

Hepatitis

Bacteria

Bacteria are microscopic living organisms, usually one-celled, that can be found everywhere.

Campylobacter
Cholera –
Escherichia coli –E coli
Legionella –
Salmonella
Shigella

Protozoa

Protozoan parasites live in the cells and tissues of other living creatures. Protozoans can cause problems, from targeting the central nervous system to diarrhea.

Cryptosporidium
Giardia

It Does Not Filter Water

This is not a filtration system. It does not remove other contaminants such as heavy metals, salts, chlorine or physical dirt. You have to find clear water. I usually use it on tap water or fresh water.

Effective?

I have used it the world over to sterilise tap water and river water. I had no tummy troubles at all – which was rather a shame as I was depending on a bout of Delhi Belly to help with my weight loss programme.

Charging It Solar, Battery or USB?

You can choose from solar, battery operated or USB rechargeable Steripens. I have tried them all. The solar charger was way to slow and I quickly had to find an alternative. However that was some time ago and things might have improved. The battery powered was the only option available to me when I bought my first PEN. The batteries (CR123) can sometimes be hard to find abroad though of course it very much depends on where you are. On the plus side the batteries do last a long time ( longer than a charge), but they do present disposal problems and it is not always possible to find a safe place to bin them.

This time I went for the rechargeable Freedom PEN which can be charged via a USB port. I am pleased with it. It holds the charge for days though that obviously depends on how much water you sterilise.

Other Benefits

On a long trip it soon pays for itself and then goes on to save you a considerable sum

You never run out of water. You may not be able to buy water or boil it. That’s the time you are glad you got a SteriPEN.

It doesn’t change the taste of the water – which is not always a plus point!

You will need a water bottle with a wide neck to accommodate the width of the PEN as it needs to be submerged in water.

It will do 1 or 1/2 a litre of water at a time. Get a bottle that is one or the other. We found half a litre of water each was as much as we needed to carry. With a PEN we can always sterilise more when needed.

For more information visit the steriPEN site and check out great reviews of the product here and here.

Find out all about refill points, filters and other water related information here.

Buy

You can buy a SteriPEN in the UK at shops, on line and of course Amazon.

Travel Plasticfree

Here’s the rest of our plastic free travel stuff and useful tips

Hankerchiefs

29 July 2010 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged 3.1 Backpack, 3.1.7 Health 3 Comments

Snot rags! Ughhh….. Remember the old days when you had a hanky tucked up your sleeve or even in the hem of your knickers, your home-made knitted knickers that is? Long gone are the clammy times of snot rags, hurrah for the disposable tissue….

Unless of course you care for trees, don’t like waste and won’t use plastic.

I fall into all of those categories so I don’t buy plastic packed throwaway paper hankies but I must admit the idea of using cloth made me squirm. Still needs must and I bought a whole load of reusable fabric, washable handkerchiefs from Huddersfield Market

and then some more from Organic Alley.
She sells organic, fair trade cotton hankies. She also has a whole load of info on why you are a better person for using reusables and how cotton hankies are not at all nasty….really.
I have been using mine for ages and they are a lot more comfortable than paper – not so scratchy on the nose. lighter on the environment and really useful for all sorts of other things too. Try them you will be amazed.

Which Hankie

Handkerchiefs come in all different weights of cotton and sizes.
Heavy cotton are good for big blows with lots of snot but harder to wash. And of course they are bulkier.
Light weight cotton hankies are good for day to day sniffles and wiping and are easier to carry, wash and dry.
Men’s handkerchiefs are usually bigger than ladies.
Small handkerchiefs are good for one or two blows. Big ones can see more service.
Patterned handkerchiefs don’t show up the stains.

Using Your Hankies
Get lots of small hankies, use them for a couple of blows then in the laundry. Use like a papper tissue rather than keeping them in your knicker leg for ages. It also depends (and I don’t want to get to specific here) on the quality of the mucas. Thick and green and its back to disposables!

Other Uses
Handkerchiefs can be used as little bags
As a headscarf (get a larger size!)
neckerchief
And a dust mask.

Disposable Tissues
NB Do be careful when you buy a box of tissues. They often come with a plastic collar. You can find plastic free boxes here. Or you could just use loo roll in compostable packaging.

Buying Elsewhere

If you cant get then locally, you could try these from Amazon. Please do read our disclaimer for more info about buying from Amazon


12 Pack Ladies 100% Cotton Plain White Hand… £10.49	Samuel Windsor Luxury 100% Cotton Handkerch… £15.00	Samuel Windsor Luxury 100% Cotton Handkerch… £10.00

Samuel Windsor Luxury 100% Cotton Handkerch… £10.00	12 Pack Of Womens/Ladies 100% Cotton Dyed H… £7.99

Menstrual internal protection reusable

3 January 2010 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.1 Personal Tagged 00 working, 3.1 Backpack, 3.1.2 reusables, 5 Content Veiw 3 Comments

Products to deal with menstruation are plastic heavy ( see some stats). They are made from plastic, come wrapped in plastic, block drains and dirty the sea shore. You really don’t want that kind of rubbish inside you, your bin or your environment. The way to cut your trash is to get a menstrual cup.

Menstrual Cup

This is little cup that you use internally. It collects the flow and is then emptied washed and reused. Before you squeal and scream read this series of posts by one of the best environemental writers around.

Really, try them, they are easy peasy and the slight inconvenience is more than compensated for by the increased comfort factor. They are far more pleasant then other internal protection.

Some of the many advantages include

Never run out of protection
No need to take your bag to the loo with you
Great for travelling in wild and rugged places
No need to put of dirty, plastic sanitary items in the bin next to the loo.
Much more comfortable
Saves you loads of money
Don’t see your pantyliner out on the beach

Choose

I like Moon cups – made from silicone check out the site for more info. You can buy Mooncups in shops including

Boot’s. If you want to get them on line try Ethical Superstore or Amazon

Rubber

Natural rubber cups are available from Australia.They are called, rather dungeons and dragon like, The Keeper. It’s the same principle as the Mooncup but made of natural rubber rather than silicone. They will ship, see their website

Other Options

For those of you who cant face the thought of fiddling around, there are lots of alternatives here

Toothpaste, toothpowder, dentifrice homemade

22 July 2009 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged 3.1 Backpack, 3.1 Bicarb, 3.1.7 dental care, 3.1.7 Health, 3.2.4 make, 3.2.4 make makeup, 5 Content Veiw 2 Comments

Dentifrice – toothpaste or toothpowder whichever, it is basically an abrasive to clean and polish the teeth. Most brands come packed in masses of plastic. Plastic which cannot be recycled. Or rather it probably can be as most plastics technically can be recycled, but is far too difficult and costly to do so.
Which is bad BUT worse still the paste itself may contain plastic! Did you know that at least 12 Crest toothpastes have been identified as containing microbeads of polyethylene (PE). You can find a full list here And Crest are by no means the only manufacturer who does this.

There there’s all the other stuff. “Every toothpaste contains the following ingredients: binders, abrasives, sudsers, humectants, flavors (unique additives), sweeteners, fluorides, tooth whiteners, a preservative, and water. Binders thicken toothpastes. Some binders are karaya gum, bentonite, sodium alginate, methylcellulose, carrageenan, and magnesium aluminum silicate.
Read more about toothpaste and how it is made here.

VERY IMPORTANT

What with the sudsing agents and binders you might be tempted to make your own toothpaste. It’s very easy but there are some important issues you need to be aware of.
The abrasivity of your home made paste
That it will not contain flouride.

Please Note

The following information is for guidance only. None of the following recipes or tips have not been tested on anyone other than me. I strongly advise you do your own research and proceed very carefully. These are your teeth!

Disclaimer
Be aware of the risks of listening to someone who
a) doesn’t have any training in this field,
b) most of what they know comes from Google,
That’s me I mean.

Research well and discuss everything with your dentist.

Abrasivity

The key to making tooth powder is to find something abrasive and ugh to remove the plaque but not so harsh it removes the enamel from your teeth. Which is why you need to research carefully and take internet claims with a huge pinch of salt.
Relative dentin abrasivity (RDA) is a a way of measuring the effect that the abrasive components of the toothpaste have on a tooth.[7]
The RDA scale was developed by the American Dental Association The higher the abrasive value the greater the wear on the enamal. Toothpaste makers regularly measure their product’s abrasivity. It’s necessary for FDA approval,
BY US law, a dentifrice is required to have a level lower than 250 to be considered safe .
RDA Score
Level
0-70 Low abrasive: safe for cementum, dentin and enamel
70-100 Medium abrasive: safe for enamel, dangerous for cementum and dentin
100-150 High abrasive: dangerous for cementum, dentin and enamel
150-250 Very high abrasive: harmful limit, damaging for teeth
250 and above Not recommended.

Some findings
4 brushing teeth with water
7 baking soda

Commerical pastes from 8 to 200 Colgate 2-in-1 Tartar Control / White

can find a full list here

Stuff I have used to clean my teeth

Salt
Bicarbonate of soda
Chalk – Calcium carbonate
Kaolin
Bentonite

Salt and Bicarbonate of soda can be used neat. And as you can see bicarbonate has a very low RDA score

The rest have to be mixed because they have different abrasive qualities.

My home-made toothpowder contains chalk kaolin and bentonite clay. Sadly there are no RDA scores that i can find for any of these abrasives. The following is what I have gleaned from the internet. Please do your own research.

Chalk is the hardest and so most abrasive element. Chalk is often in commercial toothpaste but not as often as silica. When comparing the two it seem that depending on particle size…
A comparison between different abrasives with similar particle sizes showed that silica presents higher RDA values than calcium carbonate. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11413496

Aromantics reccomend Use up to 40% in Toothpastes

That kaolin and Bentinite are both very soft,and have a positive score on the cleaning efficiency index.

The Cleaning Efficiency Index’ (CEI)
This is a very interesting article but sadly I can find no links to original research. Google hasn’t come up with anything either.
Researchers studying stains, abrasivity, and cleaning ability found that a relationship exists between the relative abrasivity and the cleaning ability. They came up with what they call ‘Cleaning Efficiency Index’ (CEI).

The Cleaning Efficiency Index really ranks the combination of abrasivity in relation to cleaning ability.
low abrasive AND low cleaning ability. Not good = low efficiency score
high abrasive AND high cleaning ability. Not good either = low efficiency score
low abrasive AND high cleaning ability. Very good. This combination would give the highest ‘cleaning efficiency’ index score.
Read the full article HERE

And then there is this about Bentonite.
“The real benefit of bentonite clay is that it is abrasive enough to remove the plaque but not so much so that it will do damage to your enamel,” Graves says. Like charcoal, it may also help raise the pH of your mouth, making it more challenging for bacteria to grow.” Read the article HERE

The following is an account of my own experiences which may help you in your own research.

Home Made Dentifrice

Salt Ughhh you buy plastic free salt here.
Bicarbonate of soda can be used neat. Also ugh!!!
“Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), a product used for many years by itself or in combination with other ingredients has several excellent properties. As a soft crystalline substance that dissolves readily, it has a mild abrasive potential. In solution it will kill on contact all of the motile microorganisms associated with periodontal infections, e.g. spirochetes, motile rods, etc. It will also kill other disease related bacteria. It will also neutralize and detoxify the bacterial acids and toxins that form in plaques (bacterial biofilms). ” for more got to mizar

And of course it has a very low RDA of 7.
You can read more and find out where to buy plastic free bicarb HERE
BUT for all its sterling qualities, I find bicarbonate far too soapy tasting to use un-cut. Knowing how it is made I am not sure I want to put it in my mouth

My Home Made Toothpowder

1 part chalk NB Chalk This is pharmaceutical grade not the rough old stuff they use in fish tanks.
1 part kaolin
1 part bentonite clay. Yes I am literally cleaning my teeth with earth and it doe feel gritty.

I like this one but the bentonite does feel gritty in your mouth. The paste however has no taste which is nice. After the salt and the bicarb.
Put in a jar and shake well – use as tooth powder or mix to a stiff paste with water. You can add flavour with peppermint oil.
It is just like real toothpaste. Even leaves white marks on your clothes!

Paste with Bi-carb
I used to use bicarb in one of my early toothpaste recipes mixed with two dentifrices and Orris Root. Orris root is a natural preservative and helps the flavor along.
1 part chalk
1 part kaolin
1 part Orris Root
1 part bicarb

Put in a jar and shake well – use as tooth powder or mix to a stiff paste with water. Though it worked I wasn’t really happy with the taste and orris root is very expensive.

Buy

Buy plastic free bicarb HERE

Chalk -Buy pharmaceutical grade not the rough old stuff they use in fish tanks.
You can buy the chalk, kaolin and Orris Root from EBay or Aromantics . The products come in a plastic bags – booo… but they are polythene so easily recycled and I get huge amounts tooth powder out of one small bag of ingredients. I consider it a worthwhile compromise and far less plastic than any other option.

buy ready made dentifrice

More info

If you want a better informed opinion I suggest you head on over to the Aromantics website. . They will sell you everything you need to make toothpaste including recipes you can download as a PDF. They have been in this game for years and are far more qualified then I am.

Do You Even Need Dentifrice

You might want to consider if you even need to use a dentifrice. According to many a good brushing will do the job just as well…

“You can remove food debris and plaque from your teeth without using toothpaste.
Dental plaque is a sticky, colorless biofilm of bacteria and sugars that is constantly in the process of forming on our teeth. Dental plaque is acidic, and can break down tooth enamel and cause cavities to form. Plaque can also irritate your gums, causing gingivitis (red, swollen, bleeding gums), infections and eventually tooth loss.
Plaque is the primary cause of cavities and gum disease. If you don’t consistently remove plaque from your teeth it can harden into an even sticker substance called tartar, which provides a perfect environment for bacteria colonies to grow under your gums and on your teeth.
One of the best ways to control plaque is brushing your teeth thoroughly at least twice a day. But you don’t need toothpaste to do this, just a soft toothbrush and good brushing techniques will remove plaque.

What, No Flouride?

You must consider this
Of course home made toothpaste or a no toothpaste regime will mean a cut in fluoride.
“Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral which helps to prevent tooth decay.
Which is why it’s added to many brands of toothpaste.
“Brushing your teeth thoroughly with fluoride toothpaste is one of the most effective ways of preventing tooth decay.” Read about fluoride and the NHS here.
And this Article is also USEFUL.

The most effective ways to avoid tooth decay are avoid sugar and good brushing. But flouride also helps.
In the UK fluoride is added to some tap water. Contact your water authority to find out if yours is.
You can also buy fluoride tablets and mouth washes.
It is also present in tea and the NHS reccomended you limit your intake to 3 mugs a day.
This was a study of fluoride levels in 38 teas, mainly bought from UK supermarkets. The authors point out that fluoride is an essential micronutrient, needed to prevent dental decay and promote healthy bone growth. However, consumed in excess it can lead to a condition called fluorosis, which can damage both teeth and bones.
Flouride can be poisonous even kill if consumed in large amounts.
Flouride powder can be bought on Amazon. Where I also saw this
Question: Can I add this to homemade toothpaste?
Answer: Yes, many folks add this to their toothpaste formulas, typically in commercial toothpastes there is a concentration (by weight) of 1 – 1.5%
By Professor Fullwood SELLER on February 7, 2016

No comment your call.

Brushes

While the RDA score has been shown to have a statistically significant correlation to the presence of abrasion, it is not the only contributing factor to consider.[19][9][22] Other factors such as the amount of pressure used whilst brushing, the type, thickness and dispersion of bristle in the toothbrush and the time spent brushing are other factors that contribute to dental abrasion.

See all our posts on plasticfree dental care, HERE.

Fake-bake plastic-free

4 July 2008 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged 3.1 Backpack, 3.1.7 Clean-tone-cream, 3.2.4 make, 3.2.4 make makeup 3 Comments

Every year they, the fashionistas, say that pale is interesting – well up here in the windswept north of England where the sun don’t shine, pallid is the norm and we hate it.

So refusing to bow to the indignities of our location we paint our selves with bisto and draw lines on our legs with eyeliner – no sorry that was the war. We stain ourselves brown with self tanning lotion.

But that comes in a plastic bottle and you know what I think about plastic bottles, so I make my own.

Home made self tan

Add self tanning additive DHA to a base cream.

As taken from the aromantics website – they are the guys I buy my DHA from

A Self-Tanning Agent, DHA is a natural substance derived from the bioconversion of glycerol extracted from Palm or Rapeseed Oil. DHA is also present in the human body. As a consequence, the risk of an allergic response is very low. The result of using DHA is a natural looking brown or golden hue to the skin, without exposure to the sun. The induced tan provides photo-protection against UVA radiation. To use, dissolve in a little cold water and then add while the product is under 40°C. Add 5-8% to Self-Tanning Preparations and 0.5%-3% to Sun Screens. The raw material needs to be kept dry, away from light and in the fridge. NB pH needs to be under 5.5. Test your product with Litmus Paper and either add Lactic acid, Citric acid or Ascorbic acid to reduce the pH, if necessary.

It works – though you might want to play around with the percentages – the first batch I made was rather strong for my white, white skin.

I have added this to my own home made lotion but I see no reason why you couldn’t add it to a bought lotion. However making your own is really easy – for more details click here.

You can also add it to your home-made suntan lotion to get a golden glow while NOT burning.

NB the DHA comes in a small plastic tub. You can make loads of the stuff from one tub. So while the base ingredients come packaged in plastic this represents a massive reduction in plastic consumption as one small tub replaces a number of bottles.

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Carrier Bags reusable

20 May 2008 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.1 General & Homemade Tagged 3.1 Backpack, 3.1.2 reusables, 3.1.4 bags & packaging, 3.2.4 make, 5 Content Veiw 1 Comment

Cotton string bags are fantastic. These are my best bags and I use them most of the time. They have many virtues including:

When empty, they fold up really small, but they can carry a ludicrous amount of shopping.

Their soft handles do not cut into my fingers.

They are fully biodegradable.

They are organic & fair-trade

Long lasting

I bought mine from Organic Ally”

She sells bags with either long or short handles.
The short handles are great for supermarket runs, the long handled bags can be hung off your shoulder for more leisurely shopping – I don’t like them as much as the short.

Bought in bulk i.e. numbers of 5 they are cheap – from around £4.00 a bag inc vat and shipping. You can mix and match bulk orders so you have a combination of short and long handled bags.

Make Your Own?
Or you could be uber-green and knit your own string bag – lovely bare foot person has posted a pattern for cotton yarn and a knitting machine.

Fold Up Bags
The only downside to string bags is that they are full of holes which means that they are see through and they do not fold up up as small as the opaque nylon fold up bags

I like Onya bags …..BUT they are made from a synthetic fibre RPET
WHAT IS RPET?
Post consumer bottles are collected from recycling plants and spun into yarn. From this yarn comes the fabric that makes Onya Bags.
So, you might think, plastic bad…. but recycling good. Confusing
Well yes – but I have bought them anyway. In fact I have other nylon fold up bags that are not made from bottles. They are very convenient if not quite as ideologically pure as the string bag!

Why do I use them?
Well man-made fabric is not only slightly more waterproof and opaque, it folds up really small. When packed up, these bags are the size of a golf ball, much lighter and come with a clip so they can be attached to your handbag or husband.
I haven’t found a natural fibre bag that is as good at folding, weighs so little or dries as quickly.
They can be carried round at all the times making them an ideal just- in -case bag for impulse purchases.
Moreover because they dry so fast they don’t get mouldy. This makes them perfect for taking on holidays and backpacking trips where laundry facilities are not of the best and space is limited.
Onyabags (UK)

Onyabags also do, amongst other things, a messenger bag, a really handy fold up rucksack and mesh produce bags.

If you live in the USA, Chico bags do a similar thing.

Find more bags and packaging HERE

Produce Bags

5 January 2008 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables Tagged 3.1 Backpack, 3.1.2 reusables, 3.1.4 bags & packaging, 5 Content Veiw 1 Comment

Produce bags are reusable bags that (as the name suggests), you put your loose produce in. It means you don’t have to use those nasty flimsy plastic bags they dish out in shops.
I have been using mine for years now – in supermarkets and local shops, for everythingthing from green beans to bread. (you can check out a range of loose food here).
I cannot say how many flimsy plastic produce bags I have saved from landfill but it has to be thousands. From that point alone I am extremely pleased with them.

There are two kinds of bag available on the market – cotton and polyester mesh.
I prefer the cotton as they are biodegradable, last much longer and can be repaired. But the mesh bags have the advantage of being see through, are lighter.

Bag Weight
The weight of the bag will make a difference at checkout in the price per weight. Some shops subtract the tare weight but other don’t. The tare weight is the weight of the empty container.

Cotton Bags

U.K

At last a U.K made produce bag. Thanks to DoYourBit who make the bags right here in the U.k. using material sourced from a fair traded fabric company.
Read more about them here.
Buy from here.

America
My first produce bags were from eco bags. This American company supply unbleached cotton bags made in India using fair wage fair trade.
Available in Large (43cm D x 33cmW) or Medium (25cm D x 20cm W)
I have also bought cotton bags from Reusable Bags made from fair trade, organic, cotton using fair wage labour; the company is reliable and the bags are reasonably priced.
Import Duties
Be aware import duty, customs charges and handling fees are payable on all goods purchased from America – last month I was summoned to the post office to pay £16.00 charges on a parcel worth £45.00. Do bear it in mind.

Spain
Cofo A Spain based company do a lovely range of organic cotton bags. they come in the following sizes. they are much thicker than the American bags and some have metal closures
you can read more about the bags and the company here.

Polyester Mesh Bags ( available in the UK)

Onya
Onya Bags www.onyabags.co.uk a UK based company. They sell a nylon mesh produce drawstring under the name Onya Weigh. They are the lightest produce bag ever and scrunch up really small. They are sold in packs of 5 complete with their own nifty little carry bag. The whole package is the size of a peach and has a clip so you can attach it to your child, husband or bag strap. At nine pounds for 5 they are a bargain.

Flip & Tumble

More recently I came across these flip & tumble Reusable Produce Bags- 5-Pack. I have not tried them myself having more than enough produce bags but they have a good review on Amazon. Rather more expensive at 13.13 pounds for 5.

Find other plastic free packaging here.

Loose Food A to Z

Find out if a shop near you sells bulk food loose. This is stuff that that normally comes plastic packaged ie rice, pasta and salt. And yes these shops do exist in the U.K. There’s just not many of them. Heres a list of towns with shops selling loose food, organised alphabetically.

plasticisrubbish

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