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Laundry

Laundry Liquid & Fabric Conditioner
ECOVER  do a
LAUNDRY LIQUID,
FABRIC SOFTENER,
You can get your plastic bottle refilled. 
To find where Ecover have a refill station check the  postcode search on their site

If you cant get to a Ecover refill station try getting a refill by post….

Splosh

This is an online refill service.
Some products come in soluble pods which you drop into water; others in plastic pouches which can be sent back to be refilled or recycled.
Splosh also claim that the postal packaging for the starter kit and refills are plastic free. Though according to some reviews they come with some plastic.

Read more about cleaning product refills here e http://plasticisrubbish.com/2014/12/14/u-k-europe/

Hanging Out

Pegs, Peg Baskets and Washing Lines

N.B. I got sent some Ecoforce stuff to review. They supply a range of household cleaning and laundry products made from recycled plastic.
I agreed because while I dont think recycling is the answer it can be part of the solution and one way to deal with all the waste plastic we have created, most of their stuff is made in the UK making it even a better recycling option and the disposable product packaging is pretty good.
And I think with damp damp laundry sometimes plastic products may be preferable so they might as well be ethical plastic options. And it gave me the opportunity to compare and contrast options.

Pegs

Wooden

I use wooden pegs. I bought them ages ago. They came in plastic packaging. Obviously my wooden and steel pegs represent a pressure on natural resources. And there is no denying they get a bit mucky and fall apart quite easily. I don’t know where they are made, or from what kind of wood.

The plus point about my wooden pegs is that when they do fall apart and they end up lost in the garden they will naturally biodegrade. Plastic pegs of course don’t.

Plastic

If you really want plastic pegs you can try these by Ecoforce. I like that they are 93% recycled plastic and (so far) very sturdy. They don’t use steel which I like. I worry about how much steel we use. They are made in the UK which is nice and local. On the down side they do come in a plastic bag. The bag is clearly marked with a plastic code which is good, but made of a type of plastic rarely recycled in the UK – not so good.

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I would feel much happier about this product if the throwaway part the packaging was compostable.

Peg Baskets

Metal

I keep my pegs in a peg basket which hangs on the line. Mine is an enamel bucket with holes in the bottom. I bought it from one of those gimcrackery shops that sell arty gubbins. I dont think the quality is of the best as it is getting a bit rusty.

Plastic

Apart from the rust, I cant really think of any reason why you would prefer a plastic peg basket but if you do the Ecofriendly peg basket is a good choice.

As with the pegs it contains 93% recycled plastic, seems sturdy and made in the Uk. Also, whoop, whoop, it is packaged in cardboard and better still the display hanger is made of cardboard.
It bugs me so much when I see cardboard packaging with a plastic hook attached to hang the item – one of those tiny unmarked pieces of plastic that are so hard to dispose of.
The basket is clearly marked with a recycle code so it can be recycled again.

Eco friendly clothes line »
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I don’t have a drier and when I do have to use one, in the depths of winter say, I go the launderette. For environmental reasons I choose to mostly air dry my washing line. Our business means I do a lot of drying. My washing line is an important bit of kit and sad to say I have found a plastic washing line to be the best for the job. It gets very wet where we live and natural lines soak up the water, never dry out, then start to grow mould. A plastic line can be quickly wiped dry and doesn’t get slimy.

Ecoforce Plastic line is 89% recycled plastic and like that it is made in the EC so fairly close to home.
But I HATE that the plastic line is wrapped in unidentified plastic wrap. Why? It’s a plastic line. And unidentified plastic at that. Booo.

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Secateurs

The  cutters of I use are from Joseph Bently
I bought this set from TK Max– steel and wood tools with minimal packaging.
 Yes there are some irritating bits of plastic – they are attached to the cardboard/ plastic covered board with all plastic ties but that is as reduced as you can get.
However try as I might I cannot find them anywhere else,  not even on Amazon. So I have had a trawl  round to see what is available out there instead.  All secateurs in the shops seem to have plastic handles and come packed with at least the blades covered by a plastic blister. Some come completely enclosed.

However I came across these on line PR2000023812_card4_lg

Made in Japan from high carbon steel, these secateurs are extremely high quality.
Presented in a beautifully authentic gift box.
Preserving traditional forging and grinding techniques crucial for manufacturing high quality sheers, the company incorporates modern technology such as a numerical control grinding system and industrial machinery.
From Waitrose On line – a company we like.
Obviously I cannot say how they will be sent to you i.e. what kind of packaging but of course you could enquire.
Monty Don likes Japanese secateurs!

Ebay
You can get  vintage secateurs on ebay.

Amazon

Failing that you could try these from Amazon. I don’t know what the packaging is like but the tools at least look to be plastic free.  Please do read our disclaimer for more info about buying from Amazon

Draper 45317 210 mm Bypass-Pattern Secateurs with Wooden Handles Bypass secateurs with ash wood handles 8" PROFESSIONAL STAINLESS STEEL,WOODEN HANDLE SECATEUR/PRUINER,CURVED BLADE
Draper 45317 210 mm Bypass-Pattern Secateur…
£13.35
Bypass secateurs with ash wood handles
£13.91
8″ PROFESSIONAL STAINLESS STEEL,WOODEN HAND…
£8.99
Pruning Shears - Titanium Bypass Hand Pruners - Ideal Garden Shears & Clippers for Trimming Branches, Hedges, Orchards, Bushes & General Tree Trimmer - All Metal Forged Professional Secateurs - Quality Ergonomic Gardening Tools Guaranteed. Razorsharp Professional 6959BS Spear and Jackson Heavy Duty Bypass Secateurs with Ergonomic Handles
Pruning Shears – Titanium Bypass Hand Prune…
£106.72
Razorsharp Professional 6959BS Spear and Ja…
£25.99
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Juice and juicers

I can easily avoid juice screw top lids, and plastic lined tetra packs, by making my own juice.

Now I have been putting this off for a while because I thought it would take a lot of  labour and time . Don’t like the first and don’t have enough of the latter. But I have heard so much good about fresh juice and juicing recently I began to think it might be worth it.

And our tree is covered with apples no good for eating but if I juice them then maybe. Well at worst I could make cider surely??

So I bought a Philips Juicer and though there was some plastic wrapping most of the protective  gubbins was cardboard. Result.

Better still it is really easy to use and clean. No peeling no seeding chuck the fruit in.

Since then I have been juicing everything – really I mean everything. Both  fruit and veg are quickly reduced liquid and its great for using up things – bit of pepper, some dried up ginger, half a lemon and a soggy tomato – in they go along with the broccoli stems and sour allotment apples. I know it sounds gross but so far it has all tasted good.

Totally recommend this product

PLASTIC ALERT

Of course the juicer has plastic elements but we don’t boycott all plastics. We think that there are some valid uses for the product ( gasp!! yes I know…you can read our reasons here). The juicer fits into the

Plastic products that reduce the use of plastic disposables