These are some of the many forms of household cleaners on the market of which you should be aware.

Household cleaners is a very general category, containing products that do anything from unclogging a drain to degreasing an oven and everything inbetween. Carpet cleaner, window cleaner, upholstery cleaner, disinfectants, bathroom cleaners and so much more - the bad news is that all of them can be detrimental not only to the environment but your health as well.

The good news is, there are safer alternatives to the common cleaners found in stores. (to view this file, Adobe Acrobat Reader is required).

If the purchase of a cleaner is necessary, only purchase what you will use. Even the smallest amount of cleaner leaking into the environment can lead to larger pollution problems, so do not overapply the cleaner either. If you cannot finish the cleaner, find someone who can.

Before throwing away the container, triple-rinse it with water, and dump the rinsing water down the sink.

Important things to make sure not to do with a household cleaner and its container:

• do not bury them
• do not throw them in the trash without a proper cleaning (as explained above)
• do not pour them on the ground
• do not dump them down the sewer
• do not pour them into a septic tank