I use bleach . A lot .. any doctors about

[Tweety1981]

I also use disinfectant daily .

Once a week I use a lot of bleach to clean everywhere , bathroom and floors etc . I also use neat bleach on kitchen worktops daily . I use bleach to soak dust clothes daily too ..

I’ve had a few irritations and I wondered whether I should be limiting my use of bleach ...

Well, it’s not going to be great for you or for the environment. Why so much bleach?

Coffee stains on worktops

Thought it gets things very clean

Habit ?

I hardly every use bleach, it's not necessary to clean everything as thoroughly as that. I'd be scared I'd get it on my clothes and ruin them

Won't be good for your skin or your lungs either

Unless you have running a hospital in your home there is no need to use bleach for cleaning anything except perhaps the loo. You are breathing in some very toxic chemicals and frankly your house must reek of it.

Get some Method or Ecover products, and learn to accept that a loved and lived in home is never perfect, and that’s its beauty.

Oh god I’m worried .. what can it do to the lungs ?

Make sure the windows are open and the extractor fan is on when using it

Biologist here - you're at risk of respiratory problems like COPD and chest infections - go easier on it. Bio washing powder gets rid of coffee stains!

Neat bleach isn’t very active. You need to dilute it down with water to allow the cations and anions to become active. If your using it on work tops it will need to be left on the surface for at least 10 mins to have a hope in hells chance of killing anything. This is why it’s really only useful to clean toilets or mop floors.
A more effective work surface cleaner is a plain detergent ( soap) then rinse with water and dry thoroughly. Bacteria really don’t like dry surfaces so don’t wipe and leave, always dry thoroughly after cleaning.

Why bleach!? That seems a bit extreme. Don't get me wrong I love to have a clean home but I only use bleach in my toilet. Everywhere else I use anti bacterial spray. Kills germs without the awful smell and chemical fumes.
If you are using bleach a lot and getting it on your skin, you might have developed contact dermatitis from over exposure.
I used to get this when I worked in a salon and would repeatedly get chemicals like acetone and alcohol on my hands.
Switch your cleaning products! And wear gloves and open windows.

It's not necessary to kill every germ in your house. I only ever put a little bleach in the toilet maybe once a week. It can't be doing you any good to have so much contact with bleach.

It's really not necessary. And also... do you want your kids to have a working immune system? Stop trying to kill every normal, everyday house germ!!!

Bleach is really only for the toilet. Get some eco products or just plain old kitchen spray and clean like a normal person.

Oh my god my kids are young , they will be fine I’m going to change .

The bleach is going to be removed . Except for the toilet

The bio washing powder tip is AWESOME

If anyone has other tips like this they would be gratefully received

Like I said, my main tip would be that there is no need for a domestic abode with no sick people in it to be hyper clean, and a worn home is a happy and loved home.

Just method and ecover cleaning products. Those cloths than you can get that don’t need any product at all.

I use fairy liquid for pretty much everything. Cleaning the worktops, in a bucket of hot water for mopping the floors. I do use a toilet cleaner for the toilet though

Maybe relax a bit about cleaning..

Whoever said anti bac sprays, they are bad too. Detergent is fine.

www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2018/02/21/anti-bacterial-wipes-pointless-bugs-grow-back-20-minutes-scientist/

Im guilty off this and my hands constantly stink of bleach. I find it cheaper than buying cleaning products and normally fill the kitchen/ bathroom sink and just clean that way.
I sadly have cleaning clothes as i've ruined loads of tops with bleach marks.

Really hot water and micro fiber cloths. For a stubborn stain sit a damp cloth on it for a min then run off.

For anti bac spray I like method sprays.

I DO bleach the loo once a week but that’s it.

Op try not to worry. You obviously weren't aware of all the dangers but now you are you are making changes.

I have diagnosed OCD which manifests around cleaning, order and smells mainly.
I use bleach only in the toilet.

I know many of my friends will say that they have "bleached the kitchen" etc like it's something to be proud of.
The house may smell clean but it doesn't mean it is clean.

My cleaning cupboards are my pride and joy, I have so much stuff but have been reading a lot lately about natural cleaning products and the stuff our relatives 100 years ago would have used.
My 8yr old dd has asthma, as does dp.
I owe it to them especially to cut down on the commercial stuff and lean towards the natural ones.

Very best of luck to you

Mrs Hinch, is that you!?

Change can feel weird. Don't feel bad about your habits, you picked them up and if they're not serving you well, you can change them. It's pretty normal to be paranoid about gems when you have a baby, lots of people probably feel the same way.

Most things can be cleaned properly with hot, soapy water. Kitchen worktops, taps, sinks etc can be cleaned with hot soapy water if they're just a bit grubby. If you're concerned about something like raw chicken having contaminated a surface then you may want to use bleach to disinfect it. Bleach doesn't actually clean stuff though, it kills gems but doesn't remove dirt. Hot soapy water can remove germs by sending them down the plughole. You don't necessarily have to kill gems, just get them evicted.

Washing up liquid (WUL) is designed to be really effective on food and grease. If you have grease around your cooking areas, on kitchen cupboard doors etc try hot soapy water made up with WUL before buying specialist kitchen cleaners.

Bicarbonate of soda is great for neutralising smells. Leave an open container in your fridge to absorb any strong outdoors. You can buy a pot in home bargains for 99p. It can also be made into an abrasive paste for removing stains, e.g. inside teacups.

Cream of tartar (sold a a tub of powder, similar to bicarbonate of soda) can remove urine stains from toilet seats. Make up a paste with water or with vinegar. Leave it on for a while if necessary, and rub the paste to remove the stains.

If you Google "old fashioned cleaning methods" or "cleaning with vinegar" etc you'll get lots of ideas. Pick a couple to try, and find what works for you.

Seeing as we are in the age that disposable carriers bags, plastic packaging, diesel, etc, being phased out if we are going to see bleach phased out before too long. We have already seen bleach phased out of use in the commercial cleaning practice so surely naturally household bleach will fall to a similar fate. The problem is its a bloody good germ killer there is nothing that's come along to take the place of bleach.

Definitely cut back on the bleach. Ecover cleaning spray is great and non-chemical.
Much better for the environment and your house's inhabitants!