When I think “Staples,” I think of office supplies (love office supply stores by the way, I’m weird, I know.)  I really don’t think of cleaning products, let alone earth-friendly products.  Staples does sell things like coffee, snacks and bottled water, as well as cleaning products, to make it a one-stop shop for an office or small business. 

They have just introduced a new line called Sustainable Earth.  The products are ammonia and phosphate free, and meet the Green Seal Environmental Standard for household cleaners.  The line consists of Mult-Purpose Cleaner and Glass Cleaner.  32 oz bottles sell for $2.99 and one gallon refills sell for $9.99.

I had the opportunity to try the Sustainable Earth Multi-Purpose Cleaner.

I used it to clean my counters, vanities and sinks.  All of my surfaces were clean with no streaks.  I used it with a microfiber towel that I received with a diaper (I prefer to use sewn inserts in my diapers.)

I ended up going on a bit of a cleaning frenzy and dusted everything, including our wood blinds.  They are so hard to get dust-free but it worked!

It didn’t work as well on glass, so I’d recommend using the glass cleaner instead!

I tried cleaning it again with a clean rag, but it was still streaky.

I ended up using windex (shame on me, I know!) to get it clean.  I’d be interested to see how the glass cleaner performs, since the multi-purpose cleaner worked so well on other surfaces.  I never have good luck with multi purpose cleaners on glass!

The Sustainable Earth Multi-Purpose Cleaner contains Bio-based ingredients, and the ingredients read: Water, cleaning agents, corn-based ethanol, fragrance and colorant.  It has a mild scent, but I think it would be fine without the fragrance or colorant.  I’m also very curious as to what the cleaning agents actually are.

I am always happy to see affordable, “greener” options in mainstream stores, I think it’s a step in the right drection!