Earth Day...I Nearly Missed It - Have Your Say

Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 each year to raise awareness of ways to live green, in hopes of saving the planet. What will you do for Earth Day?

Going through the news today, it suddenly hit me that one day this week should have been 'Earth Day.' Yep, checked, it's today. I'm a fan of environmental care, but only up to a point. These people that like to dish out the saving of electric, fuel, gas, blah, blah are usually the worst offenders & cannot even be bothered to set an example (do what I say, not what I do). And who should know better than the window cleaners that clean their homes, only to be met with the driveway lights full on, every room of the house burning away the profits & all 8 T.V.'s blaring away in different rooms.

That's why in the latest 'linked in' group called 'CleanPro Cleaning Professionals' (seems so many these days - there's even one for a picnic!) I had to state my case on someone (Robert) asking: "Should You Put Your Money Where the Green Is?"

Karl Robinson:  As long as you put the whole green philosophy to all aspects of your business. Otherwise it's a crock - & your clients know it.

Marla: Robert, while I appreciate the sentiment and agree with the premise, what standards are used ' to measure the natural resources their businesses use and the greenhouse gas emissions they generate'? Some standards are very controversial, some proven inaccurate and quite a few are political hot potatoes. These are issues that will have to be addressed to assure trust in the product over a broad spectrum of potential clients.
 Karl, as for the 'whole green philosophy', many consumers (including cleaning businesses) are 'going green' in stages, continually investigating claims, issues and impact on a case by case basis while still using current products. 

My business is a cleaning business so therefore if I want to stay in business, any product I use has to 1) clean and 2) be cost effective. Otherwise, I can rename myself as the Sierra Club and pray for donations. :-)
 I think Robert's product has quite a lot of potential for assisting in the investigative framework I use in searching for a more green way of doing business.
 Thank you, Robert. Please keep me informed on any updates and if you have deeper research available on your determination methods, I'd be very interested in reading it.

Karl Robinson:  While I agree with the notion of environment care, on the whole it's just another ruse aimed at businesses & sections of industry to generate more money. We have had technology for a long time that could do away with the petrol engine &/or grid electrical supply to homes - even Tesla invented wifi back in the 1900's - + a whole stack of free energy designs that work, but Government don't or won't take it up to the detriment of society. Yet the population have no other option to use the vehicles (no pun intended) given by big business, yet the blame is still focussed towards the user, when in fact, it's no more than a choice between two opposing politicians that carry the same agenda.
If you want to use the words 'green', 'sustainable', 'eco' etc, you will find in most cases the production or transportation of, is against the very principle it positions it's self within the 'green' belt to begin with. Applying the green message to your business for me is just another trend or fad that could become law (in some places it has) to the expense of the user. I found a website that states 98% of all touted US green products were not as they claimed to be. Standards have yet to be implemented in a main central database & I'll shudder when they do, as this will be another pay-day for the biggest corporations in it's sector, taking advantage of it's political connections to put it's product at the top of the pile, be it a chemical or standard of work.

My business is cleaning as well. I'll take safety over cost effectiveness & I'll take common sense over political numbness. If you can truly claim your business is totally green or looking for ways of becoming totally green you will find your self being stopped at a certain point due to limitations within the system. As for the green, sustainable wagon - I think we need to step back & take a look how we got here in the first place. I think you will find it wasn't chosen by the people, more of implemented by the greed from above. It's time to question the vehicle, not jump on the gravy train.

Dan: While I'm not as literate or passionate as Karl on this matter, I also think that 'green' is already jaded and used more for monetary advantage than for customer benefit. True green is leaving a very small carbon footprint, not too easily done when every aspect is considered.

Marla: Karl, Quite a lot of the green movement is about condemning big business. I agree that big business can and will control quite a lot of market share on any product/service. I don't have a problem with that because anyone can make anything they want unless it infringes upon another's property rights. But, if a company invests it's time, energy and capital (including labor) into developing something, I think they should get paid for it. I don't work for free and don't expect anyone else to, either.
 Example of how issues can be mis-characterized and business in general demonized: Tesla coils. Great energy source using the earth as a conductor. Sounds great. It's free, blah blah blah. However, there are a lot of hazards that are associated with Telsa coils, including but not limited to: ozone poisoning, electrical current damage to the body (yes, death as well), destruction of any nearby electrical equipment and nitrous oxide poisoning. I sure won't be hooking my computer up to one in the near future. I'll wait until a 'big company' makes it safer and more reasonable for me to operate.
 Re: "government won't take it up" It's not the government's job to 'take it up'. If you don't want 'big business' controlling what you have access to, why are you advocating big government controlling it? The only way a monopoly can exist in a free market is to have the support of government through restrictions on competition.
 I'm all for greening up America. However, I refuse to support anything that advocates other people telling me what to do and when to do it in my personal or business life except on a very limited scale.
 I agree re: standards. (to an extent). I educate myself on what's green and what's not. As an adult I expect other adults to do the same. I don't make a claim I can't support, which is why I make it clear I'm only as green as my business model allows. As it allows and I investigate products thoroughly, I'll add products that I know are better for the environment, no matter where they come from. If it's a big company, maybe I can get them cheaper, thus empowering me to implement greener strategies on a faster time scale or donate to a green cause I support.
 If you regard applying the green message to your business as "just another trend or fad" by all means don't apply it to yours as that would make you unauthentic to your clients and lose trust.
 As for safety over cost effectiveness, that's a given. Otherwise we'd all be donning hazmat suits to clean. Political numbness sounds pretty close to an insult, but of course since we're all professionals here to learn from each other, not get into flame wars, it's not intended as such so I'll ignore it. Same with the gravy train comment. :-)
 Finally, if I wanted to be 'totally green', there's nothing stopping me. Natural cleaners abound right on our grocery shelves so there are no limitations within the system. I have limits on the greening of my business because I choose to use a business model that allows me to learn as I go. I could easily use my grandmother's home cleaners and be considered totally green since she used her own home garden. However, as I've studied I've learned there are possibilities of green alternatives to some of those home cleaners that are not only better for the environment but also clean better. My investigations continue. 

Dan, you said it well and succinctly. (Though I would add the caveat 'by some' to "green is already jaded and used...... ")

Craig:  I have to agree with Karl you need to put the whole Green philosophy into all aspects of your business not just the cleaning agents you use. There is lots of Greenwashing going on in our industry.

If you are a member of 'Linked In' & would like to leave a comment, why not go to the group & have your say. If not, why not leave an answer in the comments section of the blog.

Right-Wing Reactionaries Ridicule Earth Day: Tomorrow is Good Friday, the day on which Jesus Christ was crucified. More important to many is that it's also Earth Day, the annual gala that's taken on the trappings of a pagan religious holiday. At some level, it's good to celebrate Earth, the source of life and home of humanity. After all, we have to live somewhere. Environmentalists, however, seem divided between those who venerate the planet as a deity and those who think it's so fragile that it must be saved from everyone but themselves.

Earth Day has become inextricably linked with global-warming mania. Al Gore - a man with one of the largest carbon footprints in the world - recently likened the struggle to reduce emissions to the civil-rights movement. This is in keeping with the sanctimonious tone that usually accompanies Earth Day proclamations. To the radical greens, it's a day for humanity to engage in self-abasement, bow before the altar of Gaia and apologize for the offense against nature of simply being alive. It's a day to conjure fears, preach limits and condemn the capitalist system that created a country wealthy enough to indulge these shiftless hippies in the first place.

Custodians introduce energy-saving technology: Janitorial services move toward sustainable cleaning techniques - The new product is a microfiber cleaning technology used mostly in wipes, mops and pads. It uses more water and fewer harmful products, said Michael Smith, supervisor of Academic Custodial Services. The use of microfiber allows water to become the cleaning agent. It can reduce up to 97 percent of hard-surface bacteria, fungi and viruses, according to the Academic Custodial Services website. “The journey to (be) green started 10 years ago,” Smith said. Green practices have no harm on the cleaner, client or environment, Smith said. “We eliminated more than 60 (chemical) products,” he said.

They had harsh ingredients like bleach, ammonium, butyls and benzene. Chemicals such as these can cause health problems and birth defects, Smith said. “Green cleaning is not just products but also processes,” said Don Bakkensen, manager of Building Services. “We are some of the national forerunners of green cleaning processes and products.” After reducing the number of chemical products, the custodial services now uses three main cleaning products: a window cleaner, a neutral cleaner (mostly used for floors) and a disinfectant sanitizer, Smith said. The custodial services has requirements for their cleaning products.

All their products are “green” certified, meaning they do not contain toxic ingredients and are made with minimal and recycled packaging, according to the Academic Custodial Services website. “We plan to remain at the forefront of this effort by continuing to investigate new methods, equipment, and products to use for our cleaning effort,” said Tim Wynn, director of Facilities Management. Smith said the custodial services would also like to use a floor scrubber that uses only water and no chemical products at all. A machine ionizes the water allowing it to create positive and negative charges and when sprayed on a surface, it clings to the particles and lifts them. In only 45 seconds, the electrically charged water can be turned back into tap water, Smith said. “This would save major chemical purchase money,” he said.

The technology is still being tested and it will be introduced in the next six months. Using only tap water would save Western money because the custodial services provides cleaning for 131 academic and state-supported facilities, according to their website. “We believe that we have the ‘greenest’ cleaning methods among higher education institutions in the United States,” Wynn said. Academic Custodial Services has been a green department since 2003 and a nationally recognized leader in the green cleaning movement since 2000.

Window Cleaner Goes McFurious For Earth Day

As Earth Day finishes, a window cleaner takes matters into his own hands...

Dave Elgram dumps rubbish in restaurant in protest at McDonald's litter in Swaythling: It was a mountain of rubbish that had left him McFurious. The growing mound of burger wrappers along Dave Elgram’s street had not been cleared for so long that he decided to take matters into his own hands. Armed with a litter-picker the dad of three collected a bin liner full of McDonalds rubbish and tipped it on over the restaurant floor in front of shocked staff.

Now the 44-year-old is vowing to return to the store in Burgess Road every Monday with a fresh bag of rubbish until staff clean up his street. Dave, 44, a self-employed window cleaner, of Burgess Road, said: “The rubbish situation here is absolutely awful. “McDonalds are liable to keep it clean and tidy and unfortunately I took real umbrage to see staff clear one side of the street and not the other. “They said he forgot to do our side and had no obligation to keep the area clean. But I have lived here all my life and I’m sure it was part of their planning permission to do so when they opened.

“They had a shop full of people and I emptied the rubbish all over their floor. I wasn’t going to dump it until the staff became flippant. They said their manager was on a break and they wouldn’t go and get her. I told him exactly what I thought of their rubbish and that the local residents were fed up.” A spokesman for McDonalds said: “We share this customer’s frustration with the thoughtless minority who drop litter. It’s not acceptable and we do make every effort to clean up, going out three times a day, every day to collect litter from the area surrounding our restaurant. “Although we do understand the frustration caused by litter, we hope that in the future we can discuss this in a positive and constructive way, working together with the local community to stamp out the problem.”

Earth Day Window Cleaning News

Market Earth Day With a Free Guide: If you’re wondering how to tap into the public awareness of Earth Day in a way that will help your customers and clients, then check out this link to a free downloadable Earth Day Guide. Your clients might appreciate it, and anything done in a balanced way to reduce pollution and preserve the planet’s resources is commendable, and worth considering, anyway. Oh - and the guide is free. (It’s well-designed, too, so you’ll look professional, smart, and responsible by slapping your window cleaning logo and contact details on the front)


The biggest ‘green’ marketing scams/These products don’t help the enviroment and may not work at all. In greenwashing, as in life, there are seven sins. There's the sin of the hidden trade-off, for example, the sin of vagueness, and the sin of no proof. So says sins of greenwashing, which takes on companies that offer seemingly green benefits — often at a hefty price tag — with little results. As the green trend continues, companies in almost every industry vie for a piece of the green market, even the embattled General Motors has taken a chance on its own green product initiative. But as the field of green products grows, so does the number of impostors. The following is a list of some of the most perplexing green products out there-and an assessment of just how scammy they might be:
Clorox "Green Works" products Green Works launched a little more than a year ago, under the pretense of bringing eco-friendly home-cleaning goods, such as all-surface and window cleaners, to the mass market. Several of these products, however, contain corn-based ethanol, which the environmental community has targeted for being neither cost effective nor eco-friendly. Many items in the Green Works line also include sodium lauryl sulfate-which the company describes as a "coconut-based cleaning agent." That may be true, but, coconut or not, SLS has long been criticized by the scientific community for its not-so-natural effects; the American College of Toxicology described SLS as a known skin irritant in a report published more than 20 years ago.

See comment below.

Avoiding Greenwashing: Being branded a ‘greenwasher’ not only affects credibility, but it could lead to legal action. Green has become a major issue for all industries — and a potentially problematic and confusing one. TerraChoice recently reviewed 1,018 products and found that all but one made claims that were false or that risked being misleading. All but one! Green claims have become so commonplace that the term “greenwash” has become part of the discussion. This is especially true as our customers become more knowledgeable about green, and being branded a “greenwasher” not only affects credibility in their eyes, but could potentially lead to legal action. According to Wikipedia, “greenwash” is a blend of green and whitewash, and is used to describe the act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service.
Marketing claims are regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which has issued voluntary guidance on environmental advertising and marketing practices. While the FTC is the rule-maker on this subject, TerraChoice’s “Six Sins of Greenwashing” can be helpful for contractors developing marketing materials. ISSA can also provide helpful support.
Some examples that contractors may want to consider include:
Claim of improved occupant health and productivity. It is not enough to use anecdotal evidence (stories) or general evidence from the cleaning industry that supports your hypothesis. You must have specific scientific evidence to support your claim or it may be considered false or misleading.
Claims that products meet or exceed the requirements of Green Seal or similar third-party certifier. Unless products are officially “certified” or you have specific test data to prove that products “meet and exceed” an organization’s requirements, you may be heading for trouble. And be aware that it is not enough to simply take your supplier’s word for it. If you are making the claim, you have to be able to substantiate it, so ask your suppliers for the documentation.
A claim of using “only green products” can be made as long as you can document that you are in fact using only green products including chemicals, paper, equipment, liners, mops, carts, dusters, etc. If you use words such as “only,” “always,” “all,” “never,” etc., you have to mean it with no exceptions or the claim may be false or misleading, otherwise consider modifying your claim.
Be careful when using logos and mentioning organizations such as U.S. Green Building Council, Green Seal, Environmental Choice, etc. Make sure it is clear if just a single employee is a member, if the company is a corporate member, or if the company holds some specific certification from the organization, or if some or all of the products are certified, otherwise your claim could be misleading.
Make it clear when making green claims whether the claim refers to products being used; applies to the service being performed including products, training, procedures, communications and stewardship programs; or is for the company itself including buildings, internal operations, vehicles, etc.
Remember, it doesn’t matter if the problem was intentional or inadvertent. It’s preferable to get it right from the beginning. For more information or questions, don’t hesitate to visit or to contact us at Janitor’s World.

What Not To Do on Earth Day: Bullet point 2. Don’t use cleansers and personal care products that contain triclosan or other antibacterial agents. Public health officials worry that antibacterials in cleansers, window cleaners, and soaps are causing us to become resistant to antibiotics. Use simple soap and hot water for cleaning, and body soaps and lotions that do not say “antibacterial” or “fights germs” on the label.

Earth Day in Brampton: With the help of RONA Home and Garden and their new ECO line, the Brampton Downtown Development Corporation (BDDC) is inviting the merchants and business owners in Downtown Brampton to clean their windows, making the downtown sparkle. On EARTH DAY, Wednesday, April 22, 2009 the BDDC and RONA are inviting the Downtown Street Front Business to come out and clean their windows in an environmentally friendlier way! As Earth Day quickly approaches members of the RONA team from both Brampton locations & the BDDC want to remind us all about cleaning green! RONA is supplying the downtown merchants and businesses with a bottle of ECO Glass & Surface Cleaner and a squeegee, for free! RONA has succeeded in creating a product that lessens our ecological footprint and works! This brand new line of eco friendly cleaners is gentle on consumers and the earth alike. So go green on Earth Day, while still keeping clean.

The ladder bows and almost seems to bounce a bit, but it's been carefully placed. It's leaning against glass. Jose Galnban steps up and down with his window washing squeegee, rags and cleaning fluids. He has an elevated view of Lewisburg's public square, but pays attention t his job. Jason Moorish steadies the ladder for his co-worker who's facing the third floor lobby of the Marshall County Courthouse Annex. It's a warm Thursday afternoon. The windows are clear when they leave. Then it rained over the weekend.

Teens Turn to Summer Start-Ups: Faced with the darkest summer-job market since the government began collecting data after World War II, a growing number of teens are turning to entrepreneurship. The government's $1.2 billion youth jobs program is expected to make barely a dent in overall teen joblessness this summer. Employment among 16- to 19-year-olds is still likely to sink to a new low of 31% or 32% this summer, down from a previous nadir of 32.7% in 2008, says Andrew Sum, director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston. Thus "for many kids, starting a business may be the only option if they want to make some money. For teens considering start-ups, and for their parents, adolescent entrepreneurs offer some tips: Look for a low-cost niche. After a vendor knocked at Loree Greta's door last summer in Austin, Texas, offering to clean her windows for $150, she suggested her 14-year-old son, Max (the brother of jewelry maker Marlo Adelle), make the rounds offering to do the same for one-third as much. Brandishing a long-handled squeegee, vinegar, buckets and newspaper, Max earned about $300 washing windows.

Window Cleaning News Round-Up

The impact of higher oil, product prices on US economy deepens. Both major and independent retailers are closing outlets as a result, he continued. "Liz Claiborne is shuttering 54 Sigrid Olsen stores. Ann Taylor is closing 117 of its 921 stores. Talbot's has closed all of its men's and children's clothing stores along with 22 women's stores. Even Target and Starbucks are seeing a slowdown. Each of these chains are served by countless small businesses that provide window washing and custodial services, paper products, deliveries, alterations and many other services."

Earth day is getting nearer (April 22nd). Almost four decades ago, with the help of college students, staff members and activities coordinator Denis Hayes, Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson founded the first Earth Day. Earth Day 1970 was a grassroots effort to raise environmental awareness. Since then, Earth Day has evolved and expanded into an international day of awareness and activism.

More window cleaning robots are needed in Michigan. If you have a design, you're a student - then you'll need to construct this window first. The 2008 ASME Student Design Competition is under orders for the Winrobo—an automated window washing robot.

Procter & Gamble is giving its Mr. Clean a new job to tackle: washing cars. The company is moving the iconic brand beyond kitchens and bathrooms and is testing its appeal on car washes. P&G has opened two Mr. Clean Performance Car Washes in Ohio, and plans to open up to seven more in Cincinnati, Dayton, OH, and in Kentucky, according to news reports. The car wash features a waiting area with wireless Internet access, flat-screen TVs and a convenience store area, which sells snack and drinks, including P&G¹s Millstone coffee. Mr. Clean car care products are also sold in the stores. A basic wash costs $7.51 and rises up to $16.90 for a gold shine package, according to the Web site http://www.mrcleancarwash.com/. Visitors can pay $24 for a full-service interior and exterior cleaning, which includes a car wash, window cleaning, vacuuming, polish and fragrance.

More window washers Stuck on Building! Atlanta fire and rescue crews came to the aid of a window washing crew in Buckhead Monday afternoon. The crew was working on the 16th floor of a building at 3350 Peachtree Street, when the motor on the scaffolding blew out. Emergency crews worked to get the scaffolding pulled down. No injuries were reported.