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You could be causing more harm than good

While keeping a clean home can make you feel more comfortable and organised, the experts have revealed the one thing we are cleaning too much: bathroom mirrors.

According to Dani Palikarova from Fantastic Services, cleaning your mirrors too often could result in black spots and darkened edges appearing over time due to the moisture from glass cleaners. Bathroom mirrors often need daily attention due to splatters and smudges, but be careful you're not overdoing it.

When people over-clean their mirrors, the product can get behind the mirror and destroy the backing over time. "Bathroom mirrors are constantly exposed to moisture which causes damage over time to the silver backing," Dani told Real Homes. That's the reason black spots and darkened edges appear over time. To help prevent this, you should ventilate your bathroom often and use a glass cleaner only once per week."

If you're planning on giving your mirror a good clean, Dani recommends against newspaper (a popular TikTok hack) and suggests using an all-natural vinegar solution mixed with water. Don't forget to opt for a lint-free cloth to avoid spreading fluff onto the mirror's surface (a microfibre cloth is your best bet).

If it's tough stains you're wanting to remove (such as toothpaste), Dani suggests pouring some rubbing alcohol onto a cotton pad and gently removing it in circular motions. Once it has come off, dap another cotton pad in water to get rid of any alcohol left on the mirror surface. Yours will be clean in no time!

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You can choose whether these stylish bottles come with a trigger spray or a pump and you can also personalise the label on them. They are a perfect replacement for plastic bottles: cleaning sprays, shampoo and conditioner, hand wash, washing-up liquid etc. They can be refilled at local refill stations. We suggest Ecover refills for cleaning products (list of stockists here) and Faith in Nature for personal hygiene (list here).

BUY NOW, from £8, ETSY

Ecoeggs are a long-lasting alternative to laundry capsules and detergents. It’s a recycled plastic egg, filled with mineral pellets, which you put in your washing machine as you would a normal capsule. The refillable mineral pellets are proven to be good for allergy-prone and sensitive skin and are also much better for the waterways.

Tip! The Ecoegg is great for everyday washing but you might want to consider a stronger stain remover on dirtier clothes or the natural bleach mentioned in the next few slides. You can also add extra scent to your laundry with essentials oils.

We love these sturdy dish brushes that not only do the job well but look much nicer in our kitchens, too. Their description reads: "Each cleaning brush is handmade and bristles are made from highly durable and long lasting coconut fibre."

BUY NOW, £9.90, Wearth London

Swap those yellow and green sponges which shed plastic into our sinks with these attractive, washable pads. Although they are much thinner than a traditional sponge and definitely feel different to use, they are great for washing up plates, bowls and glasses. They can be washed in the machine and are then fully recyclable when they do reach they end of their days.

BUY NOW, £9 for 2, Wearth London

This laundry bag collects the microfibres that escape from your clothes in the washing machine. You simply put your load in the bag and then put the entire bag in the machine. Once the load is done, the microfibres will be left in the bottom of the bag. These can't be recycled in most cases but this method stops them from entering the waterways and inevitably heading for the ocean.

BUY NOW, £24.95, &Keep

This is an excellent cleaner which can be used to refill reusable bottles like the glass ones mentioned earlier. This product can be found at most Ecover refill stations but, if you would prefer buy a bottle, rest assured that it is made from recycled plastic and plant based materials and is fully recyclable.

This is an obvious swap away from the plastic clothes pegs that have crept into our households.

BUY NOW, £4.95, &Keep

Swap plastic-wrapped, single-use paper kitchen roll for these much more attractive, natural and washable cloths.

BUY NOW, £14, Wearth London

Swap cling film for beeswax wraps. They are perfect for fruit, veg, bread and bowls of leftovers. You simply warm the wax up with your hands and they mould around anything.

BUY NOW, from £10, The Beeswax Wrap Co.

This natural bleach in a paper bag, from Mangle & Wringer, is a great alternative to big plastic bottles of harsh chemical bleach. On their website, the description reads: "Our Natural Bleach, also known as oxygen bleach, is a safe and non-toxic, biodegradable alternative to harsh chlorine bleach. When dissolved in water it releases oxygen which acts as a powerful stain remover and deodoriser. It breaks down harmlessly to oxygen, water and sodium carbonate. This miracle product brightens both whites and coloured fabrics and prevents them from yellowing. It’s great at removing organic stains like tea and coffee, fruit juice, food sauces, grass stains, pet stains, blood and red wine. Natural Bleach is also a great alternative to chlorine bleach in the bathroom. Dissolve in warm water to safely clean and disinfect the loo and clean drains. Also use to easily and safely clean and bleach sinks, baths, cups, mugs, tea and coffee pots."

BUY NOW, from £3.50, Mangle & Wringer

Mangle & Wringer also do a range of cleaning balms in aluminium tins that can be reused or recycled. We love the lavender scented bathroom balm – you simply rub it in with a clean cloth, rinse and wash off.

BUY NOW, BATHROOM BALM, £5.80, Mangle & Wringer

BUY NOW, KITCHEN BALM, £5.80, Mangle & Wringer

These tablets are friendly to the waterways and the cardboard packaging is fully-recyclable. Ecover have this to say about the plastic-wrapped tablets on their website: "Dishwasher tablets don’t react well to the moisture in the air. In fact, it causes them to crumble. We want you to open your box to find tablets, not powder, so we wrap each tablet. The packages of our dishwasher tablets are made of polypropylene and each pack weighs only 0.3 grams.We have not found a dissolvable film that meets our standards for biodegradability. We are actively investigating an alternative to this type of packaging – we’re looking at plant based options that meet our standards. We’re not there yet but when we find an alternative we will switch."

These reusable, washable clothes clean multiple surfaces with just water. The starter pack includes an e-cloth for bathroom, kitchen, windows, multi-surface and glass polishing

An obvious swap for their plastic, single-use cousins.

BUY NOW, £6, Ethical Superstore

Don't spend 5p on another plastic bag – these string ones are perfect for your shopping and stylish too.

BUY NOW, £10.99 for 4, Amazon