After reading about method products on TreeHugger (How to Green Your Cleaning and Method Home Cleaning Products, in addition to several forum threads on method) last year, we decided to take a step toward keeping our brand-new Built Green Colorado home green and switched over the last few conventional cleaning products we had to ones made by method. Nearly a year later, we have not been disappointed and have even added a few new products to our cleaning closet. Here’s a review.
method At a Glance
| Pros | Cons |
| Carries a dye & fragrance free line called “go naked” | Other products contain sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), a known skin irritant. |
| Is a carbon-neutral business, using carbon offset credits and tree planting to offset both their products and commute/travel by their staff. | Uses some synthetic (read petroleum-based) fragrances and other petroleum-based ingredients. |
| Paraben, triclosan, phthalate, phosphate, ammonia, butane, ethylene glycol butyl ether (EGBE), and aerosol free. | Laundry detergents contain optical brighteners. |
| Not tested on animals. | Many products contain FD&C and D&C dye. |
| Does not contain animal products. | The only Skin Deep review available, for the very popular hand soap, rated it on par with some very conventional products such as Dial anti-bacterial, softsoap, and CVS/Walgreens generic hand soap in terms of toxicity of ingredients. |
| Product primarily made in the United States. | |
| Widely available (both online and from Target). | |
| Biodegradable packaging, recyclable packaging, and refill sizes available. | “Biodegradable” doesn’t mean it will break down in your home compost bin (or a landfill). Instead, it means that the product will break down by at least 60% within 180 days of being in a commercial composter. |
* All information, with the exception of the scores from Skin Deep, comes from method’s web site: http://www.methodhome.com.
Some of my favorites
I have been impressed with all the method products I have tried. It seems that the company tries hard to balance making products that are easy on the environment with stuff that really works. And considering the natural cleaning product graveyard that is my linen closet, I can really appreciate a product that works.
Do I wish they’d dispense with the petroleum-based fragrances & artificial colors? Yes. Do I think they’ve built their brand around those colors and offered an alternative (the “go naked” line) for those who prefer to do without the artificial stuff? Yes.
Unfortunately, the first three three products on my favorites list do not, to my knowledge, come in a “go naked” variety, so for now, I’m stuck with the artificial colors and scents.
- The Daily Granite – This granite polish/cleaner really does keep the counter tops in my kitchen looking their best. Where an all-purpose cleaner (even my beloved Parsley Plus) will leave streaks, this stuff keeps them as shiny as they were when we moved in.
- Steel For Real – My Mom told me I was crazy to go with stainless appliances because, she said, I’d never keep them clean, especially with two children under the age of 4. I’m happy to report that I wipe my appliances down once or twice a week with Steel for Real and for the most part, they are gorgeous!
- Wood For Good – I use the spray bottle version of this to dust with and the “Almond Floor Cleaner” version of this on the wood floors. This, in combination with my omop (the method version of a Swiffer with biodegradable cleaning wipes and a cleaner that won’t poison your dog or children) is in almost daily use here.
- Lil’ Bowl Blu Eucalyptus Mint Toilet Cleaner – After various flings with bleach-free toilet bowl cleaners, I’ve always gone crawling back to my Clorox for cleaning the porcelain god. It’s not that the natural ones didn’t get the bowl clean initially, just that the toilet bowl funk (and if you live with any members of the male gender, especially a toddler, you know exactly what I mean) always seems to return before I’m ready to break out the brush. But no more! I put this stuff to the test, going a full week between toilet bowl cleanings, and so far there is nothing scarier in my bathroom than the latest Economist.
- go naked HE Compatible Laundry Detergent – Second only to toilet bowl cleaners, laundry detergent has been the bane of my green-going existence. While the fact that my children have very sensitive skin, and that they wear (or wore) cloth diapers, makes me a prime candidate for a natural detergent, my canine nose does not allow for one that will not get every last ounce of funk out of the clothes. This detergent does the trick, but does contain optical brighteners, which is usually a no-no with cloth dipes. I’ve been using it for several months now without any noticeable bulid-up or other problems though.
Nobody wins ‘em all
I have to say that I was disappointed in the latest lines of method products: children & adult bath & beauty. Although I will use the Fuzzy Peach 3-in-1 shampoo, conditioner, & body wash on my children until it’s gone, I will not buy it again because the fragrance (artificial) is too strong. Likewise the Olive Leaf body wash and body bars–nice enough scent, but if you’ve done away with petroleum-based fragrances like we have, the scent will really stand out.
And I have to say that I’m bummed to discover that the hand wash scored a 5 out of 10 on Skin Deep. I just bought a jumbo sized container at Costco to refill my smaller pumps, so we’re going to have this around for a while. I just wish it were actually less toxic than the Softsoap it was replacing. Well, at least it isn’t antibacterial.
Oh, and I know a few people who, like me, have already suffered from a broken omop handle.
Summary: Two Thumbs Up!
Other natural products have tried and failed to break into the mainstream market (and Clorox is trying to replicate method’s success with its new green product line), but method has really set the bar high in terms of making green products fashionable, accessible, and affordable. The variety of scents (see my previous gripes about the artificial scents, though), the effectiveness of the products, the great recyclable/refillable packaging all make me fill good about loading up my Target cart with method cleaning products.
5 comments
Laundry Detergent says:
July 9, 2008 at 8:27 pm (UTC 2 )
Ever tried soap nuts as a laundry detergent? They grow on trees over in India & Nepal, and have been used for centuries as a natural laundry detergent & all-purpose cleaner.
Kristen says:
July 8, 2008 at 8:18 pm (UTC 2 )
I just love the Method stuff too. Great review, and I’m SO glad you do the research I want to, so I don’t have to! I just love the toilet bowl cleaner. The smell lingers, and (contrary to most cleaning products) that’s a good thing!
Julie says:
July 7, 2008 at 7:16 am (UTC 2 )
Hey guys, follow that link in my blog post about the omop–it goes to contact information, so I’m guessing they’re doing free replacements until they figure out why it keeps breaking. My first one broke in less than 3 months, but my second one hasn’t broken (knock on wood), so I’m hopeful that it won’t…
Corrina, I haven’t tried the dryer sheets yet. I just don’t seem to need them now that I have my Nellie’s Dryer Balls & static sheets. Even the “crunchiness” has gone away from the clothes–I think it was just a factor of us being in between products, because I’ve read that the dryer balls and static sheets don’t work as well until all the dryer sheet residue is gone from the dryer & clothes.
Oh, and another reason I’m holding off is that “180 days in commercial compost conditions”–I have more omop sheets in my compost than will break down in a lifetime, so I can’t add dryer sheets to that!!! And my compost is hot–the other stuff I’m throwing in there is breaking down in 4-6 weeks as expected, but those omop sheets just turn brown and sort of slowly shrink–they aren’t even shredding yet. Oh well.
Julie
Amy says:
July 7, 2008 at 6:39 am (UTC 2 )
I think my oMop handle is about to go as well. The handle has started making some scarry cracking sounds when I use it. Hopefully it will last a bit longer.
I am going to have to try the toilet bowl cleaner. like you, I always resort to the bleach or harsh cleaners. I love the method products that I have tried so far!!
Corrina says:
July 7, 2008 at 5:40 am (UTC 2 )
My oMop handle broke, too. I think/thought I was scrubbing too hard. Additionally, the oMop washable, microfiber pads don’t adhere to the mop base as well as I’d like but they do wash up like ribbons! I’ve had my three pads for at least a year and they look brand new when they come out of the washing machine!!
Like you, I’m sold on Method’s products. I haven’t used the kid wash yet as I’m waiting to finish the Burt’s Bees bubbles but I hope we like them!
By the way, did you ever try the Method dryer sheets??