Do Green Kitchen Cleaners Work?

Getting rid of infectious bacteria without using too many toxic chemicals.

By Nina Shen Rastogi
Posted Tuesday, March 10, 2009, at 10:05 AM ET

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I've replaced most of my cleaning supplies with eco-friendly versions, but I'm not sure that Dr. Bronner's Sal Suds are strong enough to kill all of the nasty bugs in my kitchen. Do green cleaning products work as disinfectants?

Kitchen cleaning pits two modern bogeymen against each other: infectious bacteria and toxic chemicals. Luckily, you don't need to assuage one worry by ignoring the other—just read labels carefully and exercise some common sense.

There are a number of substances that kill germs, from tea tree oil to the sodium hypochlorite found in household bleach. But not all microbicides are created equal, and their relative effectiveness will depend on a few factors—namely, the kind of organism you're trying to kill, the nature of the surface you're trying to disinfect, the duration of the application, and how much of the stuff you put on.