I found a sliced lemon soaked in boiling water makes a fabulous cleaner and smells good. You can baking soda for tough areas or pour into a spray bottle.
Dragonlady2 (11-15-2017)
Dragonlady2 (11-15-2017), Quakerella (11-17-2017)
... and making batter, cleaning tea stains from cups and washing your hair if you have itchy scalp.
Very versatile stuff
"A busy beak is a happy beak" - David Strom
Dragonlady2 (11-16-2017), Lady (11-18-2017), Quakerella (11-17-2017)
Ventilation is your best friend. Now I'm not advocating doing unsafe things, but in 42 years of bird ownership we have hardly thought of or changed our behavior around these kind of things. Sure, I am not going to refinish a wood floor without taking precautions or use a harsh Chemical to clean her play area but other than that, we just live normal lives....and my wife is addicted to those stinky candles and I heat with wood pellets. My current bird is healthy, happy and never sneezes or shows signs of discomfort.
Back to ventilation. For the last 30 years we've lived in a 250+ year old house with a dirt basement, oil fired hot air heat and windows that are over 150 yrs old and I attribute the fact that none of what i mentioned previously bothers either us or our pets because the house is not well insulated and not air tight...it's well ventilated.
Just be safe and use common sense.
Thanks,
Bill
&
Casper's 2nd best friend (12-03-2017), Dragonlady2 (11-17-2017), Quakerella (12-04-2017)
Hi! I decided to come back to this thread for more clarity. So the way fumes work, anything with a smell is dangerous. I mean, I know I have to commit to my bird but living without deodorant and body spray? Could I keep things like that in a certain bathroom that the bird will be off limits to? Or do fumes travel through the house? Can I clean certain rooms with normal cleaners, or should I use vinegar for the entire house?
As far as the kitchen goes, I'm really scared of the teflon, because I feel like everything from pans to slow cookers has it. Is red copper safe?
I hope I'm not making a bigger deal out of this than it actually is, I feel like on any websites they don't make a big deal about it.
I think the key here is moderation and ensuring air circulation. Some bathroom cleaners even make my eyes water. There are milder options on the market. Look for "green" or "natural" brands. Open windows when cleaning, close the door to the room being cleaned, move the bird to another room until the smell has dissipated are some precautions to take. Use diluted solutions to clean with and try to move/circulate the air. A heppa filter air purifier will help a lot with this. Deodorant use won't kill your bird. Using fabric softener won't kill your bird. There will always be odors in the air.
As for cookware. Teflon products shouldn't be used. Stainless steel, copper etc should be fine....it's whatever you might burn in them that might be the bigger problem...lol.
Lady (12-03-2017), Quakerella (12-04-2017)
Perfumes are just scents like flowers have except they have an alcohol base so they can be used in liquid form. Once the alcohol has evaporated I don't think there is a problem. Margaret puts her perfume on upstairs and by the time she has sorted herself out and got downstairs there isn't a problem.
Modern water based paints shouldn't be a problem, because as they dry they are mainly just giving off water vapour. Not evil like the old fashioned oil based paints which release chemicals into the air as they dry. I still wouldn't paint in the same room as the bird and would well ventilate the room I was painting.
Spray cans of cellulose paint are deadly for parrots and not much better for humans.
I did get concerned when Margaret used furniture wax polish in the room where Casper was. It was quite smelly. I took him upstairs and it didn't seem to affect him.
We use Poop-off and F10 (see above) for cleaning the cage because we know these are safe. When he first came to us Margaret nearly killed Casper using a household cleaner on the cage whilst he was still inside. Poor little thing, he spent a week at the vets having nebulisers and stuff. The vet told us about F10, said it would be perfectly safe if accidentally sprayed directly over Casper but not to do it. We get the F10 and Poop-off mail order, usually at the same time as ordering Casper's food and treats/toys.
"A busy beak is a happy beak" - David Strom
Dragonlady2 (12-03-2017), Lady (12-03-2017), Quakerella (12-04-2017)