the method guide to detoxing your home. caution: facts contained herein may result in readers rethinking their cleaning habits. other side effects include better smells, deeper breaths, and a cleaner conscience.

Squeaky green is now available at John Lewis, Waterstones, Amazon, and lots of other nice places.

5 squeaky green tips pulled from the book

1. Exercise that green thumb by picking up a plant, or five. Plants are nature’s detoxers and can actually boost oxygen levels in your home.
2. Slay the energy vampire. OK, we know you don’t want to come home every day and reset the time on all your appliances. Neither do we. But for those times you’re leaving for a while, plug everything into a power strip and simply switch it off. (Er, you might want to make sure you haven’t lost the manual for your DVD player.)
3. Open a window. (Seriously, that’s it.) The way our houses are built today, the air inside is usually more polluted than outside. Open that window and breathe easier.
4. Change your furnace and air conditioning filters. Oh, so sexy, we know. But the seasons they are a-changin’, and we’d be willing to bet you haven’t done it for a while (every three months is a good rule of thumb). Really pressed for time? Turn the vacuum on it.
5. Play outside! Whether it’s 18 degrees or 80, get out there and kick up your heels for a few minutes at least. And for goodness sake, take someone with you.