Set sprinklers to water the lawn or garden only - not the street or sidewalk.
Use the microwave to cook small meals. (It uses less power than an oven.)
Purchase "Green Power" for your home's electricity. (Contact your power supplier to see where and if it is available.)
Scrape, rather than rinse, dishes before loading into the dishwasher; wash only full loads.
Cut back on air conditioning and heating use if you can.
Turn off appliances and lights when you leave the room.
One of the more unusual characteristics of Nature Maids owner Olga Douglas is her background: She grew up in northern Siberia, and she says that was part of the inspiration for starting her Richardson-based eco-friendly cleaning service.
"They are more familiar with environmental issues there," she says. "I know the climate is changing because my family sees it."
The Texas Christian University computer-science graduate says she was tiring of her software development job and saw an opportunity to offer a more environmentally friendly maid service. She researched the business options and launched the company last May. Now Ms. Douglas and her team of two cover a 30-mile radius around Richardson. They bring their own biodegradable, nontoxic, natural cleaning products, which she says are better for indoor air quality than the more typically used chemical cleaners.
"What customers like most is the fresh, chemical-free smell," she says.
Thus far, Ms. Douglas has found pricing is her biggest challenge. The eco-friendly products she uses cost more than chemical cleaners, and her staff is fully bonded and insured, making it difficult to compete on price. Nature Maids charges $32 per maid per hour. Ms. Douglas estimates that a standard cleaning of a 1,400-square-foot house would cost $112.
"Most of our clients are people who have converted to our service from other cleaners," she says.
Ms. Douglas says green cleaning services are more popular right now on the East and West coasts than they are in Dallas, but she expects this area to eventually catch up.
Erin Covert
Nature Maids 972-755-4114
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