FAQs

We are continually updating this page with the most common information requests. If you don't see the answer to your question, please contact us!

 

Melly-orrah? Mell-yourah? How do you say that name?

Meliora is a Latin word that means "better", pronounced "meh-lee-OR-ah." You might recognize it as part of the English word "ameliorate" meaning "to make better."

By choosing Meliora Cleaning Products as our name we hope it signifies our desire to be better; to consistently and continually offer better products while simultaneously working to lower our (and your) environmental impact. 

Are your products vegan?

Yes! We do not use any animal-derived ingredients.

Do you use animal testing?

Goodness, no! We only use ingredients we understand and test all of our products in our own home. 

As of April 2017, our products are Certified Cruelty-Free by the Leaping Bunny Program. Yay!

Are your products Organic?

Technically, our Laundry Powder cannot be USDA Organic. The mineral content of washing soda and baking soda is too high for the laundry powder to qualify as an "agricultural product." Please read about the details on organic labeling standards here.

All the oils used to make our All-Purpose Home Cleaner, Soap Sticks, and Bath & Body Bars are USDA Certified Organic.  If you'd like to see the certifications from our suppliers, please reach out and we can share them with you.

Can I use this in my HE washer?

Yes! The laundry soap is low-sudsing, so it works well in HE machines.  Use only 1/2 scoop - or 1/2 Tablespoon - per load in a HE machine. Toss the Laundry Powder directly in with the clothes. Skip the dispensing drawer - trust us, it'll dissolve just fine.

 

Do your products contain preservatives?

Short answer: Nope!

Long answer: Still no! 

A preservative is "a substance added to a product to destroy or inhibit multiplication of microorganisms." These microorganisms commonly pop up in products which have water as a primary ingredient (liquids, gels, etc.). All of our products are solids or powders, thus we do not need to add a preservative to keep them shelf-stable. While you may notice occasional clumping of our Laundry Powder in really humid environments, this will not affect the effectiveness one bit. Simply break the clump apart and keep washing your clothes.

I have a septic tank... Can I use your products?

Yes - just avoid the Oxygen Brightener. There are no ingredients in any of our other cleaning products that would interfere with the normal operation of your septic tank. We use all biodegradable ingredients, and no antimicrobials that could kill off the bacteria in the tank. The Oxygen Brightener is designed to kill microbes, however, so it's not a good choice for those using a septic tank.

Please reference this article as a resource from our really smart friends at Cornell.  This is some of the information we used when doing our own research on this topic. 

I have hard water...What do I do?

Hard water is hard because of higher levels of dissolved minerals like Calcium and Magnesium. 

The reason we use washing soda (sodium carbonate) in our Laundry Powder is so it works with a variety of water conditions including the fight against hard water.  By softening the water, washing soda acts as a "booster" causing fewer Calcium and Magnesium ions to interact with the soap in the powder; therefore the soap can do its job to clean, rather than get caught up in soap scum and hard water deposits.

Here's an interesting map of water hardness levels across the US.

 

 

Why doesn’t it foam up like regular detergent?

Conventional detergent contains chemicals that are added to create these sudsy bubbles. Suds don’t do anything to get your clothes clean, so we skip them. As a bonus, this low-sudsing property makes this recipe great for using in High Efficiency (HE) washers!

Does your All-Purpose Home Cleaner Disinfect?

No. Our All-Purpose Home Cleaner is just that, a cleaner. This works for 90% of the problems around your home, from dirt tracked in on muddy shoes to some olive oil spilled on the kitchen counter. Soap and water, like our All-Purpose Home Cleaner, cuts through the dirt and leaves the hard surfaces in your home ready for another round.

For those times when you need to disinfect - like when raw meat is left on a surface or you're dealing with poultry, disinfection is the right route to go. If you can, avoid bleach and go with a planet-friendlier, tested disinfectant option like vinegar or a commercial disinfectant that uses thyme oil as the active disinfecting ingredient. For a more thorough breakdown, check out this handy list from our friends at Women's Voices for the Earth.

What are these fancy labels on your site and packaging?

Certification labels are one way to make sure the products you are using actually are what they say. These certifications demonstrate our commitment to responsibly running a business with a people- and planet-friendly focus.  Our current certifications are:

• 1% For the Planet: We pledge to give at least 1% of our annual sales revenue to non-profit organizations who support causes aligned to a planet and people friendly world. Our primary partner of choice is Women's Voices for the Earth, who works to amplify women's voices to eliminate toxic chemicals that harm our health and communities.
• Certified B Corporation: A third-party certification that validates our commitment to using business as a force for good.
• MADE SAFE: MADE SAFE has screened the ingredients in our products to ensure they are safe for human health.
• Leaping Bunny - Cruelty-Free: As of April 2017, all of the ingredients in our products are confirmed to be manufactured without continued testing on animals.
•  The Environmental Working Group has a Guide to Healthy Cleaning where all of our products and ingredients have been rated A on their A-F grade scale. That's right, straight A's! Aren't we cool?!