I wanted something for the cleaning I do most often.

Not oven cleaning. Not years of built-up grime. Just the ordinary things — kitchen benches, spills, fingerprints, food residue and the grease that appears as part of everyday life.

I had become tired of reaching for strong cleaning products for jobs that simply didn't seem to warrant them, particularly when those products could make me feel unwell.

So the question became:

Could I make something simpler that I was comfortable using — but that still cleaned properly?

That last part mattered. I wasn't interested in making a beautifully gentle cleaner that left the bench dirty.

The first time I sprayed it onto fat on my kitchen benchtop and watched it wipe away cleanly, I knew I was getting somewhere.

And when a professional cleaner later used it in my home and spontaneously told me how impressed she was with it, that was rather lovely confirmation.

Gentle still has to work.

That's the principle behind this cleaner.

A broad-spectrum preservative system used to protect this water-based formula from contamination by bacteria, yeast and mould.

Once I decided that the product needed preserving, I didn't simply choose the first preservative available. I looked at the options and chose Optiphen Plus because it has a well-established safety profile, is effective at a low concentration, and does not rely on a formaldehyde-releasing preservative system. Its components — phenoxyethanol, caprylyl glycol and sorbic acid — are widely used in personal-care formulations, and phenoxyethanol has been assessed as safe for cosmetic use at concentrations up to 1% by the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety.

For me, leaving a water-based product inadequately protected from microbial growth would not make it a safer product simply because the ingredient list looked more “natural”.

The preservative is there because it has an important job to do — and I chose one with a good safety profile that could do that job without adding more than was necessary.

No added fragrance • No essential oils • No chlorine bleach • No ammonia • No phosphates • No synthetic dyes • No formaldehyde-releasing preservatives.

There is no added fragrance and no essential oil blend simply to make the house smell “clean”. The Household Care range was deliberately formulated without essential oils.

There is also no chlorine bleach or ammonia, and no need for heavy-duty cleaning ingredients simply for the sake of making an everyday cleaner seem more powerful.

And while this is a preserved, water-based product, I deliberately chose Optiphen Plus rather than a formaldehyde-releasing preservative system.

This isn't about making a “chemical-free” cleaner — there is no such thing. It is about choosing ingredients carefully, giving each one a useful job, and not adding more than the product needs.

The Universal Botanical Cleaner comes in a 200 ml bottle with a trigger spray, ready to use.

I deliberately chose a lightweight plastic bottle for everyday cleaning. Cleaning involves wet hands, hard floors, kitchen benches and carrying a bottle from room to room. For the bottle that is regularly picked up, sprayed and put down, I felt that something lightweight and less likely to break if dropped was the more practical choice.

The 500 ml refill comes in an amber glass bottle. Once you have your original spray bottle and trigger, simply refill it as needed rather than buying another spray mechanism every time.

One spray bottle. Refill it. Reuse it.

If you would prefer your 200 ml cleaner supplied in glass, that's fine too. Email me when you order and let me know, and I can supply it that way.

This is an everyday household cleaner, but as with any cleaning product, a little common sense goes a long way.

Keep out of reach of children.

Avoid contact with eyes. If contact occurs, rinse thoroughly with clean water.

Do not ingest.

Always test first on an inconspicuous area, particularly on delicate, porous, unsealed or unfamiliar surfaces.

Do not mix with other household cleaning products.

Because the formula contains botanical tinctures and a cleansing agent, surfaces can vary in how they respond. If you're unsure about a particular material, test a small area first.

For external household use only.

Universal Botanical Cleaner is available as one of the six minis you can choose in our Discovery Collection.

It's an opportunity to try the cleaner on your everyday household surfaces before deciding whether you'd like to purchase a full-sized bottle.

Would you like to learn more about the thinking behind our household care range and discover the other products in the collection?

Visit our Household Care page to explore the complete range.