Is there any sensible way to have an environmentally friendly shower curtain and liner?

Question

Without spending an insane amount of $$? I looked in2 the fabric/hemp 1s, & they're very expensive & people who have them say they get ugly/moldy even though the manufacturers claim they don't! Also I live in MN where it's VERY cold in the winter so my airing out options 4 the bathroom after taking a shower & while cleaning the liner r limited to the fan. Opening the window in sub-zero temperatures just isn't an option. Instead of drying, everything would freeze. The vinyl/plastic 1s r terrible 4 the environment & health. Is there any way to have a shower curtain & liner that work & don't hurt me & the Earth? R there plastic 1s that can b recycled or r made from recycled materials? I can't install a shower door because I live in an apartment. That would b the best obviously.

Answer 1

I am pretty anti plastic too, and try to do away with as much of it in my life as possible.  

First, no matter which one you end up with, there are a couple of things which make them mold  less.  After your shower, take them OUT of the tub, so they are hanging strait down to the floor (give them a shake first, so they do not leave puddles of water).  This allows the best airflow, and keeps the mold at bay.

Dust them with baking soda, but do NOT spray them with bleach, nor alchohol.  Bleach and alchohol will dry them out, and make them brittle and cracked (hemp or plastic).  Baking soda will change the pH to something mold simply hates, so it cannot grow there.

Set a fan in your bathroom, and turn it on for an hour or so after your shower.  This will go a really long way toward keeping everything dry and mold free.

Ask for one of the expensive hemp ones you desire for Christmas.  Ask for gift cards to the specific store that carries the hemp ones you wish.  If several people give you gift cards to the store it will go a long way towards making it more affordable.

Get an envelope and put $10 a payday, or $10 a month in it.  At the very least, in 10 months you will be able to afford to buy exactly what you want.

If you decide they are out of financial reach, then buy the very best plastic one you can find.  Buy one that is heavy duty plastic, with well re-inforced gromet holes.  That way it will at least last as many years as is possible.  Don't buy one in a trendy color you will grow tired of either.

Other posters are correct...one hemp shower curtain is not going to save the world.  On the other hand, this kind of thinking needs to stop.  If everyone keeps thinking "well that ONE thing is not going to save the world," people end up using it as an excuse to do nothing.  Eventually if enough people keep buying that "ONE" thing, it WILL cut down on the amount of plastic generated.

Plastic is FOREVER people.  It does not go away...it just breaks down into microscopic particles that are still plastic, and still the exact same volume as when it was first created....and then it enters our food chain.

~Garnet

Homesteading/Farming over 20 years

Answer 2

i would hang several strings next to eachother with pasta noodles on them.  The water will run down the noodles

Answer 3

probably not

get one that can be washed and switch the plastic liner every 2 weeks

also u can get alcohol, put it in a spray bottle, and spray the plastic liner often

Answer 4

Problems with shower curtains?! All you all nuts???

Answer 5

[ALL]

{TRUE] is right. Also, I have put shower doors up in apartments several times.Now they make them so they can be installed without drilling any holes.They can be bought at Lowes/HomeDepot for around $70.00, and will outlast any curtain.

Answer 6

Saving our planet, one shower curtain at a time.  

Won't help.  I spend all my time making as large a carbon footprint as I can.  I out do you and a thousand like you.

Answer 7

the earth is not dying because of shower curtains. The fuel to heat your shower water is the killer. I wash my plastic shower curtain in the washer on cold - short cycle and it looks brand new after.

Answer 8

You can make your own shower curtain out of bed linens using two twin size top sheets (sewn together) and purchase a green friendly vinyl shower liner.  All shower liners are machine washable, this helps with keeping them mold free and from having to be purchased as often.