My Top 10 Uses of Baking Soda in the Home + Five Smart, Easy Ways to Use Washing

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My Top 10 Uses of Baking Soda in the Home

http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/3131

By Annie B. Bond, author of Clean & Green (Ceres Press, 1990).

 

The one item that I can’t do without when I clean is baking soda. I use it

for so many things, if I don’t have a box of it around I’ll make a special

trip

to the store 5 miles away just as I would if I were out of a mainstay like

milk.

 

What do I use so much baking soda for?

 

Here are my top 10 uses of baking soda for cleaning in the home:A commonly

available mineral full of many cleaning attributes, baking soda is made from

soda ash, and is slightly alkaline (it’s pH is around 8.1; 7 is neutral). It

neutralizes acid-based odors in water, and adsorbs odors from the air.

 

1. Drain cleaner: Pour one cup down the drain followed by three cups of

boiling water.

 

2. Chemical smells out of clothes: Soak clothes for two to three hours or

overnight, in one cup of baking soda. Agitate the machine occasionally. Repeat

if

necessary. Wash as usual. (This method is great for removing the new smell

out of clothes.)

 

3. Cat urine: Alternate sprinkling baking soda, which will neutralize acid

odors, with white distilled vinegar.

 

4. Dog odors and urine: Sprinkle with baking soda. Let set for a few hours

before sweeping up.

 

5. Silver polish: Make a paste of baking soda and water, scoop some onto a

clean, soft rag, and polish the silver. Rinse and polish dry.

 

6. Soft scrubber: Pour about 1/2 cup of baking soda into a bowl and add

enough liquid soap or detergent to make a texture like frosting. Scoop onto a

sponge and clean the bathtub or tiles. Rinse.

 

7. Scouring powder: Simply sprinkle baking soda into a sink and scrub.

 

8. Oven cleaner: Sprinkle baking soda onto the bottom of the oven. Squirt

with enough water that the baking soda is damp. Let set overnight, making sure

the baking soda is damp before you go to bed. In the morning, simply scoop the

baking soda and grime out with a sponge. Rinse.

 

9. Refrigerator deodorizer: Place an open box in the back of the fridge. It

will “adsorb†odors, which means that it will draw odors to the baking soda

molecules.

 

10. Cutting board deodorizer: Sprinkle the cutting board with baking soda,

scrub, rinse.

 

Five Smart, Easy Ways to Use Washing Soda in the Home – How-To

http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/1498

By Annie B. Bond, author of Better Basics for the Home (Three Rivers Press,

1999).

 

Washing soda has become my standby for hard cleaning jobs. I stumbled across

it because I needed to peel old wax off a floor.

 

 

Washing soda worked for this, as it did for cleaning up engine oil, and other

tough materials that people generally use solvents. Washing soda--sodium

carbonate--is in the same family as baking soda but it is much more

caustic/alkaline, with a pH of 11. It is available in the laundry section of the

supermarket. Here are five of my ways to make use of this very helpful mineral:

 

1. Soot Cleaner

Mix 2 tablespoons of washing soda to 2 cups of hot water. Wash sooty areas

with a sponge and the mixture. Let dry and then rinse.

 

2. Stove Burner Grime Cleaner

Fill a sink or pail with 1 cup of washing soda and enough hot water to cover

the pans. Soak the pans overnight.

 

3. Heavy Duty Cleaner

Make a thick paste of washing soda and water. Smear it on the problem area;

let dry and then rinse. Note that washing soda can peel wax off a floor, and is

often used as a paint stripper, so make sure the place being cleaned is

inert.

 

4. Paint Stripper

Follow directions for #3.

 

5. All-Purpose Cleaner

Combine 1 teaspoon of washing soda with 2 cups of hot water in a spray

bottle. Spray and wipe as you go, using as you would any commercial all-purpose

cleaner.