Simple Solutions Around the Home with Baking Soda
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I’m participating in The Switch & Save Challenge, trying a variety of Arm & Hammer products and sharing my experiences with you!
Most everyone has that yellow box of baking soda in their pantry for baking and some may even toss one in the fridge to keep nasty odors at bay. But did you know that baking soda has a plethora of other uses? This is some amazing stuff!!
Table of Contents
Why use Baking Soda?
Baking soda is a non-toxic, naturally occurring, substance that is made from sodium bicarbonate. Because it’s a naturally found substance, it will not harm you, your family or the environment. Not only is baking soda good for cooking and cleaning but it is also one of the most inexpensive substances that you can buy to use in your home!
Common Uses for Baking Soda:
- Safe way to scour and clean entire kitchen
- Use in laundry – cleaner, fresher clothes
- Use to Brush teeth and wash hair
- Sooth stings, bug bites and sun burns
- Used in baking and cooking
- Freshen your fridge
- Freshen carpets
UnCommon Uses for Baking Soda:
- Use to make deodorant
- Balance the PH in your swimming pool
- Clean BBQ grill
- Use to strip wallpaper
- Removes Rust
- Use to extinguish fires
- Clean stains from plastic
- Use to clean drains
(click the picture to download the ARM & HAMMER® Handy Solutions Guide)
A few of my personal favorite ways to use Baking Soda:
Clean combs and brushes
Clean combs and brushesKeep your combs and brushes free of natural oil build-up and hair product residue by soaking combs and brushes in a solution of 1 teaspoon of ARM & HAMMER® Baking Soda in a small basin of warm water. Rinse and allow to dry.
Bring Sour Sponges back to life
Bring Sour Sponges back to lifeSoak stale-smelling sponges in a strong ARM & HAMMER® Baking Soda solution to get rid of the mess and bring in the fresh (4 tablespoons of ARM & HAMMER® Baking Soda dissolved in 1 quart of warm water).
What are your favorite uses of baking soda?
The awesome people at Arm & Hammer are providing one lucky TidyMom reader a $25 Visa Card so you can stock your house with Arm & Hammer products!
THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED – Congrats to the winner #37 Nicole Lynn
Required entry:
Leave a comment telling me a new use for baking soda you have recently learned for a chance to win a $25 Visa gift card from Arm & Hammer.
Additional entries: (leave a separate comment for each)
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Giveaway will end on Aug 12, 2011 at 5 pm CST. One winner with a valid entry will be selected at random using random.org. I will email the winner and they will have 48 hours to claim their prize or another winner will be selected. Contest open to US residents only.
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Church & Dwight Co., Inc, the maker of ARM & HAMMER branded products, who is compensating me to try different products. Save 50¢ off two 2lb or 4lb boxes of ARM & HAMMER® Baking Soda. And be sure to visit The Switch & Save Challenge to tap into more resources and enter to win $25,000.
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Hi there, I'm Cheryl!
As a wife, mom, and caffeine enthusiast, my journey has taken me from bustling mornings with my family to sharing delicious recipes, home care tips, and heartfelt decorating insights with wonderful readers like you. My love for baking, photography, and tidiness shines through every post I craft. Dive into my world and discover the art of homemaking, one tidy moment at a time. Read more...
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I never knew that you could use it on bug bites! I will have to try that soon!
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Now that I am pregnant, I wanted to clean the house but abandon the harsh chemical cleaners. I love the fresh smell of Mrs. Meyers all purpose natural cleaner, but needed a little grit to really scrub the tub. Now I spray it down with mrs Meyers, sprinkle some baking soda and with only a little scrubbing, it’s done in about a minute 🙂
Ooh, bug bites! That’s a good one! I love it for scrubbing my cast-iron grill pan.
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Baking soda is perfect for the pet owner… from giving a dry bath by sprinkling with baking soda…. just rub it in, then brush out the baking soda…. to deodorizing bedding by sprinklingthe bedding with baking soda, letting the baking soda stand for 15 minutes, and vacuuming it up.
I doubt my house would smell as nice without baking soda… nor my 2 dachshunds!! hahaha
I make a baking soda and water paste then apply it to annoying mosquito bites that won’t stop itching.
Strip wallpaper? Who knew?!?
My favorite is for washing my hair!
Wow I never knew about the bug bits!! I will have to try that.
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I follow u on facebook also!!
Baking soda is a great cleaner for oxidized silver (I mean real silver metal dishes). Boil in a large pot of water to which torn aluminum foil is added. Add baking soda. Watch the black marks disappear and dishes look like polished and new.
I didn’t know I could clean my combs and brushes with baking soda. Thanks!
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Run the coffee maker with a baking soda solution, then rinse to clean.
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i use it in my diaper bag, tucked in a small spice shaker blocked with cheese cloth…it eliminates those odours when your out and spills occur…
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I learned you can use baking soda as an antacid to relieve heartburn and indigestion.
My Favorite is cleaning whether it’s the sink or the grill or the bathroom. Baking Soda is amazing!! Oh an on my copper bottom pans *godsend*. Amazing is my lil box or big bag of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda!!
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I’ve just recently started washing my hair with baking soda followed by a vinegar rinse & I love it! Now I don’t have to wash my hair every single day!
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It is the only thing I wash my hair with now!
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I sprinkle some into my garbage disposal and then run really hot water through it.
Bakingsoda is the best bee sting soother I’ve ever found. I also use it to deodorize everything from cat boxes and garbage compactors to diaper pails and car carpets. I used to put baking soda and borax in the wash with my babies’ cloth diapers to get them nice and clean!
I use baking soda to clean my glass stove top. It cleans all dried splatters etc without scratching.
I have used it to brush my teeth with it. [as well as with toothpaste afterwards] Suppose to make them whiter. Grandma always made me do it when I was a little girl when I stayed with them.
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I use baking soda on my carpets to remove pet odors! =)
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I had no idea that Baking Soda could remove rust!!!
My favorite is to use it to clean pots I’ve scorched. I just simmer a bit of baking soda and water in the burned pot, let it sit and it usually takes the burned right off!
Just learned I can clean my hair brushes! Good to know!!!
So excited to try it on our bug bites! Thanks for the tips!
Sprinkle on tile grout, add a touch of water, scrub with toothbrush = clean grout
I use it to get the tea stains out of my tea pots and pitchers.
Also great on soap scum.
I use it to clean the battery or my car. And my son loves using it to make volcanoes in the kitchen (by mixing it with vinegar.)
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Rubbed it into my husbands hair that was stuck together with Pine Sap, let sit and combed thru…
I follow you on Facebook! One of the staples in my pantry is Baking Soda its great for cleaning soap skum in showers & sinks to tenderizing meat even fluffing up omelets which is why I have a list of about 100 uses for Baking Soda (See below) Health Uses
1. Use it as an antacid.
2. Use it as underarm deodorant by applying it with a powder puff.
3. Mix half a teaspoon with peroxide paste and use it as toothpaste.
4. Use it as a face and body scrub.
5. Add a cup to bathwater to soften your skin.
6. Relieve skin itch from insect bites and pain from sunburn.
7. Remove strong odors from your hands by rubbing them with baking soda and water.
8. Put two tablespoons in your baby’s bathwater to help relieve diaper rash.
9. Apply it on rashes, insect bites, and poison ivy irritations.
10. Take a baking soda bath to relieve skin irritations.
11. Heartburn? Take a teaspoon of baking soda mixed with one-half glass of water.
12. Freshen your mouth by gargling half a teaspoon of baking soda mixed water.
13. Relieve canker sore pain by using it as mouthwash.
14. Use it to relieve bee stings.
15. Use it to relieve windburns.
16. Apply it on jellyfish sting to draw out the venom.
17. Unblock stuffy nose by adding a teaspoon of baking soda to your vaporizer.
In the Home
18. Keep cut flowers fresh longer by adding a teaspoon to the water in the vase.
19. Put out small fires on rugs, upholstery, clothing, and wood.
20. Put an open container of baking soda in the fridge to absorb the odors.
21. Sprinkle it on your ashtrays to reduce bad odor and prevent smoldering.
22. Sprinkle it on your slippers, boots, shoes, and socks to eliminate foul odor.
23. Turn baking soda into modeling clay by combining it with one and 1/4 cups of water and one cup of cornstarch.
24. After feeding your baby, wipe his shirt with a moist cloth sprinkled with baking soda to remove the odor.
25. Wipe your windshield with it to repel rain.
26. Improve the smell of dishrags by soaking them in baking soda and water.
27. Suck it in with your vacuum cleaner to remove the odor.
28. Freshen the air by mixing baking soda with your favorite perfumed bath salts. Put the mixture in small sachet bags.
29. Restore stiff brushes by boiling them in a solution of 1/2 gallon of water, 1/4 cup of vinegar, and a cup of baking soda.
30. Put it under sinks and along basement windows to repel cockroaches and ants.
31. Scatter baking soda around flowerbeds to prevent rabbits from eating your veggies.
32. Sweeten your tomatoes by sprinkling baking soda on the soil around your tomato plants.
33. Sprinkle it onto your cat’s litter box to absorb the bad odor.
34. Sprinkle it on your pet’s comb or brush to deodorize their fur and skin.
In Cooking
35. Use it as a substitute for baking powder by mixing with it with cream of tartar or vinegar.
36. Wash fruits and vegetables with it.
37. When boiling a chicken, add a teaspoon of baking soda to the water. Feathers will come off easier, and the flesh will be clean and white.
38. Soak dried beans to a baking soda solution to make them more digestible.
39. Remove the distinctive taste of wild game by soaking it in a baking soda solution.
40. Make a sports drink by mixing it with boiled water, salt, and Kool-Aid.
41. Remove the fishy smell from your fillets by soaking the raw fish in a baking soda solution for an hour inside the fridge.
42. Make fluffier omelets by adding half a teaspoon of baking soda for every three eggs used.
43. Reduce the acid content of your tomato-based recipes by sprinkling them with a pinch of baking soda.
Cleaning Purposes
44. Add a cup to the toilet, leave it for an hour, and then flush. It will clean the toilet and absorb the odor.
45. Use it to scrub sinks, showers, plastic and porcelain tubs
46. Spray it on walls, mirrors, and countertops.
47. Add a spoonful to your dishwasher to make scrubbing dishes easier.
48. Remove grease from pots and pans.
49. Dry clean carpets and upholstered furniture by sprinkling baking soda over the fabric and gently brushing it. Leave it for an hour or overnight, then vacuum.
50. Boost your laundry detergent’s cleaning power by sprinkling a handful on dirty clothes.
51. Combine it with water to make a paste for polishing stainless steel and chrome.
52. Remove scratches and crayon marks from vinyl floors and walls.
53. Clean your shoes with it.
54. Clean garbage cans with it.
55. Use it to wash diapers.
56. Clean the fridge with it.
57. Soak brushes and combs in a baking soda solution.
58. Mix it with water to wash food and drink containers.
59. Put three tablespoons of baking soda to a quart of warm water, then use the mixture to wash marble-topped furniture.
60. Absorb it with a damp sponge, then clean Formica countertops with the sponge.
61. Use it to get rid of stale odors from cooling containers and thermos bottles.
62. Run your coffee maker with a baking soda solution, then rinse.
63. Combine with hot water to clean baby bottles.
64. Sprinkle it on barbecue grills, then rinse it off.
65. Scatter it on your greasy garage floor, scrub the floor, and rinse.
66. Remove burned-on food from a pan by soaking it in a baking soda solution for 10 minutes before washing.
67. Clean your ashtrays with a baking soda solution.
68. Keep your drains clean by putting four tablespoons of baking soda in them each week. Flush it down with hot water.
69. Clean your shower curtains by soaking them in baking soda and water.
70. Put it on a small brush to rub canvas handbags clean.
71. Use it to remove melted plastic bread wrapper from a toaster. Sprinkle baking soda on a damp rag, then use the rag to clean the toaster.
72. Use it to clean your retainers and dentures.
73. Make a thick paste of baking soda and water, and used it to scrub enameled cast iron and stainless steel.
74. Mix four tablespoons of baking soda with a quart of warm water, and use it to clean the inside part of an oven.
75. Use it to unclog gas stoves.