Adventures in Baking Soda

As I've discussed before, I've been trying to move into the realm of nontoxic cleaners.  A few weeks ago I discussed my amazement with vinegar.  Today I have discovered the joy of baking soda.

Yes, baking soda!  Not just for baking anymore!  Actually, I've always known it could be used to soothe an upset tummy, brush your teeth, and put out a grease fire.  So when I picked up my white vinegar in bulk, I bought a giant bag of baking soda as well.  It has gone unopened all these weeks, sitting in my laundry room staring at me accusingly, a glaring reminder of all the items I've wasted money on when I get my mind set on starting some kind of new crazy project that I then quit a couple of weeks later.

Well.  Two days ago I put a load of clothes in the washer.  Then I forgot about it.  Until this morning.  Sadly, this has happened before.  You know how it goes.  You open the washer and say, "please don't stink, please don't stink."  And it stinks.  Then you look at the dryer and think to yourself, "well maybe if I put an extra dryer sheet in..."  but you know from experience that doesn't help.  So you're left with running that load AGAIN, wasting money on the energy and water you're using, not to mention all the extra soap you have to use to get that stench out.  We've been known to have to wash the load three more times AND use extra dryer sheets in order to make amends for my absent mind.

So this morning I am going through all those thoughts when I happen to look down, and a light was hitting that giant bag of baking soda straight from Heaven.  Angels were singing.  It was a Moment....  OK, maybe not.  But at least I saw the baking soda and thought, "what can it hurt?"  As the water was running to refill the washer, I dumped in about half a cup of baking soda.  Guess what, folks...  it actually worked!  It only took one run-through and my clothes smelled fresh and clean!  This time I'm pretty sure angels really DID shine down from Heaven.  I am DEFINITELY a baking soda convert.

Other uses for baking soda include using it as a scouring cleaner (like the powdered Comet, except it's not going to chemically burn the skin off your hands when you decide to scrub the sink with no gloves); an odor eater (you can put it in the garbage, the fridge, the diaper pail. I like to put some in a little cup or saucer or something and put THAT in the fridge rather than an entire box-- doesn't that seem a little excessive? Why waste the whole box?); cleaning your drains (I read two different ideas for this- in one you just dump the soda down the drain while running warm water.  In the other you make a solution of 1/2 soda, 1/2 white vinegar and dump it down the drain, let that sit for a few minutes, then pour a kettle of boiling water down the drain.  Personally I'll be trying the second, it just sounds more credible.); AND you can make some mean biscuits too!

For more ideas, check out the Arm & Hammer website or The New Homemaker.