Baking Soda - It's not just for Baking
A few weeks ago I introduced you to my journey toward more natural living. I have really high ambitions, but am completely satisfied with taking baby steps toward a more earth, family, health friendly lifestyle. So today I thought I would pick a product and tell you the many things I use it for. So I started with my favorite. Baking Soda. This blog will be a multi part blog because I use baking soda for many things, but today I am sharing my house hold uses for it, I will post the health uses another day - when the "Green blogging" mood hits me. Where was I? Oh yes, home uses for baking soda. I will list - it's easier to follow.
- Place a teaspoon in a vase to make cut flowers last longer.
- Spread some on the windshield of your car to repel rain.
- After feeding your baby, wipe his shirt with a moist cloth sprinkled with baking soda to remove the odor.
- Soak dishrags in baking soda and water to remove the smell.
- Sprinkle along window seals and in basements to repel cockroaches and ants.
- Scatter it along your flower beds and gardens to keep rabbits from eating your flowers and vegetables.
- Sprinkle anywhere you want to absorb odor - shoes, slippers, garbage cans, diaper pails, litter boxes... you get the picture.
- Wash your fruits and vegetables with it.
- Soak 1 cup in your toilet for an hour before flushing, it will clean and deodorize your toilet bowl.
- Use it to scrub sinks, porcelain and plastic tubs.
- Sprinkle on couches, carpets, or any upholstry and let it sit an hour or overnight before vacuuming for a home made dry cleaning option.
- Combine with water to make a paste to polish stainless steel... I learned this from my many many many restaurant days.
- Scatter it on your garage floor, scrub, then rinse to cut the grease and oil spills in your garage.
- 1/4 cup white vinegar and 2 tbsp. baking soda and 1/4 gallon of hot water make a great all purpose cleaner for the home. A few drops of essential oil - I like lemon or orange to give that clean smell in your home.
- Flush 4 tbsp with hot water down your drains weekly to clean your drains.
- Make a thick paste of baking soda and water to scrub your enameled cast iron pots and stainless steel pots and pans clean.
- Make a paste to and rub into clothes to remove grease spots.
- Run your coffee maker with a baking soda solution to clean then rinse.
- Combine 3/4 cup with 1/4 cup salt and 1/4 cup water to clean your oven.
