# I use baking soda to clean just about everything.



## Superpack (Nov 5, 2009)

I use baking soda to clean just about everything. It's incredibly effective if you add a bit of water, creating a paste. I'm somewhat ashamed to admit how much satisfaction I can derive from scrubbing something clean. Sometimes I think, if I can't clean it with baking soda and water it just doesn't deserve to be cleaned! What you say about it?

Best Regards,


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Nov 5, 2009)

Superpack:

Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, which is a mild alkali.
Sodium bicarbonate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There are lots of things that can be cleaned using a paste made of baking soda and water.  But, the cleaning industry is a huge business, and I find it's best to use products specifically designed to remove the kind of soil I'm trying to remove.  But, that's just me.


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## frozenstar (Jan 15, 2010)

Nestor_Kelebay said:


> There are lots of things that can be cleaned using a paste made of baking soda and water.  But, the cleaning industry is a huge business, and I find it's best to use products specifically designed to remove the kind of soil I'm trying to remove.  But, that's just me.



Totally agree with you on this Nestor. I also think that it is much better to use certain products designed to clean certain things. Yes, baking soda works, but I don't want to rely much on it.


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## FLGarageDoors (Apr 18, 2010)

Try this: make a paste of baking soda and white vinegar. Works wonders on pans and grease stains on the range.


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## StorageShedSmart (Apr 19, 2010)

I've had amazing success with a paste that I make using baking soda and dishsoap. For the dishsoap I use Dawn plus PowerScrubbers, because it's incredibly effective at cutting grease. I do use other cleaning products, but this homemade paste is definitely one of my favorites.


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## frozenstar (Apr 22, 2010)

FLGarageDoors said:


> Try this: make a paste of baking soda and white vinegar. Works wonders on pans and grease stains on the range.



I didn't know that...  will check it out... thanks!


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## Cork-Guy (Apr 22, 2010)

Works great with vinegar to clear clogged drains; doesn't get much more eco-friendly then that!


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## FLGarageDoors (Apr 23, 2010)

FLGarageDoors said:


> Try this: make a paste of baking soda and white vinegar. Works wonders on pans and grease stains on the range.




Oops, I forgot to say that the paste works best with aluminum foil. Use the shiny side of the foil to for scrubbing.


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## TxBuilder (Apr 23, 2010)

Cork-Guy said:


> Works great with vinegar to clear clogged drains; doesn't get much more eco-friendly then that!



I'm trying it when I get home. My wife loaded up the garbage dispose-all a few nights ago and now there's a smell, and it's draining slower than normal.


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## Cork-Guy (Apr 23, 2010)

TxBuilder said:


> I'm trying it when I get home. My wife loaded up the garbage dispose-all a few nights ago and now there's a smell, and it's draining slower than normal.



Works great; make sure to block the top of the drain after the mix... first 1 cup baking soda, then 1 cup vinegar; make sure to get all the soda "inside" the drain. Then right after you pour in the vinegar use a plunger to "close" off the top and make the chemical reaction go down. After a few minutes get it a few plunges and rinse with hot water.

BEWARE: If you do this in a condo or apartment setting it's SO effective it will clog your neighbors drains.... happen when we did it at my step dads condo. We did this to his kitchen sink and all the 1st floor condo's got clogged!


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Apr 24, 2010)

Cork-Guy:

If mixing baking soda and vinegar in a drain pipe clears the clogged drain, then I expect it's all the CO2 gas produced that does the trick.

My sister swears by a product sold here in Canada called One Second Plumber.  Basically, all it is is a can of compressed air.







You simply place the can upside down over the drain with the yellow foam rubber cone forming a seal, and push down.  The can blasts compressed air into the drain pipe and clears the clog right away.

I'm thinking that if the relatively slow rate at which mixing vinegar and baking soda produces CO2 gas is effective in clearing clogged drains, you might want to look for One Second Plumber for sale in your area and give it a try.


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## White111 (Jul 11, 2010)

I use a product for cleaning, it generates Ozone and Circulates the O3 through garments eliminating odors, neutralizing germs and bacteria, which cause bad odors. The name is called freshcloz, you can google it, now you can get the 30 days free trial.


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## ChrisVanities (Jul 19, 2010)

Baking soda is a real winner! My wife believes in using baking soda to get rid of smells as well. When you want to get rid of smells in plastic containers, you can also use baking soda for that. Let the baking soda stand overnight in the closed container and by tomorrow the smell will be gone!


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Jul 21, 2010)

Hi GarageGuy:

I went to your website, and I thought it was very well put together and well written.  You might want to add an "s" onto the end of "care" on the page you're link leads to because it needs one.



> Welcome to payless - carpet cleaning
> A company that really care!



New York carpet cleaning, area rugs drapes &upholstery cleaning in NYC, NJ CT New Jersey Connecticut

As a landlord, I spend more time cleaning up after former tenants than anything else, and so I've found that the English language is lacking in a lot of words we need, but don't have.  For example, in this photo, is there a word for the apparant change in colour exibited by the carpet because of the way the pile is leaning?






I fully understand what causes that change in colour, and I find that I often have to explain it to tenants (and the provincial government department that handles landlord / tenant disputes here in Manitoba), but I've never been able to find a word for it.  What word do carpet cleaning contractors use for this?

Also, I'm curious about this section of your web site:



> How Do We Clean?
> Steam-cleaning is the tried and true way to remove even the toughest stains. By using hot water extraction machines, Pay Less Carpet Cleaners uses the most effective method in the carpet cleaning industry in a three-step process.
> 
> First, we pre-treat all spots and stains. This preliminary treatment helps us determine the source of the stain, enabling us to choose the best stain-lifter for your situation.
> ...



I have a TMI carpet extractor with two three stage vaccuum motors to extraction clean the carpets in my apartments.  I wanted powerful suction so that I could remove as much moisture from my carpets as possible.  That's because every cup of water left behind in my carpets after cleaning them in winter is another cup of water that's going to show up as condensation on my windows.

What does this "powerful vaccuum system" that removes the remaining moisture in the carpet consist of?  I find that my carpets can sometimes take days to dry even in the summer despite the power vaccuum motors in my extractor, and that's simply because of high outdoor humidity.  I'm curious as to what else I could do to lower the moisture content of my carpets after cleaning.

And, I seem to be tripping over the explanation given in the final paragraph.  How does using a more powerful vaccuum "act as a second wash, by having your carpet undergo the process in reverse."

Clearly, the more soiled water you remove from the carpet, the cleaner the carpet will be when dry, but I fail to see how that can be construed as a second extraction cleaning, and especially how that can be construed as a second extraction cleaning being done in reverse?  I feel I have a "powerful vaccuum system" available to me in the form of the vaccuum motors in my carpet extractor, and am wondering how you're system differs from mine, and what equipment you subsequently use to remove all the remaining water from the carpet, and how that equipment is able to extraction clean the carpet "in reverse"?

Thanks for any help you can be to me in these matters.


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## oldognewtrick (Jul 21, 2010)

Nestor, couldn't you just put a dehumidifier in the room you cleaned the carpet in? Don't ya'll have AC?


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Jul 21, 2010)

Oldog/Newtrick:

I do have dehumidifiers in my upper floor apartments, and I use them exactly as you say.

However, that web site by Pay Less Carpet Cleaners was suggesting they used a "powerful vaccuum system" to remove the residual moisture from the carpet AFTER using their extractors to clean the carpet.

If they're using professional carpet cleaning equipment, then that equipment is going to have sufficient suction to get most of the water out of the carpet so that there would be negligible benefit of going over the carpet with an even more powerful extractor.

That's because MOST of the water comes out of the carpet easily, and you need progressively more and more suction to get progressively less and less additional water out of the carpet.  So, if they're using good quality equipment to extraction clean the carpet to begin with, the amount of additional water that could be removed from the carpet with even more powerful vaccuum motors would be small.  It might get the inside of the suction hose wet, but there wouldn't actually be any visible water in the machine's recovery tank.

I have a TMI carpet extractor with two three stage vaccuum motors piped in parallel.  It's typical of what professional carpet cleaning contractors use here in Winnipeg.  This is why I am curious as to the claim that AFTER using their equipment to extraction clean the carpet, they then have another piece of equipment that can remove even more residual water from the carpet.  To my way of thinking, the only way that could happen is for them to be using something less than professional quality equipment when they're extraction cleaning the carpet the first time, and then using a better quality extractor to make a second pass to remove all the water left behind by the first machine.  That's the only way the second machine is going to end up with any water in it's recovery tank.

A smarter method would be to use a better machine in the first place.

And, of course,  I wanted to find out what, if anything, was meant by:

"Finally, our well-trained technicians will use our powerful vacuuming system to suck all the remaining moisture out of your carpet. This also acts as a second wash, by having your carpet undergo the process in reverse."

(To me, that's merely ear candy intended to sound good to potential customers.  But it simply doesn't make any sense.  What, if anything is being done in reverse here?  The first machine sucks some of the water out of the carpet.  The second machine sucks a little more water out of the carpet.  What is being done in reverse?  Nothing that I can see.)


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## DIYHomeDesign (May 9, 2011)

I completely agree. I use it for the bathtub, toilets, sinks, stove top, and I've used it as laundry detergent in a pinch too (with vinegar added to the rinse to balance the ph). It's amazing, cheap, and not bad for the environment.


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## RangerRick (May 10, 2011)

My wife just started using baking soda (and vinegar) for cleaning. She is trying to avoid the harsher chemicals when she can. It's amazed both of us how well it neutralizes smells. She even sprinkles it on the carpet before she vacuums.


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## mrrobinson (Aug 26, 2011)

i use baking soda with water for a lot of cleaning too! it's cheap and easy! i even use the baking soda toothpaste :-]


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## kzhen8 (Sep 1, 2011)

Thanks for the tips guys, didn't know baking soda and white vinegar does wonders! Have to try it the next time I'm cleaning.


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## samill123 (Oct 8, 2011)

Here`s what I do to after cleaning my floor, I Just take normal water add salt and dettol or any hygenic liquid. Believe me salt cleans the floor and germs get destroyed


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## jennifer20 (Oct 12, 2011)

Today's many cleaner products available in market. these products are very useful for cleaning everything. baking soda may be harmful for cleaning everything. you can try cleaner products for cleaning anything. but use only without acids product.


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## rivas1957 (Nov 10, 2011)

If you can find the product Cameo it is a good cleaner and it works good on stains. Just thought I would past the tip along.


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## xiamer (Dec 14, 2011)

Nestor_Kelebay said:


> Cork-Guy:
> 
> If mixing baking soda and vinegar in a drain pipe clears the clogged drain, then I expect it's all the CO2 gas produced that does the trick.
> 
> ...













really???
good to hear that maybe i suggest that with my friends their in Vancouver!!!


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## markleena (Dec 27, 2011)

I didn't know that..will check it out... thanks for sharing!


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## SnellExperts (Dec 27, 2011)

I never even thought about using baking soda for cleaning for some reason. I have always just used it for odors and stuff....so glad that I came across this thread


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## Cynthia123 (Feb 22, 2012)

Wow, seems awesome!
I've never used baking soda.
I'll have a try tomorrow, lol


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## Hailey_Stowers (Mar 27, 2012)

FLGarageDoors said:


> Try this: make a paste of baking soda and white vinegar. Works wonders on pans and grease stains on the range.



That's how i clean out my garbage disposal when it starts to stink...and also my coffee pot and dishwasher!:banana:


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## sgeco (Mar 29, 2012)

there's always a baking soda in our house because my sister likes to bake. But we don't just use it for baking, it does a lot of wonder especially during emergency cleaning. We use it to remove odors in our kitchen garbage, food container odor, clean silvers, remove floor marks, remove sink stains, whitens bathroom and also inside remove refrigerator odor.


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