10 Uses for Baking Soda

In the last few months, I’ve been working towards removing the use of harsh chemicals in my home in order to find more safe solutions. While it’s a slow journey finding solutions that are affordable and effective, I do have one top-secret ingredient: Baking soda. Baking soda pretty much cleans and deodorizes everything. Here are some of the ways that I use it:

1. Remove coffee stains – rub a water and baking soda paste on the inside of your white coffee cups to remove the brown stains!
2. Remove clothing stains – pre-treat your clothing stains with a paste of baking soda and water prior to wash. Doesn’t work on all stains, but doesn’t hurt either…
3. Deodorize litter box – If you have kitties, sprinkle some baking soda on the bottom of the box before you add the litter. You can also add a bit of baking soda to the litter if it starts to smell between changes. Be sure to mix it in!
4. Deodorize garbage disposal – sprinkle some baking soda down your sink or garbage disposal and run hot water to get rid of smells.
5. Deodorize fridge – place an open box of baking soda in your fridge to get rid of smells. Switch it out every few months for best results.
6. Clean/Deodorize toilet  – use baking soda to deodorize and clean your toilet.
7. Clean kitchen sink – I use baking soda and vinegar to help whiten porcelain sinks and get rid of stuck-on food. It cleans and deodorizes at the same time, so it’s a win-win
8. Clean stovetop and oven – sprinkle baking soda on your stovetop or oven and spritz with water. Let sit for a while, then scrub and rinse. For really burnt-on stovetops, use vinegar for a bit of added oomph!
9. Clean burnt-on pans – I’m sure you never burn anything, but if you did, soak the pan with baking soda and water for a few hours for easier cleaning! I don’t like to use this on my teflon/nonstick pans, but it works wonders on steel pots and pans.
10. Baking! – Duh! Baking soda is in a handful of my family recipes including baking soda biscuits; a family favorite at my house!

Of course, those are only a handful of uses. I know a lot of people who swear by using baking soda for various personal care problems like toothpaste, facial scrubs, homemade deodorant, as an antacid, to stop itching from bites, etc. I haven’t tried these, personally, but it really only furthers my belief in this awesome powder!

How do you use baking soda? Share your thoughts with me in the comments!