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It's been a while since I've talked about how amazing baking soda is. Today I have two of my kitchen favorite- in the dishwasher and cleaning veggies.
Those dual action tabs that you can buy are nice, but usually expensive. I got some powdered detergent through freecycle and on its own it wasn't that good. Dishes were spotty, sometimes with food stuck on. I decided to add a little baking soda to the pre-wash cup and the results have been amazing. Everything comes out super clean for just a few cents a load.
Cleaning fruits and vegetables has always been one of those things I hate to do. When I use soap it's hard to get all of it off but water doesn't usually seem like enough. Now, for things like apples, pears, zucchini, and cucumber I use a dash of wet baking soda. I wet the item, put a dash of baking soda in my hand and rub away. The gentle abrasiveness of baking soda strips away the dirt and wax, making me a happy girl.
Baking soda uses- drain cleaner and making baking powder.
Showing posts with label cleaning recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cleaning recipes. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Venturing Beyond Laundry- Follow-up
Earlier this week I posted about a clogged drain. Instead of opting for Drano I decided to give a homemade remedy a try. Here's the recipe I used followed by a more in depth review of my process.
Recipe:
1/4 cup baking soda, 1/2 cup vinegar, a lot of hot water, funnel
Use the funnel to pour 1/4 cup baking soda into the drain. Follow with 1/2 cup vinegar. After 20 minutes (or when all of the fizzing has stopped) flush with hot water.
My thoughts:
On Thursday I got the recipe to unclog a drain from many sources.* The general idea is baking soda, followed by vinegar, followed by hot water. The baking soda and vinegar do a fizzing thing, kinda like those volcano's from elementary school. The fizzing breaks down the gunk buildup from soaps, shampoos, ets. The hot water washes it down the drain.
Most of the recipe's called for a 1:1 ratio. On Friday night I poured in 1/2 cup of baking soda into the drain and realized an issue. The baking soda filled the drain hole completely, so the vinegar fizz action happened in the tub. While this was cool to look at it didn't seem to be doing much. I went to the gym, came home, flushed the drain and went to bed. Saturday morning Gameboy reported that the drain was better but not perfect.
I decided to try again this time using a hacked funnel** and only 1/4 cup baking soda. Before pouring the baking soda in I noticed some hair at the bottom of the drain that wasn't there before and yanked it out. This ranks as one of the top 10 grossest feelings ever. I funneled in the baking soda, followed by 1/2 cup vinegar and let it do its thing for a few minutes. I flushed the drain with hot water then jumped in the shower. Honestly, I can't remember the last time the drain worked that well.
All in all this is something I will keep using. I had to use it twice, but the first time I didn't use it in the best way for my particular drain. Also, slow drains and clogs at other apartments have sometimes used more than one bottle of Drano. This method definitely saved some money and is better for the environment too.
*I never just go with the first one I find. I like to build a bit of consensus when wandering to the beaten path.
**We don't have a funnel so I cut the top off of a water bottle in the recycle bin. It was the perfect size for this little experiment.
Recipe:
1/4 cup baking soda, 1/2 cup vinegar, a lot of hot water, funnel
Use the funnel to pour 1/4 cup baking soda into the drain. Follow with 1/2 cup vinegar. After 20 minutes (or when all of the fizzing has stopped) flush with hot water.
My thoughts:
On Thursday I got the recipe to unclog a drain from many sources.* The general idea is baking soda, followed by vinegar, followed by hot water. The baking soda and vinegar do a fizzing thing, kinda like those volcano's from elementary school. The fizzing breaks down the gunk buildup from soaps, shampoos, ets. The hot water washes it down the drain.
Most of the recipe's called for a 1:1 ratio. On Friday night I poured in 1/2 cup of baking soda into the drain and realized an issue. The baking soda filled the drain hole completely, so the vinegar fizz action happened in the tub. While this was cool to look at it didn't seem to be doing much. I went to the gym, came home, flushed the drain and went to bed. Saturday morning Gameboy reported that the drain was better but not perfect.
I decided to try again this time using a hacked funnel** and only 1/4 cup baking soda. Before pouring the baking soda in I noticed some hair at the bottom of the drain that wasn't there before and yanked it out. This ranks as one of the top 10 grossest feelings ever. I funneled in the baking soda, followed by 1/2 cup vinegar and let it do its thing for a few minutes. I flushed the drain with hot water then jumped in the shower. Honestly, I can't remember the last time the drain worked that well.
All in all this is something I will keep using. I had to use it twice, but the first time I didn't use it in the best way for my particular drain. Also, slow drains and clogs at other apartments have sometimes used more than one bottle of Drano. This method definitely saved some money and is better for the environment too.
*I never just go with the first one I find. I like to build a bit of consensus when wandering to the beaten path.
**We don't have a funnel so I cut the top off of a water bottle in the recycle bin. It was the perfect size for this little experiment.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Homemade Laundry Detergent- The Powdered Version
Recently I’ve seen a few posts on frugal/financial blogs about homemade laundry detergent. I think they’re great, but I run into a few problems with the liquid recipes. Most call of a 5 gallon bucket to store the detergent in. Issue is I don’t have the strength or space for something that big. Also, something about boiling the soap down on the stove and large quantities of hot water scares me. So here’s the powdered version for apartment dwellers who are short on space, anyone who uses a laundry mat, or just doesn’t want to deal with the other method.
I got my recipe from Modern Cottage early last year. So far I’ve made a single and double batch. I made the double batch in June and we’re still working on it.
-1 bar of soap: Fels Naptha is laundry soap that worked well for me. Other use Ivory^* or other bath soaps. The soap should come to about 2 cups.
-1 c Borax: I found it in my grocery store. You can also use 20 Mule Team Borax's** store locator.
-1 c Washing Soda. I also found this at the grocery store.
1. Grate the soap on a cheese grater. This isn’t fun but you’ll get through it. Some have recommended using a food processor but I broke the shredder attachment on mine when I tried this.
2. Mix the soap, washing soda, and borax together and you’re done.
Use 1T for small loads (or washers like mine) and 2T for regular loads. I store this in some extra Gladware and have a measuring spoon dedicated to laundry.
^Ivory tip- Grate it and let it sit for a few days to dry out the soap. Use your fingers to crush the soap to a finer consistency. This will help it dissolve better. Thanks Heather! Putting the soap in before the clothes also helps.
*I'll be using the Ivory that got me the $4 register reward I mentioned in the last post when I get around to making more in the next week or two.
**I’m not endorsing any particular brand. These are the ones I found when shopping. I’m a visual person so knowing what a box might look like helps.
I got my recipe from Modern Cottage early last year. So far I’ve made a single and double batch. I made the double batch in June and we’re still working on it.
-1 bar of soap: Fels Naptha is laundry soap that worked well for me. Other use Ivory^* or other bath soaps. The soap should come to about 2 cups.
-1 c Borax: I found it in my grocery store. You can also use 20 Mule Team Borax's** store locator.
-1 c Washing Soda. I also found this at the grocery store.
1. Grate the soap on a cheese grater. This isn’t fun but you’ll get through it. Some have recommended using a food processor but I broke the shredder attachment on mine when I tried this.
2. Mix the soap, washing soda, and borax together and you’re done.
Use 1T for small loads (or washers like mine) and 2T for regular loads. I store this in some extra Gladware and have a measuring spoon dedicated to laundry.
^Ivory tip- Grate it and let it sit for a few days to dry out the soap. Use your fingers to crush the soap to a finer consistency. This will help it dissolve better. Thanks Heather! Putting the soap in before the clothes also helps.
*I'll be using the Ivory that got me the $4 register reward I mentioned in the last post when I get around to making more in the next week or two.
**I’m not endorsing any particular brand. These are the ones I found when shopping. I’m a visual person so knowing what a box might look like helps.
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