Have you ever tried cleaning with baking soda and vinegar? It looks cool when they fizz up but it turns out this mix is not as good for cleaning as many people think. For one, the two do not make the right combination for household cleaning. Apart from that, both of these ‘pantry’ ingredients lose their power when mixed.
Now, let’s go ahead and dive deep into the details:
Baking soda and vinegar react when exposed to each other. Baking soda is a base, and vinegar is an acid and when you mix them, they make a fizzing sound and create bubbles. This reaction makes something called carbon dioxide, which is a gas, and water and sodium acetate. But this mix is not very strong for cleaning things.
Jason / Unsplash / By mixing vinegar and baking soda for household cleaning, you are potentially wasting your time and ingredients.
What Happens When They Mix?
- They Cancel Each Other Out: Because one is a base and the other is an acid, they work against each other. This means they lose their cleaning power when mixed.
- Fizz Is Not Cleaning: The bubbles look fun. But they do not really help to clean stuff; they are just gas escaping.
Why Are They More Effective When Used Separately
- Baking Soda: Baking soda by itself is good for scrubbing because it is a little rough. It also helps get rid of bad smells.
- Vinegar: Vinegar is good for cutting through grease and yucky build-up because it is an acid.
The Environment and Cleaning
Using a mix of vinegar and baking soda is not bad for the environment – but it is not the best way to clean either. If we use things that do not work well, we might end up using more of them. So, it is not great for the planet or its resources.
Elle / If you are looking to make the most of these ingredients, use them for cleaning separately.
Sometimes, things we learn from the past, like using baking soda and vinegar together, might not be the best way to do things now. We have learned a lot about cleaning, and there are better ways.
However, if you like natural cleaners, you can still use safe stuff:
- Use Them Separately: Try using baking soda or vinegar alone. They work better that way.
- Other Natural Options: Things like lemon juice and salt can also be good for different types of cleaning.
What Do the Experts Say?
People who know a lot about cleaning say that mixing baking soda and vinegar is not the best idea. They suggest using other things that work better. After all, this combo is not effective for cleaning in the first place.
Ron / Pexels / Opposed to the widely believed idea, baking soda and vinegar are not effective for cleaning when mixed.
However, it is worth mentioning that using the baking soda and vinegar mix is not harmful. But it might waste your time since it is not effective. If you use things that work better, you can clean faster and easier.
It is good to think about how we clean and what we use. By knowing what works best, you can clean smarter and not harder. So, mixing baking soda and vinegar might be safe. But it is not the best for cleaning. Using them by themselves or trying other natural things can be a better choice.
