Save Money on Products and Use Baking Soda to Clean Your Entire Home

It takes a lot of work to keep a home clean. Plus on top of the all of the time spent scrubbing and washing, it can cost a pretty penny, too.

In fact, a survey from The Nest showed that the average American family spends roughly $600 a year, or about $50 per month, buying cleaning supplies. But instead of grabbing expensive product after expensive product, it turns out there’s an easier and much more natural solution to all of those cleaning woes: Baking soda. Due to its neutral molecular makeup and slightly abrasive chemistry, it’s perfect for attracting dirt and grime while leaving surfaces flawless.

Just pick up a container the next time you’re at the grocery store and voilà! Here are 10 cleaning tasks you can get out of your way with baking soda the second you get home.

Clean virtually any surface.

Mold, mildew, and stains pop up around your home as time goes on. Luckily, tiles, porcelain, countertops, and more don’t stand a chance when it comes to baking soda. Simply cover the surfaces in baking soda, use a textured sponge or other brush scrub them down, and wipe it off with water afterward.

Freshen up mattresses.

Be honest, when was the last time you cleaned your mattress? This refresh couldn’t be simpler: Remove bedding and sheets from your mattress, then sprinkle baking soda on top of it. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes to an hour, then use a vacuum to clean up any excess.

De-clog that pesky sink drain.

Snaking the drain constantly can get pretty gross, so let this concoction do the job for you. Combine half a cup of baking soda with half a cup of vinegar and poor it down the drain. Pro tip: Cover the sink drain with a damp cloth in case the reaction starts to act up. Wait five to 10 minutes and then rinse the pipes with hot water.

Give laundry a boost.

Ever notice that clothing begins to look a little bit drab after a while? Add between half a cup to a cup of baking soda to your detergent and watch your clothes come out of the wash looking like new.

Scrub down your furniture.

Make your home feel a little shinier by giving your furniture a wipe-down. Use baking soda on a wet cloth or sponge and begin to scrub until your furniture looks a little brighter.

Polish your silver until it sparkles.

You don’t need specialty supplies to clean your silver. Create a paste by mixing baking soda and water, then just rub it on your silver, rinse, and let it dry. See how this hack works in our guide for how to clean a toaster that will leave it sparkling like new!

Clean those hardly-touched places in your oven.

Deep-cleaning the back of your oven seems like a lot of work, but it couldn’t be easier. Coat the bottom of your oven in a light layer of baking soda and then spray it with water. Let it sit for at least a couple of hours before wiping it away and then rinsing everything down to make sure it’s clean.

Brighten your floors.

Skip the fancy floor cleaning products and try this instead. Mix half a cup of baking soda in warm water. Mop your floors as you usually would and then rinse them. Presto!

Patch small holes in your walls.

Want to fill in a tiny hole but don’t want to go through the whole process of plastering it for the time being? Just mix white toothpaste and baking soda together. Spackle it on, then allow it to dry. While the mixture won’t last forever (and certainly isn’t enough to hold up large sections of the wall), it’ll at least buy you some time to patch up the hole for good.

Deodorize everything you can think of.

When it comes to deodorizing everything in your home, nothing works as well as baking soda. You name it, it gets the job done: toilets, cutting boards, rugs, carpets, fridges, garbage cans, shoes, pet beds, the list goes on and on. Sprinkling a little on the surface and then scrubbing in away after at least 10 minutes (or longer!) really does the trick.

Honestly, is there anything that baking soda can’t do when it comes to cleaning your home?