Baking Soda is My Friend

As a child, I loved to clean the bathroom. I’d grab the can of Scrubbing Bubbles (after I was assured that it didn’t contain any CFCs) and went to town. I would trade chores with my sisters so that I could clean the bathroom. To me, cleaning a bathroom is fairly straight forward, and orderly…just the right core for me.

Well, now that I am older and wiser, and no longer use Scrubbing Bubbles or any chemical in my bathroom, my joy of cleaning the bathroom has waned a bit. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy it more than say the kitchen, but for a while, it just wasn’t the quick and easy project I was hoping it to be.

So there I was, cleaning the bathroom one day, struggling to get the hard water stains and soap scum off the all-in-one tub/shower with vinegar and water, when for some reason I got to thinking about Comet (you know, the powdery stuff in the green can). I’d never used the stuff before, but I had seen the commercials as a child and got to thinking about baking soda. So I said to myself, “I wonder if baking soda will work like Comet does?” Again, I’m not sure exactly what Comet is made of, or how well it works (I could look it up online if I really wanted to), but the fact that it popped into my head some twenty years after seeing a commercial really does say something about advertising…or my memory, not sure which one.

I sprinkled some baking soda on the side of the tub, and started scrubbing a bit with a wet rag. Guess what? With little to no elbow grease, the hard water stains and soap scum were seemingly melting away. I was so excited. I had found my new best cleaning buddy.

Now, looking back at my Green Housekeeping book, it talks about using baking soda for a plethora of things…controlling odor, draining cleaner, fire safety, stain removal, etc. It does mention the use of baking soda as a nonabrasive cleanser in the kitchen section, but for some reason my “memory” must be lacking in some areas because I completely forgot about it. I guess I should maybe reread this wonderful book and see what other useful information I can “re”glean from its pages.

So give it a try. I can get a large, 4 lb. box of baking soda at the Commissary for next to nothing (they used to carry the 12 lb. bag, but I can’t seem to find it anymore). Sprinkle a bit in the sink or in the tub and just give it a little rub with a wet rag. Let me know your thoughts. I’m a big fan. Can’t believe it took me so long to “re”discover this tried and true cleaning method.

On a side note - I also found a book the I’m going to check out from the library, Baking Soda : Over 500 Fabulous, Fun, and Frugal Uses You've Probably Never Thought Of by Vicki Lansky. I’ll let you know if I come up with any other useful tricks for baking soda.