The answer is baking soda! A pinch of baking soda is great for baking cookies, but that’s just the beginning.

Baking soda makes kitchen sinks sparkle!

Baking soda is an amazingly effective mild abrasive to clean a kitchen sink. Use a damp sponge to distribute water all around the inside of the sink. Don’t make it too wet. Then sprinkle some baking soda. Start with about a tablespoon of baking soda. Then use the sponge, or a non-scratching pad, to rub the moistened baking soda all over the sink.

Be sure to include the edges of the sink by the countertop. When you feel that you’ve thoroughly scrubbed everywhere, give a bit of extra attention to the drain, as it tends to be the most dirty zone. A grout brush is a handy tool to use here and around the faucet too.

Then rinse generously with water. It’s best to rinse a few times, as any baking soda that hasn’t been rinsed off will be visible as a white haze when dry. For a professional look, after it’s throughly rinsed, use an absorbent cloth to polish the faucet and then to dry the whole sink. At this point, your kitchen sink will look like its brand new and be sparklingly clean. Voila!

The exact same procedure works in a multitude of zones in the house. It is an amazing cleanser for spot cleaning marks on tile floors as well.

For spotless bathrooms start with baking soda

Baking soda is the best thing to clean your bathroom sink, toilet and tub. Spritz some vinegar from a spray bottle onto your shower surround (it works whether the surround is glass, or tile) and sprinkle some baking soda onto it, then scrub, rinse and dry. Once you’ve tried it, you’ll see how easy it is to get spotless results and I’m sure you’ll never buy poisonous tub, toilet, or tile cleansers ever again. They are completely unnecessary.

It also works great to make both the inside and outside of fridges sparkling clean.

Witness the magic cleaning action of vinegar with baking soda

Baking soda is even more spectacular in combination with vinegar. When I first learned that these two edible items, baking soda and vinegar, were so versatile, I tried them out all over my home. Together they can be used all over the kitchen and bathroom.

WARNING: Vinegar is mildly acidic, and although it’s perfectly safe to eat, it can damage marble. There are many other normal household foods and habits that can damage marble. Check out this link for more information about marble care.

Using baking soda is the most non-toxic way to clean an oven

The frothing action when they get together works minor miracles inside of ovens too. Be very generous here with both ingredients. Cleaning ovens that are very dirty involves letting combination of vinegar and baking soda sit for a while, (say 10 to 20 minutes) scrubbing for a minute or two, then seeing where the baked on food is still stuck, adding more, repeat until clean. Then rinse several times with clear water and you have a super clean oven without having to wear goggles, gloves, or inhaling poisonous fumes. Even better is that your oven, (where you cook the healthy food that you put into your one and only body) is not polluted by poisonous cleansers.

Clean your drain easily with baking soda and vinegar

This combo of baking soda and vinegar is also wonderful for clearing clogged drains and the best part is that it’s completely non-toxic. Pour a cup of baking soda down the drain, then add a cup of vinegar. Watch the volcano show. (fun!) Let it sit for a few minutes, then pour down a pot of boiling water. This should produce an amazingly clear drain! Even if your drain isn’t clogged, this is a good way to clean out the debris that’s been hanging around in the P-trap (the U-shaped pipe) under your sink and prevent lingering odours.

There are loads of uses for baking soda! Here are 31 Surprising Baking Soda Uses, just for starters.  If you have more baking soda cleaning tips you’d like to share, we’d love to hear from you.