9 Baking Soda life hacks for your kitchen, home and more

Is your kitchen cupboard full of expensive single purpose shop bought chemical cleaners? Here are some great life hacks using baking soda (also known as bicarbonate of soda) that will save you money, be more eco friendly and more healthy too. Baking soda is not just good for baking. It is the most useful but often overlooked product.

Some of these hacks will deal with cleaning task that you used to use those corrosive and toxic chemical products. Try using some baking soda instead.

1. Clean tea and coffee stains from your mugs, tea pots and coffee makers. Use a few tablespoon of baking soda in a sink and soak the offending items. Leave overnight if you can and the stains will wash right off.
2. Add a teaspoonful of baking soda into a vase of flowers and it will keep them fresher for longer.
3. Use it as a hand wash when your hands are covered in a lot of heavy grease. Rub some into your hands and wash in warm water. The grease will wash away with ease.
4. Use it to clean stubborn cooked in stains in the oven. Sprinkling some baking soda onto the surfaces of the oven and then spraying with vinegar causes a chemical reaction. This has the effect of lifting those stains from the over surface. You can then just wipe it with a damp cloth.
5. I find that my kitchen sink can get stained by all the tea and tea bags that I pour down it. I use the baking soda and vinegar trick here to clean off those stains too.
6. The same can be used to clean hard water lime scale from around the tap and in the sink. Make a paste with the baking soda and spread over the lime scale areas. Use half a lemon or lime to scrub those areas. The citric acid reacts with the baking soda and changes the pH. This will lift the lime scale.
7. Scatter liberally in cupboards and around windows and doors to repel ants and cockroaches.
8. Besides being a useful cleaning product, baking soda is also good for your health. As baking soda has the ability to regulate pH, it’s health benefits lie in being able to rebalance a body’s pH. Usually after a hard workout, muscles are fatiqued and lactic acid has formed. By drinking some water with baking soda, this can help with recovery. Baking soda has the ability to normalise the body’s pH and help you recover more quickly.