I WAS searching for environmental stories and I found one that can be useful for households. It’s about cleaning without using harmful chemicals.
At home we usually use toxic liquids like muriatic acid, Clorox and liquid sosa. These chemicals are either strong acids or alkaline. They are corrosive and may cause injury if not handled properly.
As I go through the article, I noticed that one ingredient is common to all the cleaning solutions. It’s baking soda. It made me curious why this material which is supposed to be used for baking can do such wonder. So I did some research and here’s what I found.
Baking Soda, a sodium bicarbonate, is a naturally occurring substance that is present in all living things. It helps living things maintain the pH balance necessary for life. Baking Soda is made from soda ash, also known as sodium carbonate. It is the natural chemical and physical properties of Baking Soda that account for its many safe and effective uses.
The five specific capabilities of Baking Soda are listed below.
Cleaning: Baking Soda acts a cleaning agent because it is a mild alkali. Its pH is around 8. Water has a neutral pH of 7. Substances with pH below 7 are called acids while those above are alkaline. Baking Soda can cause dirt and grease to dissolve easily in water for effective removal.
When it is not fully dissolved, like when it is sprinkled on a damp sponge, Baking Soda is mildly abrasive and can lift dirt for easy removal as a gentle scouring powder. Since it’s gentle, Baking Soda is safe and effective as a cleaner for glass, chrome, steel, enamel and plastic. Use Baking Soda to clean sinks, tubs, tile, microwaves, plastic containers, even teeth without scratching.
Deodorizing: Baking Soda’s deodorization power is a result of its ability to neutralize odors, rather than just covering up odors with perfumes. Use Baking Soda as a personal deodorant for underarms and feet, and as a household deodorant on carpets, upholstery and in the fridge and freezer. Baking Soda can also deodorize when it’s dissolved in water. It can even be as a mouthwash to neutralize garlic breath.
Leavening: The most universal use of Baking Soda is for baking in which Baking Soda is used to promote leavening. Leavening increases the surface area of dough or batter by causing it to rise and become light and porous.
Buffering: Baking Soda has unique capabilities as a buffer meaning it can maintain a stable pH balance, or acid-alkali balance. As a buffer, Baking Soda tends to cause acid solutions to become more basic and to cause basic solutions to become more acid, bringing both solutions to a stable pH around 8.1 (slightly basic) on the pH scale.
A buffer also resists pH change. In this way Baking Soda can be used as an antacid in the human digestive system, neutralizing acids from acid indigestion and heartburn and relieving the associated discomfort. When used as a paste on skin or in the bath, Baking Soda soothes the irritation of poison ivy, insect bites, sunburn, and prickly heat.
Fire Extinguishing: Baking Soda is effective as a fire extinguisher for grease and electrical fires. When Baking Soda is heated it releases carbon dioxide and produces water. Since carbon dioxide is heavier than air and does not support combustion like oxygen does, it smothers the fire while the water that is formed cools the fire to below the ignition temperature. Many commercial fire extinguishers, including dry chemical and foam, contain Baking Soda.
So it is a good practice to always have Baking Soda at home.