You already know baking soda, a staple around the house. Now discover washing soda crystals, a powerful disinfectant and degreaser, for a thorough cleaning of your home.
What are washing soda crystals?
Washing soda crystals, baking soda, or caustic soda—it’s easy to get confused! And yet, these three products are all different.
The caustic soda is a dangerous substance, capable of causing severe burns and skin irritation on contact. Environmentally, caustic soda can harm aquatic flora and fauna by raising the pH of water. So it’s not something to use!
The washing soda crystals (sodium carbonate) are a chemical compound that occurs naturally in natron deposits, but are now commonly manufactured from salt and limestone (calcium carbonate).
The baking soda, meanwhile, is produced from washing soda crystals by reacting with water and carbon dioxide.
Why use washing soda crystals?
Anywhere you need to clean, degrease, or disinfect:
In the bathroom
Anti-scale and mineral buildup, washing soda crystals will be a big help in cleaning your bathroom, especially since they’re perfectly suited for enamel surfaces.
In the kitchen
For dishes, this product enters into the recipe for homemade dish soap. If you simply want to brighten your glassware, soak them in hot water with about 70 g of washing soda crystals. Don’t forget to rinse.
For a greasy, dirty stove, gently dissolve washing soda crystals in hot water and spray the still-warm mixture onto the surface. Let sit for 10 minutes and then scrub.
If a sink is clogged, before calling a plumber or taking apart the trap, pour in half a cup of washing soda crystals and then follow with hot water.
Have your pots or pans burned? Line the bottom of the utensil with washing soda crystals before adding boiling water over it. Let sit for 6 hours and clean as usual.
For interior and exterior tile surfaces, a small handful of washing soda crystals dissolved in a bucket of warm water should make the floor look like new!
For laundry
Usually, a cup of white vinegar in your washing machine is enough to reduce lime scale buildup and restore brightness to your clothes. But if your local water is particularly hard or your laundry is very dirty (cloth diapers, for example), add a good handful of washing soda crystals to the wash.
For DIY and prepping small jobs, indoors and outdoors
To clean stones mossed over or outdoor wood, use a brush dipped in a liter of water mixed with one tablespoon of washing soda crystals.
To help with the decidedly unpleasant step of removing wallpaper, dampen the paper with hot water mixed with 3 tablespoons of washing soda crystals, using a sponge. The same mixture can also be used to strip old paint.
Where to find washing soda crystals?
In supermarkets, in the laundry aisle, at drugstores, home improvement stores, or online.
And you, do you use washing soda crystals for cleaning? Which recipe do you use? What do you think of them?
