You’re Probably Not Using Baking Soda to Its Full Potential—These 6 Spots Are Perfect for It

Key Points

• Baking soda is a versatile household cleaner with several unexpected uses, too. It can even kill roaches.

• Sprinkle it in sneakers or on carpets to help reduce squeaks, stains, and lingering smells.

• Use it to refresh and deodorize sponges, containers, and bins.

It's estimated that nearly 2 millions tons of baking soda are produced each year, and there's even a National Baking Soda (or Bicarbonate Soda) Day on December 30. Baking soda is renowned for a reason: It's incredibly versatile.

In addition to its baking purposes, the powdery chemical compound can degrease, deodorize, and fizz to form a mild abrasive. It makes for the ultimate multipurpose cleaner for kitchens, laundry, bathrooms, and more.

You can use it for household chores like deodorizing your fridge or trash can, scrubbing your toilet , and getting greasy buildup off of your oven racks —plus you can use it in the garden , too.

But there are some surprising household uses for baking soda you might not have considered before.

Check out these six unexpected uses for baking soda, then bust out your jar—or orange cardboard box—whether it's December 30 or not.

Stop Shoes from Squeaking

Baking soda has whitening properties, so it can of course be used to restore a dirty pair of sneakers back to like-new condition , but it can also stop your shoes from squeaking while you're walking around.

Take out the insole of your shoe, sprinkle some baking soda across the footbed of the sneaker, then add the insole back in to prevent the insole from sliding around.

(Author's note: I've used this trick on every pair of Adidas sneakers I've ever owned—why are they so squeaky?—and it works like a charm.)

Make Your Carpet Ultra-Clean

Most times, people vacuum rugs and carpeting to pick up crumbs and hairs and call it a day. Level-up your vacuuming routine next time by sprinkling baking soda on top of the carpet beforehand (about 2 to 3 tablespoons), letting it sit for 15 minutes to soak up stains and odors, and then running your vacuum.

You can slightly dampen the baking soda with a spray bottle if you'd like.

This trick is especially helpful if you're moving into a home with a lingering cigarette smell you want to eliminate or if you bought a secondhand rug.

Revive Sponges

You know it's time to throw away an old crusty sponge when it's permanently discolored, you've had it for longer than two weeks , or it's breaking apart. But if you haven't had a sponge for that long, it might just need a quick refresh.

Soak a stale-smelling sponge in a jar or small bowl of water with about 4 tablespoons of baking soda (make the solution soda-heavy) to deodorize and freshen it for more scrubbing.

Remove Lingering Food Smells From Tupperware

Food containers storing anything acidic can hold onto the smells— and stains —from food that was in them before.

Scrub them with baking soda sprinkled on a damp sponge for a food-safe, scratch-free clean, or if they need a heavier clean use a large bowl, 4 tablespoons of baking soda and 1 quart of warm water and let soak.

Prevent a Rotten Recyclables Smell

Just as you might use baking soda to deodorize a smelly trash can , it's a good idea to sprinkle baking soda into your recycling bin as cardboard piles up to keep the bin from smelling until collection day comes.

You can rinse out the entire bin itself with a solution of 1 cup of baking soda per 1 gallon of water.

Eliminate Cockroaches

Lastly, baking soda causes a pressure buildup (and eventual explosion) inside roach's internal organs if they ingest it.

However, roaches aren't naturally drawn to baking soda, so you're going to need to pair it with something that they want to eat, like sugar, to effectively remove roaches. This method can take about 12 to 14 hours once the roaches take the bait.

Read the original article on The Spruce