11 things you should never clean with baking soda

There are few things baking soda can’t do – like all these ways to fix things with baking soda. It’s a great multipurpose cleaner and you can use it when you cook, to heal ailments, around the house, and even to make crafts for your kids. But there are some instances where baking soda causes more harm than good. While it can help you with most of your chores around the house, make sure to avoid using it when cleaning these products.

You’re going to want to stick with Windex when cleaning glass surfaces in your house. “Baking soda is an abrasive cleaner, so there is a chance that it will scratch your glass or mirror,” says Marcos Franco, an employee of Mighty Clean Home. If you’re looking for an all-natural cleaning substance, he suggests using vinegar on your glass surfaces instead.

It’s OK to use baking soda to clean your aluminium pots and pans, but it’s just important to remember to rinse them right after. “Baking soda can cause aluminium to oxidise,” says Jack Prenter, founder of Chore Bliss. “Extensive contact will cause oxidisation which will turn the surface brown.”

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Baking soda is great to use when cleaning cooktops but avoid using it if you have a smooth top made of ceramic glass. “It can easily scratch the cooktop and leaves a white film that is hard to remove,” says Franco. If you accidentally use baking soda, vinegar will remove the white film.

You should never use baking soda to clean any marble or quartz surfaces. Over time, baking soda will cause damage to the upper protective layer and eventually leave scratches on the marble or quartz. “Some websites recommend using baking soda on these surfaces, but stone manufacturers warn against it because they realise the potential damage that can be caused in the long run,” says Prenter.

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Baking soda can be too hard on some finishes or sealants on wood furniture. Cameron says that using it for cleaning can wear away the sealant, ruining the furniture. She suggests using a diluted dish soap mixture instead.

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“Although submerging your silverware in water and baking soda can quickly remove tarnish from it, the mixture is too abrasive and can cause it to lose its patina and tarnish more quickly afterward,” says Lily Cameron, cleaning supervisor at Fantastic Services. Cameron suggests bringing your antique silver to a professional for cleaning instead.

Baking soda leaves behind a white, dusty residue after it dries. Therefore, you should never use it to clean surfaces with deep grooves or cracks because the residue will get left behind and can build up. Most things that fall into this category are best cleaned with a microfibre cloth.

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Baking soda has a basic pH, while your skin is slightly acidic. Using baking soda on your skin on a regular basis will neutralise your skin’s natural acid levels, says Franco. It will leave your skin feeling dry and cracked.

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Similar to your skin, using baking soda on a regular basis in your hair will strip it of its natural oils, leaving your hair feeling dry and brittle.