Ok, I’m going to be completely honest here. I tried the whole baking soda toilet cleaner thing – but I felt like my toilet never really got clean. I mean, sure it looked clean immediately after I was done; but it seemed to get dirty again really quickly. Much more quickly than when I used store-bought cleaners.
Now, to be clear, I always tried to use store-bought cleaners that aimed for environmentally friendly ingredients. But I still felt a bit skeptical about their non-toxicity claims and the environmental impacts of manufacturing such products. I really wanted the baking soda thing to work. Really, I did. But I eventually gave up because I was cleaning my toilet every couple of days, which made me think it wasn’t really getting clean.
Then I came across Green & Thrifty Cleaning Products by Living Well Spending Less. In the post, Ruth not only gives her recipe for a baking soda based toilet cleaner, she also explains HOW she uses it.
Here is the secret: you must empty the toilet bowl of water first.
See, I figured out that my problem was that the baking soda and essential oils would basically dissolve when I put it in the toilet bowl because I didn’t empty the water out first. So I wasn’t getting that good scrubbing action that makes baking soda work so well as a cleaner for bathrooms and kitchens.
I’m sure some of you are going “Yeah, duh. That’s no secret.” But I’m willing to bet there are at least a few of you out there who made the same mistake as me, as silly as it may be, and hopefully you’ll give it another shot because this is such a great money saver. Compared with commercial eco-friendly cleaning products, baking soda costs next to nothing. AND it is better for the environment, which is a home run in my book.
Check out this great recipe (among several others) on Living Well Spending Less. Ruth uses vinegar with her cleaner, which I also had never tried. This is so simple and doesn’t require a whole bunch of prep work or storage containers. You just mix it up in the toilet bowl. Easy-peasy.
Do you have tips or secrets to using homemade cleaning products? Share by commenting below!
Angela says
I mix 1/3 cup of baking soda with my Essential Oils in a jar and shake it up. Then I add 1/4 cup of Citric Acid and shake it up. I put about a tablespoon of the mix into my toilet and let it bubble then sit for a bit and my toilet is clean!
Laura says
Thank you for stopping by and for sharing! Do you use vinegar also? I have found that it does seem to make a difference.
Angela says
No, the Citric Acid takes the place of vinegar. Also, since the Citric acid is a dry powder you don’t have to empty the water from the toilet bowl first. You just scoop the mix into the toilet water and watch it fizz. The Baking soda and Citric acid don’t start reacting until they get wet.
Laura says
Ooooh, I see! That sounds VERY easy! Thank you so much for sharing that.
Angela says
I mix 1/3 cup of baking soda with my Essential Oils in a jar and shake it up. Then I add 1/4 cup of Citric Acid and shake it up. I put about a tablespoon of the mix into my toilet and let it bubble then sit for a bit and my toilet is clean!
Laura says
Thank you for stopping by and for sharing! Do you use vinegar also? I have found that it does seem to make a difference.
Angela says
No, the Citric Acid takes the place of vinegar. Also, since the Citric acid is a dry powder you don’t have to empty the water from the toilet bowl first. You just scoop the mix into the toilet water and watch it fizz. The Baking soda and Citric acid don’t start reacting until they get wet.
Laura says
Ooooh, I see! That sounds VERY easy! Thank you so much for sharing that.
annagrant1986 says
This may sound really dense, but how do you empty your toilet bowl of water?
Laura says
Not at all, Anna. You just turn the water off using the knob at the wall under the tank of your toilet. Then flush a couple of times. If there is still some water in the bowl but not in the tank, dump a gallon of water in the bowl. That will flush the last bit down. It might be explained better in the Living Well Spending Less post I linked to.
annagrant1986 says
This may sound really dense, but how do you empty your toilet bowl of water?
Laura says
Not at all, Anna. You just turn the water off using the knob at the wall under the tank of your toilet. Then flush a couple of times. If there is still some water in the bowl but not in the tank, dump a gallon of water in the bowl. That will flush the last bit down. It might be explained better in the Living Well Spending Less post I linked to.
growingsnowballs| Glenda Smith says
Hey I never even thought of emptying the toilet bowl of water. Thanks for the tip. So, so simple but really effective.
Laura says
I hadn’t thought of it either,and it does make a big difference! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
growingsnowballs| Glenda Smith says
Hey I never even thought of emptying the toilet bowl of water. Thanks for the tip. So, so simple but really effective.
Laura says
I hadn’t thought of it either,and it does make a big difference! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Kelly Holmes says
Ooh, this sounds so EASY. Thank you for sharing this!
Laura says
Absolutely, Kelly! I’m glad you found it helpful.
Kelly Holmes says
Ooh, this sounds so EASY. Thank you for sharing this!
Laura says
Absolutely, Kelly! I’m glad you found it helpful.
Kay says
Will this remove a toiled bowl ring?
Laura says
I’m not sure, Kay. I imagine it depends on how badly the ring is stained. We have hard water here and our toilets had rust rings in them. Our house sat empty for 10 months, so the rings were pretty bad. They came off with baking soda and essential oils and some elbow grease.
Judith Martinez says
We used to have a snazzy toilet bowl cleaner that actually helped to empty the bowl. I need to figure out how to do it with a standard bowl cleaner.