Soda Crystals, a triumph!

There's quite a lot about the silver cleaning 'thing' on line. American's tend to use baking soda and salt instead of soda crystals and some use vinegar too. But they all work apparently.

One advantage is that it is completely harmless to silver, which is a soft metal and can be worn away by rubbing with most silver cleaners, which are mildly abrasive. It removes only the tarnish, by a process of electrolysis I understand.

Definitely use in the washing machine and for cleaning the drains/sink. Didn't know about the moss or silver, thanks for those tips. Will be interested to hear how to use in dishwasher!

Use them all the time in washing machine once a fortnight with white vinegar ….. down plug holes again with white vinegar. Brilliant for all sorts cleaning ….. I didn’t know about the silver cleaning though …. great tip!

I use a teaspoon in every wash. I put it in the dispenser draw. We live in a very hard water area and this keeps the water soft and stops the washer from clogging up with limescale.

sandwichgeneration

Do the soda crystals go in the drum of the washing machine or dispenser? Similarly, where do they go in the dishwasher? And how much do you use? Thanks.

Dispenser drawer. Just use them exactly as you would washing powder.

I use half a teacup in the (detergent) dispenser drawer. Powder detergent just goes straight in the drum.

IIRC I used about a mugful in the drum when using the initial hot (empty) wash cycle to clean the machine. So much greyish foam appeared - it really was an eye opener.
Had to do it a second time, too.
All down to those pods and fabric conditioner. Another reason I was glad to ditch the pods - the plastic boxes were always an absolute bugger to open!

Can someone explain about soda crystals and the washing machine; do you use the SC in the Clothes wash or an empty machine clean wash?

Also, if used with clothing, does it bleach colours?

I use it in the clothes wash because that way my washing machine never needs cleaning and it softens the water at the same time meaning less liquid or powder is needed. No it doesn't bleach colours but if you use it to soak he clothing it's very good at removing stains.

I love white cotton pillow cases but find that oily faces and hair can leave a yellowishness, so each bed change the pillowcases soak overnight in a bucket of very hot water with a couple or more heaped TBS of washing soda added. Into the wash the next day and they come out lovely.

I also use an Eco Egg for some washes which means no gunk from washing liquid, although I love BioD laundry liquid.

I am concerned about the ads for washing on very low temperatures as there must be a gradual build up of unpleasantnesses and bugs.

Top tip for those items which can have a long term niff eg dog bedding - just add a glug of white vinegar to the conditioner drawer.

Household cleaning spray - one part white vinegar, 2 parts water, small squirt of washing up liquid and a few drops of eg lavender. Or into a large jar filled with white vinegar collect citrus peels, squash into jar and leave for 2 weeks, the natural oils will leach into the vinegar and all you have to do is sieve out the bits and follow the above formula. Alchemy - and dirt cheap. (Sorry about the pun).

I use it when I wash my cleaning rags as most washing agents have a softener which will cause streaks when cleaning.

Also soak badly stained items overnight before washing. The instructions on the packet recommend dissolving a cupful or so in a kettle full of boiling water, leaving that for 30 mins, then putting the clothes in and topping up with warm or cold water if necessary.(So it works well on things that can't be washed at a high temperature) I prod that around for a bit and just tip the lot in the washing machine the next morning.

A teaspoon or two in the teapot, filled up with boiling water, and the teapot is gleaming in about half an hour (rinse out well). I only do this every couple of months or so - a bit of residual tea up the sides of the pot is supposed to improve the taste, isn't it?

I also use a Milton sterilising tablet every evening after washing up to soak my dishcloth. If I have particularly dirty floor cloths I combine a Milton tablet along with soda crystals to soak them before washing in the machine.

Our bathroom sink has a very narrow waste pipe which was always clogging up with soap/hair from Mr A shaving/etc. When we last called a plumber he told us to use soda crystals in hot water and leave it overnight in the pipe then flush it away in the morning with more hot water and it will keep the pipes clear. We haven't had a blockage since. Once a month, cup of soda crystals in jug of hot water down the sink and left overnight.

I use soda crystals to get rid of moss on my tarmac drive, says t
Teacheranne
But why? Moss is excellent for carbon sequestration and is much more attractive than tarmac.

This is a great thread, thank you. I’m learning a lot. Never knew about it helping with moss or stains.
What I would like to know is, I have some left over powdered soda ash (for dyeing textiles) and am wondering if it will work the same. Maybe it’s a bit more alkaline than washing soda? Not sure

Do not use soda crystals in a dishwasher , my husband put the half bag Into the salt reservoir in dishwasher by mistake& when I googled to ask if it was harmful I was warned to flush it all out. I use half a bag of soda crystals & a couple of cups of white vinegar on a boil wash ( straight into the drum) and my washing machine never gets gunged up. I also pour soda crystals and white vinegar down plug holes ( especially showers) and leave overnight then pour boiling water to disperse any build up of gunge. I’m going to clean my silver jewellery with the crystals next because I used to use lemon juice and foil but it’s not that brilliant. Thanks for this tip.

And, not on a dark tiled floor …it leaves white streaks ?

I use soda crystals dissolved in hot water with a dash of washing-up liquid on baking dishes that have 'baked-on' debris left on them after cooking, or are very greasy.

Soaked in the sink overnight, the grime literally lifts off the next day.

I've used it for cleaning silver jewellery for years. Also sinks, plugholes, drains etc, stain removal and in the washing machine. It's brilliant for whitening net curtains, we only have them on two windows but they get rather grubby because our dog likes to look out of those windows. Also excellent for soaking and washing the cloths from our floor steamer.

Reading the replies, I’m not convinced everyone is talking about the same kind of soda. We are talking about old fashioned large crystals the size of a fingernail, right? Bicarbonate of soda is also used for cleaning, and that has crystals the size of table salt.

LinkyPinky

I use soda crystals to get rid of moss on my tarmac drive, says t
Teacheranne
But why? Moss is excellent for carbon sequestration and is much more attractive than tarmac.

I have mobility problems and am worried about slipping on wet moss when I go to the bins. Also I find that thick growth eventually breaks down the tarmac leaving lots of little stones - also a fall risk.

I don’t think moss on the drive is very attractive either.

My back lawn in mainly moss and buttercups which I do leave as I like walking on the springy moss and it always looks green and pretty even in a dry period when my front lawn goes brown!

Crazyquilter123

Reading the replies, I’m not convinced everyone is talking about the same kind of soda. We are talking about old fashioned large crystals the size of a fingernail, right? Bicarbonate of soda is also used for cleaning, and that has crystals the size of table salt.

The soda crystals I use in the garden are powdery, not large crystals.

MaizieD

They can be used for cleaning silver, too.

Line a dish with aluminium foil, tablespoonful of soda, fill with boiling water (lots of impressive fizzing at this stage), drop in your silver items (make sure they're in contact with the foil). Hey presto, tarnish gone. Fish them out with tongs, rinse and dry.

I use this for cleaning silver jewellery.

@MaizieD Do you know if oxidised Silver (earrings and necklace) can be cleaned this way please?

50ShadesofGreyMatter

MaizieD

They can be used for cleaning silver, too.

Line a dish with aluminium foil, tablespoonful of soda, fill with boiling water (lots of impressive fizzing at this stage), drop in your silver items (make sure they're in contact with the foil). Hey presto, tarnish gone. Fish them out with tongs, rinse and dry.

I use this for cleaning silver jewellery.

@MaizieD Do you know if oxidised Silver (earrings and necklace) can be cleaned this way please?

Oxidised silver is basically silver that has been deliberately tarnished (that's what tarnish is, it's oxidisation). The foil method removes tarnish!

So, no. Don't do it, it'll very efficiently strip away the oxidisation!

Dickens that’s a new one I haven’t thought of. I shall definitely try your washing up liquid and soda crystals combo, as I’m an indifferent cook and often have burnt or hard to clean dishes at the end of a meal. I used to use put dish washing tablet and boiling water in grimy pots and leave to soak overnight , but now I’ve switched to eco cleaning/kitchen products it’s very expensive, and soda crystals will be much cheaper!

Crazyquilter123

Reading the replies, I’m not convinced everyone is talking about the same kind of soda. We are talking about old fashioned large crystals the size of a fingernail, right? Bicarbonate of soda is also used for cleaning, and that has crystals the size of table salt.

Here's a website that explains the difference between soda crystals and soda bicarb. It can get confusing..

www.dri-pak.co.uk/the-difference-between-baking-soda-and-bicarbonate-of-soda/

P.S. The url is confusing in itself because food grade soda bicarb is baking soda, but all is made clear in the text.