“When used to clean a washing machine, baking soda can help to slough off buildup and can also help to deodorize the interior,” Baker explains. A scoop of baking soda added to laundry in the wash helps fabrics come out looking brighter and smelling fresher.
Safe to use in both standard and high-efficiency washers, baking soda is one of the top two best products (along with distilled white vinegar) for making your laundry greener by reducing your dependence on harsh chemicals.
Add 1/2 cup of baking soda to the wash when you add your regular liquid detergent. Baking soda will give you sharper whites, brighter brights, and odor-free clothing.
Baking soda is most effective as a stain remover when mixed with water and used as a paste. The paste helps draw a stain out of fabric and essentially "traps" pigment and odor in the baking soda.
Baking soda whitens, freshens, and softens fabrics. Add 1/2 cup of baking soda along with your regular laundry detergent. For spot stains, make a paste of baking soda and water and apply it directly to the fabric.
Baking soda is unlikely to damage your colored clothes, so long as they are not made out of a delicate fiber such as wool or silk. Everyday materials such as polyester or cotton hold their color better than delicates, making them easier to wash with baking soda and water.
Add in about two cups of baking soda directly into the washing machine. This is going to gently scrub the inside and combat those stale, moldy odors that are left behind via old soap and fabric softener deposits.
1 Washing soda and baking soda can be used together in DIY detergent recipes to remove stains, but washing soda has more of a stripping action to remove residues of oils, minerals, and fabric softeners.
To eliminate stubborn smells like sweat, gasoline, or cooking odors, add half a cup of baking soda in the washing machine with your clothing, and use half a cup of vinegar in your fabric softener tray.
FRONT LOAD (HE) WASHER: If you have a HE (front loading) washer, place your towels in the washer with 1 cup of baking soda (no detergent). Start the washer let the water fill for about 1 minute. Add 2 cups of vinegar to the “liquid” cup (again no detergent) and allow the load to run through.
Hydrogen peroxide
Simply add a cup of it to the washing machine along with your usual detergent and you'll get a snowy-white effect. You can also use this method for very stubborn stains, such as bloodstains. Make sure to never mix hydrogen peroxide with other household products like bleach or vinegar.
Baking soda can help remove pungent odors from laundry even when they linger after repeated washing. Baking soda also works as a laundry booster to help brighten whites and colors and generally freshen laundry by helping to remove odors.
Washing soda "softens" the water by binding to the minerals in the water, allowing the detergents to lift dirt from fabric.
If you have a top-loading washer, you can use baking soda in place of fabric softener. It has the same softening effects without heavy perfumes or chemicals that might trigger allergies. During the rinse cycle, when the washer is full of water, sprinkle a half-cup of baking soda into the water.
If your washing machine is a front loader, you can simply add a cup of dry baking soda to the inside of the drum. Then, load in your clothing, add store-bought or homemade laundry detergent to the dispenser, and start the machine. Baking soda should not be added to the automatic dispenser.
All that's needed is some baking soda and white vinegar set on a normal cycle to clean or remove smells from a front loader or top loader washing machine. The more regularly it is done, the easier it will be to clean.
Add sheets and towels to the washing machine. Add ½ cup baking soda into the detergent dispenser and ½ cup vinegar to the fabric softener dispenser. Then wash on the hottest setting possible and dry as usual. If you have a top loader, sprinkle baking soda over towels and add vinegar right before the rinse cycle.
Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate, a fine white powder that has many uses. You may wonder about bicarbonate of soda vs. baking soda, but they are simply alternate terms for the same ingredient. If your recipe calls for bicarbonate of soda, it is simply referring to baking soda.
Baking soda is unlikely to damage your colored clothes, so long as they are not made out of a delicate fiber such as wool or silk. Everyday materials such as polyester or cotton hold their color better than delicates, making them easier to wash with baking soda and water.
Baking soda is good for teeth whitening because it is a very mild abrasive, which helps remove stains from the surface of your teeth. In addition, baking soda is alkaline and salty, which helps lighten acid-based food stains – such as those from coffee, tea, and red wine – on teeth.
Once the washing machine is filled up and barely started, pause it and allow the water and white vinegar to soak the drum for an hour. When the first rinse cycle has ended, pour in a cup of baking soda and turn your top loader back on for one more powerful cycle with the hottest settings.
If you have a standard washer machine, use 1 cup of baking soda and add it to the towels and then fill with water. DO NOT ADD SOAP OR VINEGAR, ADD NOTHING BUT BAKING SODA! Run a full cycle using hot water for the wash and rinse cycle. You will be absolutely amazed on how fresh the towels smell.