Home and Garden, Tidy Home Did you know that some Feng Shui masters say that clogged drains deplete finances, health, aspirations, travel, clog sinuses, and simply, wreak havoc in general.  I don’t know about you……..but a clogged drain can be rather pesky and annoying, not to mention, rather costly if you have to call in a plumber. So to keep my life running smoothly, both literally and metaphorically, I look in my kitchen pantry for all the ingredients I need to unclog my pipes and I can do it without causing damage to the environment or my pocket book! Likewise, I do something very similar to keep drains fresh.  Especially good for seldom used drains. Baking soda and vinegar are the foundation of DIY cleaning!  It’s really that simple.  For just pennies you can keep your drains and home fume free by using baking soda and vinegar instead of harsh chemicals or calling the plumber. This is just one of many ways to save money by using baking soda around your house. 

To save even more,  head over to Arm & Hammer’s Savings Center to print out a $0.50 off coupon on your next purchase of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda! How to Keep Your Bathroom Clean in Just 5 Minutes a Day DIY HOMEMADE MIRACLE CLEANER STAIN REMOVER How to Clean Upholstered Furniture HOW TO CLEAN A DISHWASHER HOW TO REMOVE MILDEW SMELL FROM TOWELS CLICK HERE FOR MORE TIPS FOR A TIDY HOME Disclosure:  This is a sponsored post for Church & Dwight Co., Inc, the maker of ARM & HAMMER branded products, who is compensating me to try different products.  I have used baking soda and vinegar to clean my drains for years! Categories: Home and Garden, Tidy Home Tags: Arm & Hammer, baking soda, cleaning with vinegar, drains, household tips, housekeeping, Saving Money, Switch & Save, tips and tricksToday we ask a question that many homeowners have pondered as they look down at a tile floor with unsightly grout: Will baking soda and vinegar really get the grout clean?

Kate here, and I personally tried out this DIY cleaning technique in an attempt to avoid an expensive tile cleaning bill in the middle of the holidays. And the process of cleaning grout with baking soda and vinegar was much better than I imagined. [photo by Kate Simmons]Does the floor look as if the professionals cleaned it? And I know this because the last time Stanley Steemer came out to clean my carpet, they did a little demo to show me just what their steam cleaning technique could do for my grout. And it was pretty amazing! But it’s good to know that a DIY option exists, that it’s effective (AND budget-friendly), and that it leaves the floor looking pretty darn good overall! Read on for all the details…If you’re like me, you’ve been dreaming of clean grout for quite awhile. Perhaps you imagine about walking across your floor with bare feet and not a care in the world. [photo from Absolute Resurface]Or you’ve seen images on the websites of professional tile cleaning services and wondered if your grout could ever look this good. 

[photo via Seal Systems]So you decide to take matters into your own hands, especially if you’re on the hunt for budget-friendly alternatives to professional cleaners. For some, the thought of scrubbing the floor with a toothbrush can be therapeutic. For others, it sounds like back-breaking work. I tend to enjoy physical labor, so taking a toothbrush to the grout intrigues me. [photo from Town & Country Office Cleaning]Hot Tub Electrical CableBaking soda and vinegar are often used as home cleaning agents, especially since they’re affordable and non-toxic. Toilet Bowl CandyPut them together, and you have a fizzy reaction that is particularly helpful when it comes to residue and dirt build-up. Lace Wedding Dress With Detachable TrainContinue reading for instructions on how to clean your grout with baking soda and vinegar.

So just how does this baking soda and vinegar method work? Below you will find a list of steps, complete with helpful tips. [all photos below by Kate Simmons]Step 1: Gather your supplies.You will need baking soda, vinegar, a spray bottle, water, a measuring cup, a toothbrush, a small container, and some rags (or some paper towels).Below we see a close-up of the grout in my powder room. Looks like it needs a little work, right?!Step 2: Make a paste using baking soda and water. Apply the paste to the grout.I actually used the toothbrush to stir the paste mixture and apply it to the grout. Step 3: Concoct a mixture of equal parts vinegar and warm water in a spray bottle. Spritz the mixture onto the baking soda paste.And you’ll have a fizzy mix like the one below. It’s like a science experiment in your powder room!Step 4: Scrub the grout with a toothbrush.Give the baking soda and vinegar a chance to fizz before you start scrubbing, and then work on that grout with determination. I thought it was fun to see the dirt scrub away with ease!

Definitely a great activity for those who get satisfaction from eliminating dirt and grime!Step 5: Wipe away the mess with a water-soaked rag.Paper towels also work. I actually used a sponge and paper towels to wipe up the excess baking soda and vinegar, but if I’d had some old rags, I would have used them instead.Step 6: Mop to give the floor a gleaming finish (optional).While this step is optional, note that there will likely be some baking powder residue on your floor. You can wipe it all up by hand very diligently, or you can wipe it well enough, then finish off the space with a mopping session. The choice is yours!Now that I’ve tried the process for myself, I want to share a little more about what you can expect when you clean your grout with baking soda and vinegar. Below we see my dirty bathroom floor, before the cleaning session. [all photos below (except for the last photo) by Kate Simmons]And here’s the after shot! I did not attempt to manipulate these photos, but I will note that there was more sunlight coming into the powder room when I took the photo below.

With that said, you can still see that the grout is visibly cleaner after the scrubbing, with the dirt and grime gone. The bottom line: Cleaning grout with baking soda and vinegar really works.But it’s not a perfect process. You can see in this next image that there are still stains in the grout that were not removed by the first scrubbing. Or a second more intense scrubbing of the area. But don’t lose heart! There are other things you can try, such as using hydrogen peroxide to clean the grout, or even getting a steam cleaning service to help with a particularly difficult section of the floor. I found this Bob Vila article to be helpful in terms of listing different cleaning options.Also note that cleaning floor grout with baking soda and vinegar is messy and a bit tedious at times. But it’s totally doable. I would suggest breaking up the task into parts. For example, I tackled the powder room today, but there is still the kitchen, the master bath, the hallway and the laundry room flooring to clean.

To save myself from sore muscles and frustration, I plan on breaking up the process into one or two rooms per day, as I have time (rather than tackling everything at once).The bottom line: using baking soda and vinegar to clean floor grout is great if you don’t mind manual labor, you’re on a budget, and you have the time to break up the process into steps. It’s also a great way to spot clean or to clean in between visits from the professionals. If manual labor makes your skin crawl, or if you need to clean the floor of your entire house quickly, you might consider getting a professional out to steam clean the grout in order to avoid burnout!Since the floor of my bathroom isn’t that cute, I’ll leave you with a gorgeous photo from Boyer Building Corporation. Because what’s more inspiring than a crisp powder room with a beautiful, clean floor?!Wishing you well on your home cleaning endeavors! If you try this method at home and have additional tips to share, leave a comment below.