━━ Toothpaste in conjunction with vinegar can become an unexpected household helper.
( Source: Marcus Chung / iStockphoto )
At first glance, this may seem like an odd combination. Toothpaste is for cleaning teeth, vinegar is used in cooking. Although there’s plenty of evidence of its cleansing effects, so why not actually try combining the ingredients to create something unexpected? Even if one product belongs in the kitchen and the other in the bathroom, the combination might convince you that they have something to do in both of these rooms. In fact, they create the perfect cleaning foam that can tackle both dirt and bacteria.
Mixing toothpaste with vinegar makes a surprisingly potent pair, both chemically and practically. The effervescent foam is excellent for cleaning a variety of surfaces as well as whitening. This is thanks to a very simple chemical reaction. How does it work?
In toothpaste we find ingredients such as fluoride, abrasives, as well as peroxide, which helps in teeth whitening. But in addition, it always contains sodium bicarbonate, which we know more simply as baking soda. Vinegar contains acetic acid. When these two substances are mixed, wonders happen.
When acetic acid comes into contact with baking soda or similar alkaline substances, an acid-base reaction occurs. This releases carbon dioxide and causes the mixture to fizz or foam. The resulting cleaning agent is then able to loosen impurities in, for example, waste, joints and tiles, but also increases the cleaning effect of the paste.
━━ A mixture of toothpaste and vinegar will help you clean the kitchen sink and bathroom sink perfectly.
( Source: Liliana Drew / Pexels )
The resulting mixture kills bacteria, breaks down mineral deposits (such as limescale) and brightens surfaces. This makes it really useful in both the bathroom and the kitchen, because in both cases you can use it to clean the sink and drains, as well as the tiles on the wall.
Some of the cleaners you buy in drugstores are unnecessarily expensive and contain chemicals that are not safe to use without gloves. However, ordinary toothpaste with vinegar are completely harmless. If you do not experiment and mix other substances into the mixture, you can be sure that the cleaning foam will only harm the bacteria.
The mixture is gentle on the skin and most surfaces. It will remove dirt from many surfaces, and you can even clean the soles of your shoes with it. Besides, it removes odours. At first, you may smell vinegar from the waste, but this smell will disappear very quickly and you will only get a fresh result. In addition, in some cases, scratched music or movie CDs can also be cleaned with the mixture.
