Baking Soda uses

My obsession with baking soda began because yes, I wanted to use something safe around my kids but also when I was pregnant most smells made me sick - cleaning products were one of them. We bought two 13-pound bags of baking soda at Cosco last week for $8. It sounds like a lot of baking soda but we are already down to one bag.
Here is how I'm using it:


Pool care: This was the first year we used baking soda to open our pool. It was the worst our pool ever looked so my husband and I were both worried. We poured bleach and baking soda (I know my husband added something else but not sure what) into the pool and in less than three days our pool looked amazing. We saved so much money and time getting the pool opened this year it was awesome!!

Neutralizer: I keep baking soda by the sink and wash my hands with it at least once a day. It takes the odor from garlic or onion right out and makes my hands feel smooth.

Teeth: Ever since being pregnant with my first, Brant, the taste of ANY toothpaste makes me sick. Sometimes I can use Sensodyn but I usually just sprinkle baking soda on my toothbrush. A few times a week I make a paste out of peroxide and baking soda and brush away.

Traction: The first year we were in the house with Brant and it snowed, he wanted to eat the salt from everyone's shoes. It drove me crazy!! I was worried all of the time about who was tracking in what. I read about using baking soda on your sidewalks instead (Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron). It was awesome and if any tracked on a rug or tile it actually helped clean your floors when you wiped it up.

Laundry: I always add a cup of baking soda to my towels and blankets. When I was pregnant with Brant I bought a bag of Charlie's Soap (charliesoap.com) for $14 - to clean Brant's cloth diapers. Well who knew I would be so grossed out by cloth diapers? I sold the cloth diapers on craigslist but didn't want the soap to go to waste. So I kept adding it to my loads of towels and blankets. I loved the result. I can't find a list of ingredients to Charlie's Soap but I'm sure it has baking soda in it - my towels and blankets feel the exact same for an eighth of the price.

Cleaning: When I clean with baking soda I get flashbacks of being little and having comet in a can under the sink. Just like that powdery comet, baking soda works best on the tub, sink, or toilet. You can make a paste with water and safely clean anything but you need to wipe it down with a wet towel, which I will forget to do.

Garbage and Fridge: I grew up with every trash can having baking soda on the bottom of the can. I do the same in my house and also have a box of baking soda in every refrigerator and freezer.

Carpet: We have carpet in the basement so I always sprinkle a generous amount over it and let it sit for at least 30 minutes. Ideally I would like it to sit overnight but it doesn't always happen. If I'm having company and feel paranoid about how the basement smells I just mix a pinch of cinnamon into the baking soda I'm sprinkling over the carpet. I also sprinkle baking soda over stuffed animals (either shake it out or use a vacuum), car seats (child and adult) and carpet in van.