IDK where so many people got this idea into their heads, but... if I've said it once, I've said it for the millionth time: mixing vinegar and baking soda does NOT make a cleaning solution.
The vinegar reacts with the baking soda, producing sodium acetate and CO2 - neither of which contributes anything of note to cleaning power.
Vinegar alone can be used to clean things, and baking soda alone can be used to clean other things, but the combination of the two is worthless for cleaning.
@IrelandTorin ok, am here to learn... what about the foam the combo makes ? i thought that foam was lifting dirt off the surfaces, myth?
@IrelandTorin
ok.
So, what makes either vinegar or b soda good cleaners on their own? their pH?
@artemis Yep, primarily their pH.
Vinegar is effective against things like scale deposits, whereas baking soda is more likely to be effective on organics.
As a general rule, if the crud you want to clean off is basic/alkaline, using an acid cleaner is more likely to work; if the crud is acidic, a basic/alkaline cleaner is more likely to work.
FWIW baking soda (sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO3) is a very weak base - washing soda (sodium carbonate, Na2CO3) is stronger & more effective for cleaning.
@IrelandTorin
great tips, thanks!
@artemis As far as I'm aware, the foaming effect is only likely to have any beneficial effect at all - and even then, I doubt it'd be especially impactful - IF the first compound (eg: vinegar) had already thoroughly soaked into the dirt before the second constituent is even added (eg: baking soda).
That could potentially generate CO2 gas inside the dirt clump itself, possibly helping break it apart, but if the material's porous enough to let liquid in it's likely the gas can also escape easily.