View Full Version : baking soda a thruhiker's friend
johnny quest
11-23-2007, 12:08
A Backpackers uses for baking soda:
Add to water to soak dried beans to make them more digestible.
Add to water to remove the "gamey" taste from wild game.
Use to sweeten sour sweatrags
Use soda as an underarm deodorant.
If you spill food on your gear or clothes, moisten a cloth, dip it in baking soda and dab at the stain. The odor will go away.
Along the same lines, to remove strong odors from your hands, wet your hands and rub them hard with soda, then rinse.
Take 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water to relieve acid indigestion or heartburn.
Gargle with 1/2 tsp. baking soda in 1/2 glass of water. Freshens and cleans your mouth.
Used as a mouthwash, baking soda will also relieve canker sore pain.
To relieve sunburn or windburn: use a paste of baking soda and water.
Bug bites and beestings: use a poultice of baking soda and vinegar.
Sprinkle baking soda on your wet toothbrush and brush your teeth and dentures with it.
Sprinkle soda in boots, gofasters and slippers to eliminate odor.
Take a soda bath to relieve general skin irritations such crotchrot, junglerot, diaper rash or the fungusamungus
To remove burned-on food from a pan: let the pan soak in soda and water for 10 minutes before washing. Or scrub the pot with dry soda and a moist scouring pad.
For a badly-burned pan with a thick layer of burned-on food: pour a thick layer of soda directly onto the bottom of the pan, then sprinkle on just enough water so as to moisten the soda. Leave the pot overnight, then scrub it clean next day.
Clean combs and brushes in a soda solution.
Wash food and drink containers with soda and water.
Baking soda can be used to put out a cooking-fire-gone-wrong. It won't damage anything it touches. it will also put out fires in clothing, fuel, wood, and gear.
Clean vegetables and fruit with baking soda. Sprinkle in water, soak and rise the produce.
Dakota Dan
11-23-2007, 16:53
The best thing about Baking Soda is its CHEAP, now thats a real friend to any hiker.:)
Throw a whole box in one of those front loaders at the mat. With regular soap. Seems cleaner.
It's what I use all the time instead of toothpaste. Teeth feel and look cleaner, plus no horrible taste. You can eat or drink anything right after and not gag.
johnny quest
11-24-2007, 11:31
even orange juice????
I like it for heart burn... burp!
even orange juice????
Yup. Just drank some a few minutes ago.
johnny quest
05-15-2008, 18:11
heres another baking soda claim. i will try this and report back
http://www.instructables.com/id/shaving-with-baking-soda/
I tried to reverse engineer the recipe for Orange Julius a number of years ago by mixing baking soda with orange juice and crushed ice. Not quite the same though.
kayak karl
05-15-2008, 20:24
A Backpackers uses for baking soda:
i posted this before. didn't read it to see if we missed any thing
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?p=593035#post593035
http://www.thefarm.org/charities/i4at/lib2/60soda.htm
there are 60 uses:-?
rdpolete
05-15-2008, 23:41
I tried to reverse engineer the recipe for Orange Julius a number of years ago by mixing baking soda with orange juice and crushed ice. Not quite the same though.
For the Orange Julius you need to add powder sugar not baking soda. One heaping table spoon for say 12 - 16 oz.
johnny quest
05-16-2008, 09:06
i shaved with baking soda last night, according to the directions on the instructables website i linked above.
it was ok. certainly not as good as my mugsoap and caswell-massey brush. but no worse than using regular barsoap. i still prefer the dr bronners for the tingle it leaves on the skin.
Time To Fly 97
05-16-2008, 10:43
I always put a little up my A**. Keeps it fresh and clean.
Happy hiking!
TTF
vonfrick
05-16-2008, 18:58
A Backpackers uses for baking soda:
Add to water to soak dried beans to make them more digestible.
Add to water to remove the "gamey" taste from wild game.
Use to sweeten sour sweatrags
Use soda as an underarm deodorant.
If you spill food on your gear or clothes, moisten a cloth, dip it in baking soda and dab at the stain. The odor will go away.
Along the same lines, to remove strong odors from your hands, wet your hands and rub them hard with soda, then rinse.
Take 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water to relieve acid indigestion or heartburn.
Gargle with 1/2 tsp. baking soda in 1/2 glass of water. Freshens and cleans your mouth.
Used as a mouthwash, baking soda will also relieve canker sore pain.
To relieve sunburn or windburn: use a paste of baking soda and water.
Bug bites and beestings: use a poultice of baking soda and vinegar.
Sprinkle baking soda on your wet toothbrush and brush your teeth and dentures with it.
Sprinkle soda in boots, gofasters and slippers to eliminate odor.
Take a soda bath to relieve general skin irritations such crotchrot, junglerot, diaper rash or the fungusamungus
To remove burned-on food from a pan: let the pan soak in soda and water for 10 minutes before washing. Or scrub the pot with dry soda and a moist scouring pad.
For a badly-burned pan with a thick layer of burned-on food: pour a thick layer of soda directly onto the bottom of the pan, then sprinkle on just enough water so as to moisten the soda. Leave the pot overnight, then scrub it clean next day.
Clean combs and brushes in a soda solution.
Wash food and drink containers with soda and water.
Baking soda can be used to put out a cooking-fire-gone-wrong. It won't damage anything it touches. it will also put out fires in clothing, fuel, wood, and gear.
Clean vegetables and fruit with baking soda. Sprinkle in water, soak and rise the produce.
you forgot!!! mix with some vinegar and you get one badass peter brady volcano!!!!
when brushing your teeth you trade the nice cool mint taste of toothpaste for the sour taste of baking soda HOWEVER you also trade the nasty aftertaste when you try to eat breakfast after brushing, but ofcourse i have always been strange i dont brush till after i had breakfast
Sprinkle your stinky tentmate with it while s/he's sleeping. :D
or dump the whole box on them for some 'antiquing'
think the orange julius also has a few drops of vanilla in it :D
good post though, great multiple use item. i got stung by a mean wasp a few weeks ago and used water/bakingsoda paste to treat the sting! been doing that since i was a little boy
Ramble~On
05-17-2008, 02:56
"gofasters" :-? I haven't heard of gofasters in a LOONG time..
or "moonbeam" "inkstick" etc.
~ Semper Fi
atraildreamer
05-17-2008, 13:52
A Backpackers uses for baking soda:
Add to water to soak dried beans to make them more digestible.
Check out this website:
http://www.drmirkin.com/recipes/degas.html
" If you're bothered by gas when you eat beans, try this simple cure for your problem. Put the beans in a large pot and cover them with water. Bring them to a boil and take them off the heat. This breaks the capsules surrounding the beans and allows stachyose, verbascose and raffinose, the gas-causing sugars, to escape into the water. Stir a teaspoon or so of baking soda into the water (to make it more alkaline) and let the beans soak overnight. Drain the soaking water off the beans and rinse them several times. (If you eat the soaking liquid, you will cause unbelievable discomfort for yourself and those around you):eek:. Then proceed with your recipe to cook the beans."
have yet to figure out how the baking soda bath works tried it in the shower today, got messy and it hurt scrubbing my shoulders and face so i had to retreat to the axe snake peel shower gel
(If you eat the soaking liquid, you will cause unbelievable discomfort for yourself and those around you):eek:.
Steroids for fart baseball?
minnesotasmith
05-19-2008, 16:31
I asked a dentist about that idea a while back, and he said that SB was VERY abrasive on teeth if done longterm. As in, teeth feel cleaner after brushing with it BC there's less of them afterwards?!?
Trailbender
09-01-2008, 05:21
I asked a dentist about that idea a while back, and he said that SB was VERY abrasive on teeth if done longterm. As in, teeth feel cleaner after brushing with it BC there's less of them afterwards?!?
I have heard this as well, I just stick with toothpaste, keep a 4 ounce plastic squeeze bottle of it in my pack. Can you elaborate on what specifically is meant by long term?
brooklynkayak
11-20-2008, 15:49
I asked a dentist about that idea a while back, and he said that SB was VERY abrasive on teeth if done longterm. As in, teeth feel cleaner after brushing with it BC there's less of them afterwards?!?
My dentist said brushing with baking soda is fine if it is mixed with a lot of salt, 3 parts salt and 1 part baking soda.
The salt acts like a lubricant and brushing with salt is also good. The combination is as good as any toothpate and I think it tastes better and as others have said no nasty toothpate aftertaste.
Almost all commercial toothpaste can attract bugs and critters.
I've heard that using baking soda as an antacid is not good for you, but I don't remember why?
Also, since baking soda is alkaline it can iritate if used for bathing or as a deoderant, believe me, I've tried it:confused: