Yes, you can put bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) in your toilet cistern to help clean, deodorize, and prevent mineral buildup, as it's a natural, pipe-safe alternative to harsh chemicals for general maintenance. It's effective for light cleaning and odor control when left to soak in the tank for a while, but for heavy clogs, you'll need vinegar in the bowl, not the cistern, or a stronger solution.
How to use baking soda to clean your toilet tank Turn off the water supply to the toilet. Flush the toilet to drain the tank. Sprinkle one to two cups of baking soda into the empty tank. Allow the baking soda to sit overnight for best results, or at least for 30 minutes, to absorb odors and loosen grime.
Baking Soda
It can also freshen your tank, though it's not quite as simple as the vinegar method. To start, turn off your toilet's water supply and flush the toilet a few times to empty the tank. Sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda into the tank and let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes.
Baking Soda and vinegar, when combined, causes a combustible chemical reaction (nothing crazy mind you, think volcano in your grade school science class.) This can unknowingly cause damage to your plumbing, especially if there are other unknown materials somewhere in your pipe system.
Bicarbonate of Soda/Baking Soda: While not an acid, bicarbonate soda can be used as a gentle abrasive paste to help scrub away loosened limescale after an acidic treatment.
Plumbers recommend regular cleaning with a good toilet brush and a cleaner (like vinegar/baking soda or commercial products), using pumice stones for tough stains, disinfecting with antibacterial sprays on the exterior, and occasionally deep-cleaning the tank with vinegar, always letting cleaners sit to work, and avoiding mixing chemicals like bleach with other cleaners.
Wait 30 minutes
To unclog toilet bowls using baking soda and vinegar, you must be patient. Wait at least 30 minutes for the mixture to break down the clog.
Items to Never Flush or Pour Down the Drain:
With time, baking soda and vinegar may work as a natural drain cleaner on weaker drain clogs, and the benefits of regular drain cleaning can help keep your drains free of clogs.
To use baking soda, simply mix a cup of baking soda with a cup of water and pour the mixture into the cistern. Let it sit for a few hours and then flush the toilet to rinse the cistern. Lemon juice is a natural disinfectant that can effectively kill germs and bacteria in your cistern.
Essential oils are the best thing to put in a toilet tank to smell good, and they're all-natural too. Just put 10-15 drops of your favorite essential oil right into the tank water. You can go with classics like lavender, tea tree, or eucalyptus.
Keeping your clean toilet tank clean
Use bleach tablets that are designed to be placed inside the tank. This will help keep it clean and kill germs.
Bicarbonate of soda is one of my favourite cleaning products, but these are the 5 things you should never clean with it
Use Baking Soda
By flushing 1/2 cup of baking soda down the toilet weekly, you can help to maintain the pH balance in the tank and encourage beneficial bacteria to break down waste.
These items should NEVER be flushed down the toilet:
Maintain clean pipes.
Use white vinegar to maintain clean kitchen and bathroom drains. Periodically, pour a half cup down the drain, let it sit for at least an hour (the longer, the better), and then run water down the drain. Add baking soda to break up clogs.
Any heavy chemicals such as bleach, motor oil, poisonous chemicals (even those for rats and bugs) are big no-no's for your septic tank. If you toss these down the drain you will be killing off all the good bacteria that help to break down waste and keep your system running the way it should.
While baking soda and vinegar create a bubbling reaction that might help dislodge small blockages, they are not strong enough to clear serious clogs. Additionally, the gas buildup can potentially harm older pipes. For better results, consider using a drain snake, plunger, or commercial cleaner.
Pour half a bottle of vinegar essence into the toilet bowl in the evening and leave it to work overnight. The next morning, you will be able to easily clean off any urine scale, thanks to the acetic acid it contains. You can also use this method to remove urine stains in toilet bowls and pipes.
Baking soda, borax and tea tree oil combine to make a heavy-duty toilet bowl cleaner.
Here's what you can use to get rid of limescale in the toilet:
Toilet tank water often contains dissolved minerals and organic acids from bacterial growth. Baking soda (a mild base with a pH around 8.3) reacts with these acids to form water, carbon dioxide, and neutral salts. This reaction eliminates the source of many bathroom odors.
Step 2: Pour the baking soda into the toilet bowl:
Start with about ¼ to ½ of a cup at first. Remember, the more baking soda you have, the bigger the reaction will be.