When you're faced with a tough cleaning chore, it's piece of cake to get frustrated — and tempting to get creative with how you combat it. Simply earlier y'all attain for every cleaning product under your sink and start playing chemist, take caution. "People oftentimes think that if one product works, mixing it with another one will make it fifty-fifty better," says Carolyn Forte, Director of the Expert Housekeeping Establish Cleaning Lab.

But here'southward the scary truth: "Certain products, which are safe when used lone, can sometimes crusade dangerous fumes or other chemic reactions when mixed with other products," says Nancy Bock, Senior VP of Didactics at the American Cleaning Institute. And even if your advertizement-hoc cleaner combo isn't dangerous or toxic, you can never exist sure what effect two products tin can take on a surface or cloth when combined.

Ever read the warning and ingredient labels on cleaning products — and never mix these:


i. Bleach + Vinegar

Cleaning Products to Not Mix

Katja Cho

The combination sounds like it'd be a powerful disinfectant, only the two should never be mixed. "Together, they produce chlorine gas, which even at low levels, can cause coughing, breathing problems, and burning, watery eyes," says Forte.


2. Baking Soda + Vinegar

Cleaning Products to Never Mix

Katja Cho

We're calling yous out, Pinterest: Although these pantry staples are handy on their own — both baking soda and vinegar can aid clean all over the house — yous should skip any DIY cleaner recipe that involves this not-and so-dynamic duo.

"Baking soda is basic and vinegar is acidic," says Bock. "When you put them together you go more often than not water and sodium acetate. Merely actually, just generally h2o." Plus, vinegar causes blistering soda to cream up. If stored in a closed container, the mixture tin can explode.


3. Bleach + Ammonia

Cleaning Products You Shouldn't Mix

Katja Cho

Bleach and ammonia produce a toxic gas called chloramine. "It causes the same symptoms every bit bleach and vinegar — along with shortness of breath and chest pain," says Forte. Many drinking glass and window cleaners contain ammonia, and so never mix those with bleach.


iv. Drain Cleaner + Drain Cleaner

Cleaning Products To Never Mix

Katja Cho

"I would never recommend mixing two different bleed cleaners or even using one right after the other," says Forte. "These are powerful formulas, and could fifty-fifty explode if combined." Utilise ane product according to package directions (typically, only half a bottle is needed per treatment). If it doesn't work, don't effort another product. Instead, call a plumber, Forte says.


5. Hydrogen Peroxide + Vinegar

Cleaning Products to Never Mix

Katja Cho

You may have heard that you should spray fruits or countertops with alternating mists of hydrogen peroxide and vinegar, wiping down the surface between sprays. Experts say this method is safe — just don't mix the ii products in the same container. Combining them creates peracetic acid, which is potentially toxic and tin irritate the pare, eyes, and respiratory system.


6. Bleach + Rubbing Alcohol

Cleaning Products to Never Mix

Katja Cho

Perhaps you've heard of chloroform? You know, the stuff kidnappers in the movies put on rags to knock out their victims? Although it might not actually make you pass out, this combination can exist irritating and toxic. Go far a dominion to never mix bleach with annihilation simply plain water. "Fifty-fifty other products like window and toilet bowl cleaners can have ingredients, like acids or ammonia, that shouldn't be mixed with bleach," says Forte.


preview for 5 Lemon Cleaning Hacks You Never Knew Existed