Baking Soda for Refrigerator Smell: Truth or Myth?

The smell of your refrigerator is less than pleasant and sometimes can be downright awful! Baking soda for fridge smell is a popular topic. It was used to absorbe odors and deodorize refrigerators all over yhe world for years and even decads! How far, today we’re discussing the most popular issues of using baking soda as an odor reagent: is it totally true? does it have any scientific basis? or is it a sort of a myth?

A bit of a History

US householders’ve been keeping an open box of baking soda in their refrigerator to absorb odors since 1970, when the now-ubiquitous tip appeared in a Good Housekeeping article. It was considered quite effective in absorbing and neutralizing odors, both inside the refrigerator and around it.

What is Baking Soda?

Baking soda is a baking ingredient that can be used as an alternative to commercial deodorizing products. Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate, it reacts with acids and bases, meaning it reacts with both acidic and alkaline chemicals. However, it is more than 20 times more effective in reacting with acids than with bases. A molecule of a smelly acid can can be trapped upon a surface of baking soda, and it will be neutralized permanently.

Generations of Americans have performed the most common ritual for eliminating odors from the home refrigerator. It’s all about you should add baking soda to a box or baking tray and place inside fridge for 24 hours, and this will absorb unpleasant smells from onions, garlic, fish etc.

Scientific Basis of using Baking Soda

The scientific basis of using baking soda for reducing odors may not hold true all the time – baking soda might have been just attributed with this ability from other sources such as its use in creating good soil conditions or cleaning surfaces. The belief about baking powder being able to fight odor was likely derived from multiple factors including the fact that baking powder contains sodium bicarbonate which acts as a base. Neverseless bicarbonates can capture acidic molecules, keep in mind that a box of baking soda has just seven square inches of landing space. Meanwhile average refrigerator air space is about 20-cubic feet.

Thus, users have come to the conclusion the above method isn’t such an efficient to capture odors in the fridge. They modified it as follows. Mix baking soda with water and spray a mixture on the inside walls, shelves and door of the fridge to eliminate odors immediately.

Even if baking soda can attract the acid molecules of spoiled milk, it does not remove bacteria or other microorganisms which are responsible for producing strong smelling gases.

Safe Alternative

Today the majority of the experts is very critical on the established order of things on using baking soda inside the fridges. It looks like this method of removing odors from fridge does not have any sufficient scientific substantiation.

Still, baking soda is a safe alternative that will not harm your refrigerator in any way. You won’t have to worry about toxic chemicals or pricey replacement fees so this would actually save you money in the long run!