Using bleach and vinegar for cleaning – Know your chemicals

To achieve the perfect eco friendly or brilliant clean many people are turning to household items rather than the expensive supermarket cleaners

Bleach and vinegar

Some of the most common products to be found and being regularly used for cleaning are bleach and vinegar.  People are using them in their own homes to clean anything from carpets through to toilets.  Both are fantastic products but when mixed they form Chlorine gas which is invisible to the eye in small quantities and smells a little like bleach.

Im not an expert at chemistry but here is a little bit more about the chemical reaction.  If this doesn’t make sense the main thing to take away is don’t mix them!!

Chemical reaction

One of the main ingredients in bleach is sodium hypochlorite, this is a a base. Vinegar is an acid known as acetic acid. When bleach is mixed with vinegar, the sodium hypochlorite takes a proton from the vinegar, this reaction generates hypochlorous acid.

The hypochlorous acid then reacts with the rest of the vinegar. Because hypochlorous acid is an oxidizing agent, it takes electrons from whatever it comes into contact with (This is why bleach is so good at removing stains). When the chlorine atom in the hypochlorous acid takes electrons from the vinegar, chlorine gas is formed.

Chlorine Gas

Chlorine was recently used in a chemical weapon attack in Syria and was frequently used in world war one.
Please do not make the mistake of gassing yourself while cleaning.  If you are exposed to chlorine gas it can cause burning pain, blisters, watery eyes, trouble breathing, vomiting and other effects.