What is borax used for

For people interested in avoiding products with borax, the Environmental Working Group recommend looking for the Green Seal or EcoLogo. Just because borax is natural does not mean it is safe to ingest or handle frequently. Borax ingestion or frequent borax exposure has many possible side effects and may result in borax poisoning. The risks are especially high for children and pets, who may accidentally inhale or ingest borax.

There are other, safer products available. If you think someone has ingested or inhaled borax, call the poison control center at or the local number in your area.

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Is borax safe to use? Medically reviewed by Debra Rose Wilson, Ph. What is borax? Is it safe? Borax and children Borax and pets Risks Precautions Takeaway Borax, a naturally occurring mineral, has been an ingredient in cleaning products for decades. Unlike boric acid, sodium tetraborate is not toxic. Sodium borate is a soft white crystal that dissolves easily in water. If exposed to dry air, it loses its hydration and becomes sodium tetraborate pentahydrate.

This can be found in the same section as laundry detergents in the supermarket. The white, powdered borax that you usually find in the grocery store consists of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water. It is not boric acid, which is more acidic and might easily turn toxic if absorbed through broken skin. Borax has a wide variety of uses around the house. Did you know it has many other cleaning uses besides the laundry? Sodium borate is different from its more acidic parent, but are there any cautions?

With a pH around 9. But for occasional indirect contact, using sodium borate in things like cleaning products is safe. These less known uses for borax include non-invasive ways to improve the health of plants and animals. Used as a solution to promote fruit and seed development for fruit trees. Just spray a solution of borax powder and water onto the soil around, say, a full-grown apple tree every 3 to 4 years. The borax solution will add boron to the soil. Click here for the tops signs of boron deficiency in plants.

With the help of borax, freshly-cut flowers can be preserved for an extended period of time. Sprinkle sodium borate powder on the floor to get rid of mice. Borax can be used to combat bugs including ants, cockroaches, and other pests. Just sprinkle equal parts of borax and sugar on the area where you think the pests are present. However be wary that borax can be very toxic to small kids and pets if ingested in large quantities.

Here are several more natural methods of pest control for your yard and garden: Natural Garden Pest Control Methods. Use a diluted solution on some plants and see how they react. If it is too much dilute it some more. Rub on hands or household items to get rid of adhesive residue. Carpet Cleaner: In a pint mason jar, mix 2 cups of cornmeal with 1 cup of borax. Sprinkle the mixture over your carpets and leave for at least an hour.

Add an essential oil if you choose. Vacuum it up and enjoy fresh carpets. You can use a regular jar lid into a shaker by punching nail holes through it. For more DIY natural cleaners that are just as effective as their commercial counterparts — but much milder on your health and pocket, see our related post: Make a DIY Natural Cleaning Kit. Weed killer: Sprinkle borax on unwanted weeds and in sidewalk cracks. Not watering is necessary. Be sure you do not get any in your garden as it will kill any plant it lands on!

Flea destroyer: The humble borax can help you get rid of some of the nastiest home flea infestations. Just mix the chemical with regular table salt in equal parts and scrub the mixture onto furniture, carpet, cracks and other places fleas might have set their base. Wait 24 hours and vacuum. Repeat the process until you get rid of all the fleas in serious infestations, you might need to do it every 12 hours.

The borax-based solution will dry out both the fleas and their eggs. Old-time pink eye remedy. Simply sprinkle borax over the stump, and repeat this process intermittently over a few weeks. This should cause any shoots and growths to stop spreading. Do you have any stringed instruments, such as violins or guitars, in your possession?

If so, you can use borax to keep them in good condition and extend their overall lifespan. Just make sure that you allow the strings to dry before you begin playing again. Allow the bedding to dry, or otherwise vacuum it up, and the chances of your pets catching fleas will be reduced. Like this post? We use for Borax as a bone builder and for kind of of a cure all.

I had a toe fungus for like 25 years and nothing would kill it or make it go away I made some thick paste with water and borox and started putting a bit on my toe for a few days inside my sock and with in a week it cleared up and has never came back and my toe nail is perfect and like it never had been bad before amazing stuff.

People hundreds of years ago had way stronger bones than we do today because boron was in the soil etic Big pharma and the Elites know its a good thing so they have taken it out of our soils and or have used pesticides to kill the boron that would still be in our foods and live stock that we consume. They kill us slowly cause its big money we have to get smarter and start going back to things that worked and have been re worded or removed from our lives that are very good for us.

They even went so far as to call Borax toxic on the box so people would think it cant be used for the benefits of health it actually can do. What you eat fro the store is more likely to hurt you than consuming Borax! LOL try it works and it will make you healthier and use it for bug bites sores just about anything its safe at least ours is here in Canada read the ingredients of coarse on all others. For metalworkers and welders, wash your work clothes in Borax. It helps material shed sparks, and imparts a level of fire retardant to cotton garments like jeans.

If the Borax will deter the mice, why would they take a piece of bait that has Borax on it. Remembers me of the old 20 mule team. With prices going to the moon practical down to earth items are a requirement. Things that have multi uses regardless of what it is are an important addition to the household cabinet. Thanks for all the great info. And I will use it for everything I can.

I will also pass it on to my friends! We have a fountain that becomes clogged with algae. I use to use bleach to kill the algae. Then I recalled using Borax to control weeds. Algae is a plant. The fountain contains about gallons of water. So I began algae control with 1 cup of borax.

Some effect. So I added another cup of borax. That did it. Now I simply add a cup of borax when I see algae growth beginning. Beginning because water evaporates and I must replenish. Borax remains residual, but with rain and fountain over-flow the borax concentration diminishes.

Once dry sponge off before giving a rinse. Hope this of help to you. For fleas.. I sprinkle it lightly on the rug and next to the wall where the rug meets the wall and shuffle it in with your feet… Leave it in until you vacuum next…days later…Then repeat….. Needs to be done twice though at least and then vacuumed well. It does desiccate the eggs but there are always some fleas and the eggs that are not affected. Scrub the borax salt into carpet, rugs, furniture; sprinkle into cracks between floors and walls, etc.

I had no need for further pesticide use and have used this method many times. Is it safe or not. Please do not ingest borax. This will kill termites as well.. Borax in a paste with water makes a great soldering flux. It can also be used to prevent fire scale when anealing silver during jewelry-making.

In joining your Newsletter, cost? There is product called purple power. It is one of the greatest cleaning agents for all most all grime.

But do not use it full strength on paint it will take it off. All so I do believe it is safe on the environment. I use the purple stuff to get grease and oil stains out of his clothes. And have also used it on some blankets I had in my garage that the neighbors cat came in and sprayed his urine on , it was disgusting.

The purple power got out the pee stains AND the smell. I use Borax when necessary to raise alkalinity level in my swimming pool. Cheaper than the stuff the pool company wants to sell you. We had big blank ants around the house. My husband made peanut mix with Borax.

Ants ate it and died. He try Borax with sugar and water mixed too. Following day, we saw lots of Black ants death. Amazing but it works great! Until we find out the queen ants is death, we going to continue using Borax. Thank you to Borax product!! I used Diatomaceous Earth for ants coming in from under the house every spring. Since then, not one ant has come onder the 3 doorways. And on fur for fleas. How much borax is used as fertilizer for small areas…like very large balcony pots.

Works great and lasts forever…. Just plop it in the drum with your clothes. Made my own soap for 30 years, trial and error. I found out the hard way. Also used by blacksmiths as a flux for forge welding, forge brazing, and end-of-day hand cleaner.

Bob, Right on! I use borax as a flux when I melt lead to cast bullets.