I Made a Nontoxic Carpet Cleaner, and It Made Me Want to Vacuum Regularly

Written by

Shifrah Combiths
Shifrah Combiths
With five children, Shifrah is learning a thing or two about how to keep a fairly organized and pretty clean house with a grateful heart in a way that leaves plenty of time for the people who matter most. Shifrah grew up in San Francisco, but has come to appreciate smaller town…read more
updated Dec 16, 2024
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A mixture of of borax, baking soda, and drops of essential oil is sprinkled onto the geometric carpet and it is being vacuumed up
Credit: Joe Lingeman

Unlike grout cleaning and emptying the dishwasher, vacuuming is a household chore that I don’t mind doing. I love seeing all the dirt in the canister and the immediate sense of satisfaction from looking at a clean rug. Vacuuming, to me, is a chore with some of the most visible results and I like to do it at least once a week.

Recently, I wanted to really freshen up the air in our house, and decided to make a baking soda carpet deodorizer. Baking soda is a natural odor absorber, so I knew it would work. To add a scent to it, I grabbed some essential oil and sprinkled several drops into a large bowl with the baking soda. I mixed it with my hands, then tossed the pleasant-smelling deodorizer all over the carpets. I let it sit for 15 minutes, then vacuumed it up. 

Does It Work?

Yes, this baking soda carpet deodorizer really worked! The carpets looked extra fresh, I loved the barely-there scent that wafted up to me as I ran the vacuum slowly over the rugs, and when I walked in the house after running out to pick up the kids from school, I had what I was after: a fresh-smelling house

Read below to learn how to make this two-ingredient baking soda carpet deodorizer for yourself!

Credit: Joe Lingeman

What You’ll Need

Credit: Joe Lingeman

How to Make and Use a Baking Soda Carpet Deodorizer

Making a baking soda carpet deodorizer is super easy. Just follow the three steps below!

  1. Make a mixture of baking soda and essential oils. You can remix the recipe to suit your taste, but a good rule of thumb is 10 to 15 drops of essential oil for every cup of baking soda. The baking soda is doing the heavy deodorizing here, so the oils are really just for the aesthetics of the smell.
  2. To make your carpet deodorizer easy to use and dispense, you can prepare it ahead of time in a shaker jar — like a “cheese shaker” or the type you might use for salt or sugar at the table.
  3. When you’re ready, sprinkle the mixture generously over the carpet or rug and let it sit for some time before following up with the vacuum. The longer you can allow the baking soda to sit, the better it can work to absorb odors; if you can leave it on the carpet for a few hours or even overnight, you’ll really reap the benefits. But you can still use the mixture for a quick 15-minute application and enjoy the smell and a little deodorizing boost.