This post may contain affiliate links. These help support this website.
Today we are talking about how to clean your house with toothpaste! Plus WHY it works too.
This post was inspired by my sister in law who has a two year old that constantly gets into things. She has been known to get into MARKERS and write all over the wall 😮 Anyways, she read something online about using toothpaste to get marker off the wall, furniture, and other random places. She told me it actually worked! How?? Lol
So, I decided it was worth doing a full post on Chemistry Cachet to share with everyone.
How To Clean Your House With Toothpaste Plus WHY It Works!!
Toothpaste is actually a pretty neat invention. Did you know that a form of toothpaste even dates back to 500 B.C?? Modern toothpaste has been perfected over the centuries to what it is now.
There are many reasons why toothpaste could work for cleaning due to the chemistry.
The Chemistry of Toothpaste
The active ingredient in toothpaste is sodium fluoride. This doesn’t play a huge role when it comes to the cleaning aspect because it is only a small percentage of the actual toothpaste. Another active ingredient is triclosan which is also a very small percentage, so it doesn’t have much of an impact on the cleaning element.
The largest part of toothpaste is the abrasives. According to Colgate, these abrasives include calcium carbonate, dehydrated silicia gels and hydrated aluminium oxides. These ingredients work to gently, yet effectively remove plaque and buildup from teeth. This is exactly how toothpaste can work to clean items around your home.
Some toothpastes also contain baking soda and hydrogen peroxide which can work for things around the home!
So, let’s check out how to clean your house with toothpaste.
IMPORTANT → All of these things are cleaned using regular white toothpaste! Gel toothpaste doesn’t work the same, so be sure to keep regular white toothpaste around.
Polish Copper
One of my favorite ways to use toothpaste around the house is for polishing copper.
How to Clean & Polish Copper With Toothpaste:
- Dab some toothpaste onto the copper.
- Scrub with a soft toothbrush in a circular motion.
- Next, Rub in small circular motions with a soft microfiber cloth.
- Rinse in hot water.
- Wipe dry.
You can see the photo below how well it removes the tarnish from the copper!
Remove Marker
I mentioned this above, but my sister-in-law has used this tip numerous time. If you have permanent marker on wood, walls, or other hard surfaces, you can use toothpaste to remove it! Squeeze some toothpaste onto the area, then with a damp cloth rub in a circular motion until toothpaste is gone. The marker should be removed by then!
Remove Crayon
This also works for crayon! If you have crayon on walls or hard furniture, use the method above to remove it. It gets rid of the waxy crayon in no time.
Clean Silver Jewelry
Just like the copper above, silver does great with toothpaste. To clean silver jewelry, add a very small drop of toothpaste to the piece, then with a soft toothbrush or microfiber cloth, rub it around well. Rinse in hot water, then dry with a soft cloth.
Clean Hair Accessories
My favorite way to use toothpaste is for hair accessories! My brush, curling iron, and straightener can all get build up from hair products. Since I am already in the bathroom, I just add a drop of toothpaste to the item, scrub with an old toothbrush, then rinse. It cleans them so good!
Clean the Bathroom
You can clean other parts of the bathroom with toothpaste too! Which makes it so convenient because you already have it in there! Toothpaste does a great job of polishing faucets, cleaning sinks, or any other place with soap scum. To clean these items, add some toothpaste to the item, scrub with an old toothbrush, then rinse. For the faucet, add some toothpaste, then rub with a damp microfiber cloth.
Clean Shower Doors
You can also clean soap scum off shower doors. Clean in a circular motion with a soft cloth then rinse with warm water.
Whiten Foggy Headlights
I used toothpaste years ago to clean the headlights on my camaro. The front was very dingy and yellowing. I added a large amount of toothpaste, scrubbed with an old toothbrush, then buffed out with a microfiber cloth. It really helped with the foggy build up! It also helped a little with the yellowing.
Clothing Stains
Toothpaste can also work on clothing stains. Many food based or ink stains can be removed with toothpaste. Add toothpaste to the stain, then rub quickly and in a circular motion. Use a damp cloth to rub off the rest of the toothpaste, or add to the washing machine in a regular wash cycle.
Feel free to experiment with other things around the house! Just remember that toothpaste has abrasives like we mentioned above, so don’t use on anything that might be vulnerable to scratching (soft stones or things like that).
Follow on Facebook | Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Hometalk
Linking with Met Monday and these link parties!
Thanks Alexis for more helpful household cleaning helps and the reason it works. Always interesting and I look forward to more of your Chemistry Hacks! I use many of them in my house cleaning.
Thanks Mary! So glad you enjoy it. I have so much fun getting to share these neat tips with everyone 🙂
Wow.. who knew toothpaste could do so much beside clean your teeth and make you foam at the mouth! I heard that toothpaste could remove water rings from wood furniture. Do you know anything about this? I would try toothpaste on tarnished silver, jewelry. Curious. my house will be “Minty fresh “.
I have tried that before for the wood, but didn’t see much of a difference. I think it might depend on the type of wood you have. It does work well for the jewelry! Such a handy tip to know since we always have toothpaste in the house 🙂
Glad that you posted other uses for toothpaste. My daughter uses toothpaste to put on a pimple overnight. I tried it and I used it on my face when I see a pimple starting to form. I was really surprised how much it shortens the life of a pimple and really helps get rid of it. Just put a dab on it overnight and by morning the swelling is gone along with the redness.
Yes, toothpaste has some great benefits for skin too!
What great tips you post!! Your site is wonderful and I appreciate all the work you put into it!!
Merry Christmas!! ?
Thank you for your kind comment Jamie! So happy you enjoy everything 🙂 Have a Merry Christmas!!
How much toothpaste would you need to clean the bathroom? I prefer baking soda and cheaper; also for coffee/tea cups, washing machine seals, etc..
Just a few teaspoons depending on area. It’s really just for fun and handy to know in case you need to clean something fast 🙂
Your little Amelia is a living doll. Thank you for posting all these incredible ideas on your blog. I read them several times and write down recipes so I can clean greener. I have a question, though. I live in the country, am on a septic system & well The water from the well has a high iron content and stains my toilet bowls orange. I’ve used vinegar to try to clean them and it helps some but not completely. I can’t use bleach or anything harsh because of the septic system. Do you have any suggestions safe for a septic system?
I hope you and your beautiful family a wondrous and joyful Christmas!
Hi Karen! Thanks so much 🙂 she is such a cutie and so sweet too!! I have a lift station, so we have to treat it similar to a septic system. There are a few things to try for the toilet. One is this all-purpose bathroom cleaner : It is safe to use and is tough on hardwater stains. Another I love to use and works for so many things is this one: You can try each one to see how they help. Both are safe for the septic!!
Thanks Alexis! I’ll definitely try both formulas to clean my toilets. I hope you and your lovely family have a wonderfully magical holiday season.
You too Karen! Thanks so much!!
Hi Alexis,
Thank you for all the interesting information. I teach at the college level and actually forwarded you site to the Chemistry professor. You make Chemistry very interesting and surely you will be an inspiration to some of our students.
I did have a question please. I have a similar issue with stain build-up, live in the country with my own septic system. I am not sure if your response had hyperlinks but they did not come through on my tablet. Can you tell me what cleaners you are referring to please.
Thanks so much! Merry Christmas…
That’s awesome Maria! I hope everyone enjoys it 🙂 Sure, here are the links again. One is this bathroom cleaner, the other is this two ingredient cleaner. Let me know if you have other questions!
Great ideas! I buy a package of six soft bristle toothbrushes at The Dollar store to use for cleaning jewelry, etc. The soft bristles don’t scratch the item and you can’t beat the price!
Those toothbrushes are great for cleaning!
Use a tooth paste with old tooth brush to clean washing machine seal of mold and scum. Apply toothpaste inside seal with finger, gently brush inside seal with brush. Wipe excess off inside seal with dish cloth while checking often for black mold and scum on cloth. When complete, Use a mixture of baking soda and hot water (4oz.) Use hot water and run normal cycle on machine. Leave door on machine slightly open when finished to allow machine to dry internally.