Bleach is a fabulous cleaner if you know how to use it properly. It can also be quite harmful. Learn how to use bleach safely.

The scientific name for bleach is sodium hypochlorite (NaClO). It is a terrific cleaner. When you use bleach, you want to wear rubber gloves. If bleach comes in contact with your clothes, they will be discolored. When working with bleach, wear clothes that don't matter to you. Most people only know bleach as the stuff that makes their clothes and linens white. If you have never used bleach on your white fabrics, it is important to note that you don't want to use bleach on your clothes on a regular basis. It will weaken the fabrics overtime. Bleach has many more uses than making your whites whiter and dissolving tough stains.

Bleach is terrific for cleaning fish tanks. You are killing all the bacteria and all the life in your fish tank that you don't want. When cleaning your fish tank with bleach, you have to take everything out. Your plants, fish, turtles and other life all have to be transferred out. Bleach kills everything in your fish tank. If you are going to clean your fish tank with bleach, you need to make sure that you clean it really well to get all the bleach out before you bring your fish back in.

The slightest amount of bleach that gets into the water will kill your fish and plants immediately.  In fact, once you have sanitized you fish tank with bleach, you need to use is a chlorine neutralizer. For example, Aqua Plus is a product you can get for this. A chlorine neutralizer is the same stuff you use to condition your tap water when you pour it into the fish tank. Your local pet shop or fish store will have this product. Ideally, you want to use water to rinse. The chlorine neutralizer should only be used as a preventative, in case you missed a spot accidentally.  

Bleach is a great all-purpose cleaner. It is wonderful for killing mould and mildew. Mix bleach in some water and put it in a spray bottle. Do equal parts of bleach to water if you have a lot of mold. If you have only a little bit, use a third bleach to two thirds water. Spray the bleach solution where you see mould. Use it as a preventative to control mould. Use it in damp areas in your home. Basements often collect mold. If you have a cold storage or a cellar in your home, these areas are often breeding grounds for mould. If you have mould on your shower curtains, some people advice using bleach. However, bleach will discolor your shower curtains. Unless you have pure white shower curtains, don't use bleach.

Some people use bleach to kill unwanted weeds in the yard. This is a bad idea because inadvertently you will be killing plants that you do want. Especially if you are spraying bleach in a vegetable garden or a herb patch, you are eating the plants that are growing in this soil. This means that you will be indirectly ingesting bleach. However, if you have a few weeds popping up in between interlocking brick on the driveway or the patio, use a spray bottle of bleach. Just don't use bleach if you have plants or grass right beside the weeds that you want to kill.

Some people use bleach to clean surfaces in their homes. Some countertops and tabletops may discolor with bleach. It is better to use an all-purpose cleaner or vinegar for those surfaces. If you want to clean your stove, microwave and other any appliances with bleach water you can. However, if you decide to use bleach to clean your appliances, remember that bleach is poisonous in large enough quantities. You can use it but you have to make sure that you have no remnants of bleach on your appliances. Your appliances shouldn't even have the slightest smell of bleach. If you have very small children or pets, you may think twice about using bleach on appliances.

Aside from cleaning, some people recommend bleach for skin irritations. I strongly advise not listening to these instructions. In fact, it could be potentially harmful to use bleach on your skin. Bleach will burn the skin and cause eye irritation. It isn't worth trying it on your skin. However, just like people try and cure skin ailments with Windex, people also use bleach the same way.

Some people use bleach to cure poison ivy. If you have poison ivy, you can get an over-the-counter prescription. If it isn't that bad, you can use rubbing alcohol on the area. Then you wash it off with warm soapy water. However, depending on the severity of the itch, sometimes you will need a vaccine. There have been cases where people use bleach to freshen up smelly feet. If you have smelly feet, you may have a fungus. There are anti-fungal creams and lotions.

In modern medicine, bleach is used in dentistry. Bleach is used for root canals. Only a very small amount of bleach is used, not more than 1%. It is used to dissolve necrotic tissue.

If you are going to use bleach as a household cleaner, you should only ever mix it with water. Bleach cannot be mixed with anything acidic or it will become toxic. This means that vinegar and lemon juice cannot be used with bleach. Some essential oils are acidic like the citrus ones. They should not be mixed with bleach either. Acid and bleach mixed together produce chlorine gas. If you mix ammonia with bleach, you will produce chloramine (monochloramine) which is toxic in large quantities. There are all kinds of household ammonia-based cleaners such as Glass Plus and Windex. You cannot mix an ammonia-based cleaner with bleach. If bleach comes into contact with hydrogen peroxide, it will produce oxygen gas. Just mix bleach with water. Never mix it with anything else. It is very dangerous unless you have a science background and you know what you are doing.

Be careful when you clean with bleach. It is a terrific cleaner but it could be potentially dangerous if you use it incorrectly.