When cleaning the floor in a small, enclosed room, what's the correct ratio of bleach to ammonia?

[Orrex]

I'm on a cleaning binge, so I also picked up a chunk of sodium because I heard it does a great job cleaning the toilet bowl.

[tigereye]

1. hmm, are you sure you should mix those? I don't think that's wise...

or are you just teasin?

[Brigid]

22. I think I've heard that too.

Thank God I never tried it.

[Critters2]

30. It's a truly bad idea. Ammonia and bleach is the recipe for chlorine gas,

which is so toxic it was used as a chemical weapon in WWI, and as a gassing agent in some of the camps during the Holocaust.

So, I'm assuming Orrex was just teasin. I hope.

[realisticphish]

2. if you put the sodium in the toilet

PLEASE videotape it

[MajorChode]

3. If you have a canary, you can use it to tell when you've added enough ammonia

[Bunny]

4. Two cups bleach to two cups ammonia.

Be sure to keep all doors and windows tightly closed. Too much ventilation will dilute the cleaning properties. Check back in later and let us know how it went.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

5. You're evil.........

Can I be on your team when the revolution comes?

[hobbit709]

8. Come the revolution

I can think of much more fun things to mix out of easily available ingredients.
They're worried that someone might learn these things on the internet. I learned these things at the public library in a small town back in the 60's.

[trof]

29. Yeah, 1 to 1 sounds about right.

<choke...gasp>
:rofl:

[hobbit709]

6. Unless you like breathing chlorine

the ratio is 0 to 0

[HopeHoops]

7. NEVER NEVER NEVER MIX BLEACH AND AMMONIA!

What the FUCK are you THINKING!

AAAAAAAARRRGGGGHHH!!!!

[LynneSin]

51. SHUSH!!!! WE could have a Darwin Award winner here!!

:hide:

Just kidding - :loveya: Orrex!

[Ptah]

9. I'm with hobbit709

0:0

[mysuzuki2]

10. make sure all the doors and windows are closed

and, oh yeah I almost forget, make sure your affairs are in order.

[Strong Atheist]

18. Belated Welcome to DU!

:toast:

[dixiegrrrrl]

42. Yeah...about those affairs in order...I will pm my address for the insurance policy.

[texanwitch]

11. You won't be in a small room for long.

:scared:

[krispos42]

13. He'll proceed to an even-smaller box...

O8)

[peekaloo]

12. be sure and attach the cleaning sponges to your face.

they'll help cushion the face plant.

[Tektonik]

14. Any ratio is good, especially if you add water,

you will end up in the ER.

[many a good man]

15. Five-to-One

Baby, one in five. No one here gets out alive.

[krispos42]

16. Remember, you want to powder that sodium before you use it...

...kinda like Comet.

[realisticphish]

24. haha nt

[meow2u3]

17. The proper proportion of bleach to ammonia is ZERO

...unless, of course, you're suicidal. Ammonia and bleach are a lethal combination.

[Deja Q]

19. That depends. How many gastropods have you found?

:hide:

[Nikia]

20. You'd be suprised how many people think this is a good idea

Along with bleach and other combinations like vinegar. They think that bleach is harmless because it is sold in a grocery store. I have worked at 2 companies that encouraged general employees to do janitorial type cleaning without have any procedures for it. Many of these employees used cleaning chemicals unsafely because they didn't know any better.

[Critters2]

31. I use bleach, and therefore, I don't even have ammonia in the house.

I shudder to think how the beagle might get into those two things when I'm not looking.

[LynneSin]

52. I can't stand the smell of Chlorine - it makes me puke

Therefore I am all Ammonia

[Roon]

48. When I worked at the mall in housekeeping

a kid mixed bleach and toilet bowl cleaner and burned his forarm something terrible. He was in the hospital for days. Got good workman's comp though!

[Critters2]

21. I once made that mistake, sort of...

I was cleaning a litter box, which apparently had trace ammonia built up in it, as they are wont to do. I wanted to disinfect, so I pulled out the Clorox spray cleaner. You know, "with bleach". It killed the germs. Hell, it damn near killed me. It's pretty amazing how quickly it takes effect. I realized what was happening, so threw it out the back door, rinse it with the hose, and then tossed it in the garbage.

Not a mistake I'll make twice.

[havocmom]

27. had an apartment manager end up in hospital when she mixed the two cleaners

Lucky for her, it was a nice day, windows were open and her strapping daughter came in just as she was overcome. Daughter hauled her ass outside. If windows had been shut and no one else had come in, doctors figured she would have died right soon.

[Critters2]

28. It was amazing how quickly I began to feel the effects.

I can see how someone who didn't know what was happening, or couldn't get to fresh air, could be overcome...and the worst could happen.

[Why Syzygy]

40. Me too ..

except it was the toilet bowl. I had cleaned it with Comet, THOUGHT I rinsed it well, and dumped in the bleach. Had to leave the bathroom in a hurry, even with that small amount of contamination.

[northernlights]

23. I'd toss the sodium in the bowl first

let us know how that works out. Then we'll get back to you on the bleach and ammonia mix. :rofl::rofl::rofl:

[Why Syzygy]

41. What's with the sodium?

In the toilet bowl? I'm at a loss on that one.

[northernlights]

44. pure sodium (not sodium ions)

is highly reactive in air and water.

Can burst into flame on contact with air.
Can explode on contact with water.
Is normally stored under kerosene or something to that effect.
Most of the Group 1 metals are highly, highly reactive -- that single, high energy valence electron is desperate to escape, lol.

[Why Syzygy]

46. I know the feeling at times.

;)

[havocmom]

25. Unless you are suicidal, put the bottles down

Do we need to call a counselor for you?

[Believing Is Art]

26. Hey, Orrex, you still there?

Orrex?

. . .

[A HERETIC I AM]

32. This just in; Pic of Orrex's house....

[Believing Is Art]

34. Orrex is dead.

Long live Orrex.

[triguy46]

33. Don't do acid and base. This is bad. But that sodium idea will certainly work.

[arbusto_baboso]

35. How much of your lungs do you want to cough up?

That should determine your ratio.

[Why Syzygy]

36. LOL! As you've been warned . DON'T do it!

Is this a test?

Mixing those two chemicals produces a toxic vapor at the least. An explosion at worst.

[Xipe Totec]

37. I heard if you eat pinto beans and French's mustard

you can make mustard gas...

[Z_I_Peevey]

38. Just because no one else has posted this so far:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqAxcs9lC1U&feature=related


Sodium!

[LaurenG]

39. Yeah... no!

Lets see you're trying to blow up your toilet and die of respiratory failure at the same time huh!

So are you adding equal amounts or are you adding more of one than the other?

So what are you brewing nitrogen trichlorid or hydrazine?

[GoddessOfGuinness]

43. It doesn't matter, as long as you don't accidentally mop this up...

:sarcasm:

[jmowreader]

45. My cleaning war story

I was getting my barracks ready for Sergeant Major McKnight's visit, and told one of my troops to mop the stairwell really well. The stairwell was made of polished white concrete with colorful pea gravel in it--really pretty. The troop who cleaned the stairs came in and said "don't go in the stairwell, I think I fucked up. I think I put too much ammonia in the bleach water." It's a damn good thing we all had gas masks.

[jakefrep]

47. The sodium has to be flushed down the toilet for maximum effect.

Bleach + Ammonia = BAD.

[TreasonousBastard]

49. Before you mix the bleach and ammonia, it is important to...

light a small candle, preferably surrounded by steel wool or sawdust.

[Deep13]

50. I don't know, so just make sure you use a lot of both.

Make sure you soak that sodium over night.

[mikeytherat]

53. When I worked at Micky D's (high school), a co-worker mixed two gallons of bleach

and about a gallon of ammonia. Fortunately, we were located right next door to NASA, and their hazmat team was there pretty quickly.

mikey_the_rat

[Brewman_Jax]

54. The ratio should be...

1 to 1, with just enough water to cover the mop. If you can get some potassium, that will really add some punch to it!