5 Expiration Dates You’re Forgetting to Check

Cleaning products.
Many cleaning products don’t have expiration dates on the bottle, but they do lose effectiveness over time! If you have a few rarely used cleaning supplies hiding underneath your sink, they may be out of gas. In general, expert sources say to follow these guidelines for shelf life:
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Liquid disinfectant: two years
Hand dishwashing soap: 12-18 months
Automatic dishwashing detergent: three months
Laundry detergent: six months to a year
Multi-purpose and window cleaners: two years (if they contain antibacterial ingredients, only one year)
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Tip: To prevent your household cleaners from losing their potency, store them in a dry place with a stable temperature. The next time you buy a new cleaning product, write the date you purchased it directly on the label to avoid a guessing game in the future.

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White distilled vinegar. The date you see on your vinegar bottle is a “best by” date, not a “bad by” date. This means that your vinegar may taste a little funky past that date, but you can still clean with it. Commercially produced white distilled vinegar has a virtually indefinite shelf life, according to information sourced from the United States Food & Drug Administration.

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Fire extinguishers. It’s a huge step in the right direction to have multiple fire extinguishers in your house, but that doesn’t matter very much if they don’t work! Take a look at your extinguisher’s label – most are built to last for 5-15 years, but it’s important to check the pressure, too. If the pressure gauge is green and you haven’t reached your label’s expiration date, you’re good to go! If not, it’s time to replace the extinguisher.
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Baking soda. The expiration date on your box will probably say that it’s good for three years from the date of purchase, but baking soda will start losing its effectiveness the moment it’s opened. So, when Arm & Hammer suggests you change the box after 30 days, it isn’t a total sales ploy – but it’s not a steadfast rule, either. Baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) is constantly working to neutralize the acidity or alkalinity of substances it contacts, so the longer it’s open, the less effective it’s going to be.
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To test you baking soda’s effectiveness, mix a teaspoon of it with a few tablespoons of vinegar. If there’s bubbling, then your baking soda still has cleaning power. If there aren’t any bubbles (or the bubbles are sad looking), it’s time to buy a new box.

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If your baking soda box is in the fridge among nasty foods and smells, it’s a good idea to test it (or just replace it) every few months. But, if your baking soda has been sealed and minding its own business in the back of the cabinet, it’s going to last a lot longer, and you probably don’t need to break out the vinegar just yet.

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Smoke detectors. Smoke detectors only last about ten years – do you know how old yours is? Underneath the front plate of every smoke detector is a printed manufactured date. Add ten years to that date, and that’s the absolute longest you should keep that detector.

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If it’s ten years or older, it won’t be as sensitive to smoke. In fact, about 30 percent of detectors that are ten years old don’t work at all! Even if your detectors are brand new, be sure to test your smoke detectors’ batteries every three months or so!

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