Can you mix sodium tetraborate decahydrate (Borax) with sodium hypochlorite (liquid household bleach or Chlorox) in a solution? Is this dangerous or toxic? I heard never mix anything with bleach, but pool cleaners often use both chemicals at the same time. Thank you.
Hello Bill,
Bleach is a strong oxidizing agent, so it will react with any reducing agent. With ammonia, the result is chloramine, a nasty gas. With hydrochloric acid, you get chlorine gas, even nastier. Borax can't be oxidized, so there's no problem.