# Does bleach + urine = kaboom? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 22, 2017, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358 "2017-08-22T13:10:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Alia\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Alia\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alia_S)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/1 "2017-08-22T13:10:49Z")
I read about E. coli living in washing machines and decided to wash my family’s underwear and other especially dirty items separately with bleach. I have 3 young boys and there is often a significant amount of urine in their underwear. Should I run a prewash cycle to get the pee out before using the bleach? Don’t want any hydrogen gas or explosions happening in the laundry room :eek: ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/2 "2017-08-22T13:32:05Z")
There’s not nearly enough ammonia in urine stains to create a chlorine bomb. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/3 "2017-08-22T13:48:31Z")
Some previous threads on the subject. Mostly good information there. [Mustard gas = Bleach + Ammonia?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=550634) [Would mixing urine and bleach create toxic fumes?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=126350) ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/4 "2017-08-22T13:49:41Z")
Let’s say that a renegade member of the Justice Commandos of the Armenian Genocide decides that he’s gonna take out the Sears Tower. Can he do it by standing in the lobby and peeing into a half-empty bottle of Clorox? ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/5 "2017-08-22T15:39:15Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > Let’s say that a renegade member of the Justice Commandos of the Armenian Genocide decides that he’s gonna take out the Sears Tower. Can he do it by standing in the lobby and peeing into a half-empty bottle of Clorox? From what I gathered from the previous thread. Peeing in bleach will release chloramine, which is bad smelling and can burn people’s eyes but is not a serious threat. In order to form chlorine gas which is deadly the urea in the urine would have to be broken down into ammonia first. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/6 "2017-08-22T16:25:40Z")
> [@Alia\_S](#): > > I read about E. coli living in washing machines and decided to wash my family’s underwear and other especially dirty items separately with bleach. I have 3 young boys and there is often a significant amount of urine in their underwear. Should I run a prewash cycle to get the pee out before using the bleach? Don’t want any hydrogen gas or explosions happening in the laundry room :eek: Based on my experience with washing the clothing and bedding of incontinent elderly adults… it won’t be a problem. I also use bleach to clean toilet bowls. Having the occasional person pee into the toilet prior to flushing the bleach away has not generated any explosions over the years. So, wash without worry. ---
**Author:** ![Sdowiat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Sdowiat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sdowiat)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/7 "2020-04-30T14:24:06Z")
I’m going to tell you about the greatest ( and most dangerous ) discovery of my life, and it occurred at 16 years old and got me out of a LOT of hard work… But I DON’t recommend that you use it. My first job was at 16 working at a steakhouse. One warm spring evening we were kinda slow and the boss drew lots to either clock out and go home or go clean the dumpster area. I drew the short straw but needed the money so I headed ( with no direction ) the the storeroom to get some cleaning materials. I wanted something that I thought might have some power in them so I grabbed up a couple jugs of bleach and a big jug of Lime Away and a long handled scrub brush… I don’t think I even got any soap… just some good “chemicals” to start off with. I went out, took a hose and sprayed down the whole thing ( so the chemicals would spread out I figured ) then commenced to splashing first bleach and them Lime Away over the whole place. Didn’t take less than a minute, I was having trouble emptying out the last jug because the smell coming up not only stank but was a harsh hard to breath smell. Then the smoke… the white fog like smoke began enveloping th.e whole dumpster area. I could tell then that it was a bad and likely dangerous mixture. Since I could’t be there working and breathing it, and I was afraid to go back and tell my boss what was happening, I decided to head a hundred yards away down by the creek, where I could sit in the shade but still be close and watch what was happening and know if anyone came out looking for me. No body ever did, and the fog continued to cover the dumpster area for quite a while… the smell even reached down to the creek and I got nervous that someone might call the authorities! Finally, after an hours or so the smoke started subsiding and I came back up to have a look at it. I was amazed! That dumpster area had never looked so clean. The black greasy stuff on the dumpsters and the concrete floor were ALL GONE. Even places where I hadn’t even splashed the mixture was clean. ( I attribute that to the chemical fog I guess ) I didn’t even have to turn on the hose to clear out any missed places… although I did hose it down to try to further dilute the chemicals and dissipate the remaining smell. It was so clean that I was afraid my bosses would somehow “KNOW” that I had done something like what I did… but they didn’t. They DID notice… they raved about it the next day. Held me up as an example of what hard work and a little “elbow grease” can do! And the owner who also owned another restaurant next door asked me if I’d do the same on that dumpster if he let me do it one the clock plus paid me $25 extra. I made sure we had the right chemicals in stock first then took him up on it! It even got to be a semi regular thing… They would schedule me for Dumpster Cleaning, pay me $25 extra and I’d go splash out the bleach and Lime Away and go play in the creek a while. In hindsight now… I wonder if the bosses actually KNEW how I was cleaning that area. They should have known that what I did was making no sense, and they had to order and pay for the chemicals… Maybe they loved it clean and wanted plausible deniability. I’ guess I’ll never know. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/8 "2020-04-30T15:06:14Z")
Wow, that’s some scary good cleaning **Sdowiat**! ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/9 "2020-04-30T15:45:39Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > In order to form chlorine gas which is deadly the urea in the urine would have to be broken down into ammonia first. This decomposition occurs readily enough I’m water, but it’s slow without a catalyst. Urea and hypochlorite react to form chlorourea, which hydrolyzes to chloramines. Piss is some pool water and you’ll smell it. Mix concentrated solutions and you’ll cause an explosion. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/10 "2020-04-30T17:37:29Z")
I read in a household hints column\* once that is was not necessarily a good idea to wash out a cat’s litter box with bleach. I guess given enough time the urea in cat pee will break down into ammonium on its own. \*No, it wasn’t from that episode of _King of the Hill_. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/11 "2020-04-30T18:18:02Z")
OP don’t worry. I’ve been cleaning with bleach forEVER. Never had a reaction to pee. With 1 husband, 3 kids and countless pets it’s not been an issue. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/12 "2020-04-30T19:15:13Z")
Looking at the ingredients for [Kaboom](https://www.innit.com/nutrition/kaboom-cereal/p/00016000275355), I see neither bleach nor urine listed. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2020, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/13 "2020-05-01T01:17:11Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > Let’s say that a renegade member of the Justice Commandos of the Armenian Genocide decides that he’s gonna take out the Sears Tower. Can he do it by standing in the lobby and peeing into a half-empty bottle of Clorox? Probably depends on the quality of his aim. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2020, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-bleach-urine-kaboom/794358/14 "2020-05-01T03:35:14Z")
Zombie or not, that was a great story, **Sdowiat**!!! Welcome to the board!