Cleaning and maintaining your household requires a great deal of time and effort and can lead to a large amount of stress. This article looks to change this problem and reduce both the time and effort required to clean and maintain your house. We have compiled a list of tricks, tips, and household hacks that will save you time, energy, and even money. Some of these tips you may have heard or seen before, but others will surprise and amaze you. Some of these tips will streamline your cleaning techniques and improve your efficiency. Other tips will allow you to clean with natural, homemade cleaning ingredients, which will save you money. Other tips will make you say “ WOW! Why didn’t I think of that?!
1. You Can Clean Your Stinky Mason Jars with Mustard
A teaspoon of mustard and some hot water will take the funk out of your jars—and works on plastic containers, too.
2. Get Rid of That Nasty Smell in Your Shoe Closet with… An Onion?
As counterintuitive as it sounds, use an cut onion half to eliminate odors. Just leave the onion out overnight to absorb all the nasty smells; when the onion smell fades, so will the other lingering odors.
3. Use Activated Charcoal in Your Fridge to Eliminate Any Lingering Food Smells
Baking soda is nowhere near as effective as activated charcoal.
4. Vodka Ain’t Just for Getting Drunk—It Can Make You Smell Good, Too
Pour some cheap vodka into a spray bottle, spritz your clothes, then wait for the clothes to dry. When the alcohol evaporates, so will your stank.
5. Use Imitation Vanilla Extract to Tame Those Nasty Paint Fumes
Add one tablespoon per quart of freshly-opened paint and mix thoroughly until well-incorporated. Your kitchen renovation will smell sublime (or at least, a lot less crappy than it used to).
6. Got Smelly Hands After Handling Fish? Baking Soda Can Help with That
Just a teaspoon of baking soda to your hand soap will banish that lingering smell.
7. Keep Your Home Smelling Sublime by Dabbing Baking Extract on a Light Bulb
You can also use cologne or perfume if that’s what you prefer—just make sure you apply the extracts or scents to a cold light bulb, not one in use!
8. Use a Potato & Some Kosher Salt to Get the Grime Out of Your Cast Iron
Add salt to your pan, then scrub with a cut potato.
9. No Mop Needed—Use Flour to Clean Up Those Kitchen Spills
Heap a pile of flour onto that spilt liquid, let it soak, then sweep it up with a broom and dustpan.
10. Hate Windex? Use Vodka for a Streak-Free Shine
Spritz your window with vodka to keep it clean (just be sure to use something cheap).
11. Use Leftover Coffee Ground to Gently Scrub Pots & Pans
Ditch the steel wool and scrub with used coffee grounds to get out stubborn grime on more delicate pots.
12. Don’t Toss Your Dirty Frying Oil—Use Gelatin to Clean It for Reuse
The powdered gelatin traps all of the food particles in your dirty oil when left overnight.
13. It’s True: You Can Clean Your Silver (& Copper) With Ketchup
Use a thin coating of ketchup on your tarnished silverware, then let it sit for up to half an hour before washing it off.
14. If Your Sponges & Mops Are Getting Nasty, Just Soak Them in Salt Water
Add ¼ cup of salt to a quart of water and let your sponges and mops soak overnight.
The beer removes the dullness of years and adds a nice, shiny coat.
16. Keep Fruit Flies Out by Sticking 20-30 Cloves in Apples or Oranges
Fruit flies hate the smell of cloves, and hanging an orange pincushion full of cloves keeps them away naturally.
17. Green Tea Can De-Grime a Toilet Bowl
Just throw a teabag of green tea into your toilet bowl and let it soak, then flush and say goodbye to that nasty grime!
18. Lemons Are Excellent at Cleaning Copper Pots & Pans
The mild citric acid in lemons breaks down surface tarnish and makes your copper pots and pans gleam like new again.
19. They’re Also a Great Way to Clean Your Gunky Dishwasher
Just add a lemon peel when you’re doing a load of dishes in the dishwasher—the citric acid in lemons is great at dissolving soap scum, removing hard water deposits, polishing, and disinfecting.
20. And They Make Nasty Odors from Your Garbage Disposal Go Away
Throw lemon rinds into your garbage disposal, then grind them to release their fresh, citrusy scent.
21. Hate Those Ugly Rust Spots on Your Knives? Lemons Are the Answer
Soak your rusty knives in a solution of equal parts lemon juice and water for 10 minutes, then rinse and wipe them dry.
22. Lemons Are a Great Way to Disinfect Your Wooden Cutting Boards, Too
Put kosher salt on your board, then use a cut piece of lemon to scrub the salt into the surface.
Cleaning Where You Cook:
The most annoying part about cooking is the cleaning at the end… it’s like the unexpectedly crappy ending of what was shaping up to be a good movie. Hopefully, these will take the work (and annoyance) out of those future cooking experiences.
23. Don’t Bother with Scrubbing—Use Ammonia to Clean Your Grill Grates
The fumes from ammonia are what works here, not the liquid itself, so only a little bit is necessary. Just make sure you seal it tightly in a bag (and as further precaution, I put the bags outside), as the fumes are toxic.
24. You Can Also Use Aluminum Foil to Clean Those Grates as Well
If the gunk on your grates isn’t too thick yet, wadded-up aluminum foil works just as good—if not better—than any grill brush.
25. Use Sugar Cubes & Water to Get Rid of Scorched Spots on Pots
Only a small amount of water is necessary or the cubes will melt, though.
26. Pickle Juice Does a Bang-Up Job of Cleaning Copper Cookware
Use that leftover pickle juice that you’ve got sitting in the fridge to polish your copper pots and pans.
27. Your Blender Cleans Itself—Just Add Soap & Water, Then Blend for 30 Seconds
So simple, yet so effective.
28. A Cut Onion Both Disinfects & Cleans Grill Grates Right Before Cooking
Just rub the cut surface of the onion on your grates as they’re heating up—the grime will stick to the onion and not on your grates.
29. Keep Your Stove Easy to Clean with Car Wax
Polish your stove with car wax, then prepare to be amazed at how easy it is to clean off spills and stains in the future.
30. Get Rid of Those Gross Coffee Stains in Your Cups & Your Pot with Cafiza
Combine 1 tablespoon of Cafiza with a quart of water, then soak your dirty cups and coffee pots for 30 minutes. The stains will wash right off during a rinse!
31. Scour Your Bowls & Plates with Leftover Eggshells
This is a great way to use leftover eggshells. Just crush up some eggshells, add them to your hard-to-clean dish or bowl, then scrub with a sponge and soap.
32. Make a Baking Soda Paste to Get Rid of Unsightly Scuff Marks on Plates
Rub the baking soda and water paste into the scuff marks and watch them magically disappear.
33. Mix Baking Soda, Dried Mint & Salt Together for a Natural Cleaner
Then, add water and scrub away at your sink, plates, pots, or pans.
34. This Sounds Nuts, but It’s True: Use Mayo to Clean Your Piano Keys
The mayonnaise polishes your ivories and gets rid of the need for an expensive piano cleaner.
35. Don’t Bother with a Produce Cleaner—Use Vinegar Instead
A 10% vinegar solution does a great job of cleaning off any residual dirt or chemicals on your fruits and veggies. Just make sure you rinse thoroughly afterward.
36. Use Tea Bags Full of Activated Charcoal to Filter Your Water
Save your cash and skip the Brita filters, because teabags are just as effective. Let them soak for an hour, then enjoy your filtered water.
