This may seem somewhat counter-intuitive, but ketchup works as an effective polish for silverware and stainless steel or copper pots and pans. There is more to our favorite red stuff than playing the french fry’s best companion. Simply squirt a little on, scrub with a scouring pad, and rinse the residue away with warm water.
Who would have known that a simple condiment like ketchup could actually be such a great cleaning agent? It’s enough to make you wonder who thought of this method in the first place. How many of us see something dirty and think to clean it with the same thing we put on burgers?
Help Your Sink Drain With a Toothbrush
If your kitchen sink doesn’t drain quite as well as it used to, you can scrub it clean with an old toothbrush and then drop sliced lemons in the garbage disposal to freshen everything up. It should go without saying, of course, that this should only be done with a toothbrush that you don’t plan on ever using again…at least, not on your teeth. Luckily, though, this is a great excuse to get rid of that old brush you needed to replace anyway.
Besides, it’s unhealthy to use the same toothbrush for too long. Even if you used a new toothbrush for this method, though, it wouldn’t be such a big deal. They tend to be pretty cheap, and you definitely don’t need anything fancy for this technique!
Make an Organic Insect Repellant
Do you have pests eating up your herbs and veggies, but you don’t want to use harmful insecticides? Try making your own bug spray with ingredients you’ve probably got lying around your kitchen. All you need for this hack is a spray bottle, a couple of heads of garlic, some mint leaves, dish soap, and a few teaspoons of cayenne pepper. Don’t worry – this spray is for your garden, not your skin.
Toss your garlic and mint leaves into a food processor or chop them as finely as possible if you don’t have access to one. Meanwhile, boil ten cups of water and add your cayenne pepper. Combine everything into one pot and boil for 2-3 minutes. Once your concoction cools completely, strain and pour it into spray bottles along with a few squirts of liquid dish soap. Use the mixture to spray on areas where pests are most prevalent.
Easily Clean Your Microwave
When you cook things like soup in the microwave, pops, and splatters can leave the inside looking more than a little messy, and there si nothing more disgusting than opening the device and discovering dry and moldy leftovers from the last time you used it. To clean it without much scrubbing, just nuke a bowl full of vinegar or a sliced lemon, then wipe it down with a wet sponge!
This is definitely going to be a lot of help for any microwave owner because cleaning it thoroughly can be quite difficult. Many of us live with people who don’t clean up after themselves properly, so the grime and grease can get dry and hard to clean. No longer!
Keep Your Sponge Fresh With a Binder Clip
Holding your dish sponges with binder clips is a great way to keep them on your sink without taking up so much space. And, as an added bonus, this method of storage helps air-dry them quickly—which is more sanitary and keeps bacteria from building up on the sponge. It should also be noted that this wonderful method of air-drying your sponges and keeping them easy to access is dirt cheap.
Binder clips cost next to nothing; chances are, you already have more than a few of them in your home anyway! If you don’t already, they’re definitely worth picking up the next time you’re out at the office supply store. Not only can you use them for the kitchen sink, but they’re always good to keep around just in case you need to, you know, hold a number of different pieces of paper together, right?