NOTE: In summary below, not all hacks have been included. I didn’t like some of them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_MleqPNdxg
- Put a magnet inside of a baggie to pick up metal parts like nails, etc.
- Use a spring from a ball point pen as stress-relief to keep your iPhone charger cord from breaking.
- Use the bottom of a water jar to catch wood or plaster when you are drilling overhead
- Use a piece of string for a taped box “easy-opener.”
- Drop an AA volt battery from about an inch. The charged battery will stay upright.
- Use a rubber band around the handle of your hammer to hold nails. Better than keeping them in your lips (which is what I used to do)
- Use a washer as a spacer when drawing a line that needs to line up to a cabinet
- Use a binder clip to hold a pencil when marking wood in repeated identical increments.
- Wrap a door handle in aluminum foil when painting the door. (Blue tape and a baggie works better.)
- Use a fork to guide your picture hanger onto the nail.
- Clean dusty surfaces with dryer sheets
- Put vinegar in a plastic bag and cover your shower head to remove buildup
- Fill blackened pan with hot vinegar, then add baking soda and scrub
- Use hot water with a drop of dishwashing detergent to clean your blender
- Use salted grapefruit halves to scrub your bathtub, then rinse well.
- To clean your grill pan, discard the oil then put a very wet paper towel on the pan to steam clean it.
Alternately, I boil water, then use a scrub brush to clean it. Rub in a bit of oil and let it dry while still very warm. - Microwave a wet sponge on a weekly basis to kill most of the surface germs
- To clean your coffee grinder, grind 1 TBL of white rice, then add 1 TBL baking soda, grind and wipe clean.
- Use canola oil on a paper towel to remove grease splashed while cooking.
- Use slices of white bread to pick up broken glass. Discard promptly.
- Use a brush with shoe polish to tune up REAL leather furniture.
- Spray your mattress with vodka every couple of months to freshen it, and to kill most germs
- Let your toothbrush soak in a glass of hydrogen peroxide on a weekly basis to kill germs
- Use a zip lock freezer bag as a seal-a-meal to keep things fresh longer in the freezer. Submerge food/bag in water to force out most of the air, then seal.
- When your remote control battery is dead, replace just ONE battery get you through the night. Doesn’t work? Try the other old battery. Most batteries don’t drain equally.
- I have mixed emotions on this one: Share internet cost with your neighbor and share their Wi-Fi password (or yours)
- Use strong tea with paper towels to clean mirrors and glass
- Use a dish wand with half vinegar and half dish soap in the shower to freshen up corners, etc.
- Use lemon or grapefruit with salt to clean shower and sink hardware
- Use a cloth soaked in distilled white vinegar and wrap stubborn hardware
- Use a toothbrush to get to hard-to-reach areas
- Toss your toothbrush glass into the dishwasher every once in awhile
- Dump about 4 C of white vinegar into the tank of your toilet. Let rest about an hour, then flush.
- Clean your toilet brush by pouring pine-sol in your toilet bowl. Let the brush rest in the toilet for an hour, then scrub and flush.
- Vaccuum your dryer can and filter every once in awhile. Use a paper towel holder as an extender.
- Use used toilet paper tubes for organizing wires
- For a quick fix, use a strip of a rubber glove if you don’t have plumbers tape
- Home-made fly strips: 2 T sugar, 2 T syrup, 2 T honey – microwave – coat grocery bag strips
- Alka Selzer for removing stains from oddly shaped glass containers
- Garbage can smells: Store Coffee Gronds wrapped in a dryer sheet in the bottom of the can
- Store grocery bags in a handi-wipes container. Me: I cram them into used paper towel rolls. Each tube holes about 15 bags.
- Store cup cake liners in a mason jar
- Use wire magazine holders for potatoes, onions, boxes of wrap, etc.
- Use clip clothes hangers for storing your opened bags of chips
- Use emptied dry bottles for dry food storage – just make sure they are totally dry before filling
- Use lazy susan rotate shelves to save space – Home Depot has rotator metal pieces for creating your own
or use two pie pans with marbles in between them to act as the rollers
- For water-proofing, rub a clear candle on your shoes, then use a hair dryer to melt the wax into the fabric.
- Spray your snow shovel with non-stick cooking spray to keep the snow from building up on it. Works with mud too.
- Leave your oven cracked open after baking to take advantage of the residual heat during cold nights.
- Slide pipe foam over the bottom of your door to minimize drafts
- Use rice in a sock tossed in a microwave for a hand-warmer.
- Cut chip bag appropriately so you can use it as its own bowl
- Use a CD/DVD container for a lunch-box / travel bagel container
- Here is the magical procedure for folding T-Shirts
- How to get rid of old-maids in microwave popcorn
- Pringles Dispenser
- Make your own CD envelope
- Power outage? Use a gallon jug of water and a flashlight to create a lamp
- Rubber band to keep door from locking behind you
A Key Hiding Hole
