Household Hints and Tips:-

Subject: Avoid Carpet Dents.   Scraps of carpet cut in to circles can be used to stop chairs and sofas from making dents. -- Veronica Smith LA 12 Jun 2007

Subject: Zip Top Freezer Bags... Have difficulty getting them open? Take scissors and snip a fair sized "V" in one side of the top strip (don't cut into the 'sealer') and you will find it easy to gain access without the frustration. Also if you find it difficult to fill small freezer bags you might try putting them inside a measuring cup, folding a small flap down over the edges of the cup. Then it's easy to fill with foodstuffs and prevent the bag collapsing and the resultant spills. Same holds true for larger bags if you find a suitable sized bowl or can to place the bags in.  "shelly" 10 Oct 2002

Airwick Scented Oil refills - Empty   Hi - when my Airwick scented oil refills are empty, instead of throwing them away, I put them in my lingerie drawer, handkerchief drawer, closet or linen cupboard. It makes everything smell divine, finishes off the last few drops of oil productively, makes a few less glass containers for the landfill and means I don't have to buy scented closet/drawer fresheners. Meg Gagie  London, Ontario, Canada   

If you have an older house you can save money on your heating bills by blocking up unused chimneys.  Plastic foam is the best but I usually end up using old clothes -- Peter and Thelma Jones  Alicante Spain

Subject: Protect your pans - When stacking your pans prevent you can prevent damage to the surface coating by inserting a paper towel or large paper plates between them. It will also prevent any remaining dampness from rusting cast-iron pans. "A good pan is hard to find" -- Anon

Subject: Repairing Burned Carpet
I have on occasion had to repair this problem. First cut away any brown area that has melted, then in a spot close to the wall clip some of the fabric. You then glue this on top of the burn spot. If done correctly with some patience this will work effectively to cover the burn with little to notice. -- Anon

Subject: Smelly Sponges: Regular cellulose kitchen sponges tend to get smelly, and the odor transfers onto your hands when you use the sponge. We have found that a spray of Febreeze (or any fabric odor remover, I would imagine) keeps that nasty odor away. -- ESD1

Re-using Soap: Utilising these little pieces of soap that are always left over. Add a little glycerine and mash them up with a little warm water and you will have a liquid soap that is gentle and economical --  Essie 2000

Hi, I am Ashwaty Nair From India. Recently I visited your site and I simply loved it. It is an extremely helpful and useful one. Here are a few handy hints from my side. Hope you'll accept them:

To bring back the fluffiness in bed pillows, put them in the clothes dryer. The warm air does wonders in just a few minutes.

If an electric plug fits too tight and is difficult to pull out, rub its prongs with a soft lead pencil.

To clean a candle stand especially a glass one, place it in the deep freezer for one hour. The wax will chip off more easily .

Sprinkle a little boric acid on bathroom tiles before washing for economical as well as sparkling results.

While shifting residence, pack crockery while it is still wet. This way, the chances of breakage will be less.

To remove obstinate ball point ink stains, rub the affected area with a cotton bud soaked in eue - de - cologne.

To eliminate beer stains from woollen outfits, scrub the affected area with a mixture of lukewarm water and salt. (be careful with salt as it can fix some stains -- Ed)

Thank You and bye for now !!!!! --Ashwaty

Thanks Ashwaty -- Ed

Apply mineral oil over your shower doors and tile surface. That delays the mineral build-up in future use. -- Cameo

Ref 'hammering water pipes'. This is caused by a pressure build up of water in the pipes. The simplest solution is to turn down your water pressure at the stop-cock -- Alan Brighton   (English Bob)

If your water pipes sometimes make a loud "hammering noise" after the toilet has been flushed or sink, etc. Ask at the hardware store for something for "waterhammer". It's a fitting or somesuch thing which is easily installed in the line. A common problem and not very expensive. - - Anon

Marks inside cups and mugs are caused by the metal cutlery abrading the glazing coating the service. Try an old fashioned remedy from an old fashioned man - toothpaste! (Betcha it works!) -- Alan -  

The whitening toothpaste usually contains alumina which is an abrasive. I suppose that if it safe on the teeth it has to be O.K. on cups etc -- Ed

I run vinegar through my dishwasher once a month and this prevents hard deposits from getting a head start. -- Good Luck, Patti kpm1@nospamwt.net  Seizetheday

Broken Glass: Use bread to pick up fragments of broken glass - - Vanessa Echols

Stuck finger rings? Use washing up liquid as a lubricant to remove stuck rings, I have seen it used to release a dog stuck in a rocky crevasse, alternatively use cooking or olive oil etc. -- David Edmunds

Squeaky floorboards can be eased by using French chalk or talcum powder – Jean Smith

When sewing tough material, rub the material first with an old candle or cooking paraffin. Used this technique to sew carpeting.-- John Eitak

Faded carpets can be restored by hand painting using fabric dyes -- Tony Doran.

(A useful range of fabric dye pens is available from Dylon in the UK)

Musty Instrument cases: Damp Rid is wonderful for removing must. Damp Rid is designed to be used in the container it comes in, but this may be too big for the instrument case--you may have to improvise. Once you've shut the Damp Rid in the case, you should probably leave it there undisturbed for several weeks. If you open the case to take a peek to see how it's working, you will allow the case to fill back up with humid air & the Damp Rid will have to pull all of that new moisture out of the air. Be careful not to bump the case--as the Damp Rid absorbs moisture out of the air, it dissolves, leaving an orange liquid in the container -- Jeanne 

Daffodils: Don’t mix cut daffodils in with other cut flowers as the daffodils produce a toxin that kills off the other flowers. – Anon.

Subject: House Plants: If you have an aquarium, save the water each time you change it and water your house plants with it. You'll be amazed at the results. -- Andy P Smith (Wolfie)-- Nuneaton -- England " --  

Socks can be useful in protecting the ends of unused fluorescent tubes – Dave Edmunds

After working on your car you can clean your hands with a mixture of dishwashing liquid and sugar -- Simon Spicer

Use olive oil or other cooking oil to clean hands dirtied by engine oil -- Jean Edmunds.

A teaspoon in the glass will prevent it cracking when boiling water is poured -- Wendel Quinn, Hong Kong

Furniture

Rub a candle on the runners of a sticky desk drawer, it’s amazing how much of a difference it will make -- David Edmunds.

Add some hand crafted leather living room furniture to your home

Furniture restoration: To make furniture look older mix varnish with soot and then paint on. – Robin Edmunds.

Light scratches on furniture can be disguised by using a wax crayon pencil. Another method is to rub with a Brazil Nut. – Dave

Small dents in furniture can be steamed out using a steam iron on a damped cloth. Be careful not to overdo it on delicate or very valuable items. – John Edmunds

Removal of Sticky Residues

Comments: Given a few days to work, cooking oil will combine with the glue and soften it. After peeling off the label, the oily residue responds to hot water and detergent. You can help the oil to penetrate by peeling off or scratching the label's surface -- “Tony Cattermole” 

Subject: Sticky decals on glass Some people sure go through a lot of trouble trying to remove the stickers, try wd 40 or lighter fluid, it does come right off without the hot water and soap. But of course you want to rinse the chem smell. d1kelly@nospammsn.com 22 Dec 2002

Subject: Sticky labels. I use WD40 to remove sticky labels. Just spray a little WD40 on the label and leave it for a few minutes. The label usually slides right off.-- "The McKenna's"  

Subject: Sticky label remover from glass. I have found that if you put peanut butter, preferably not chunky, on glass, bottles, or even mirrors, it will remove the residue. Sometimes it takes more than one application. Most people have peanut butter on hand.  --  Anon

Old decals can be removed from glass using a razor blade.-- Mike Hanewinckel

Removing Adhesive: Rubber cement thinner which you can buy at most art supply stores and some office supply stores removes most adhesives used on labels. Scrape off as much of the paper from the label as possible before applying the thinner and rubbing with a cloth or paper towel. It works great on glass, Formica and most non porous surfaces but will cloud many plastics. Also, it is extremely flammable. Lighter fluid often will also remove rubber based adhesives. -- Bob Lipson

Use white spirit or lighter fluid to remove the residue from sticky labels. - - Vanessa Echols

Subject: sticky residue/glue. I discovered the other day, finger nail polish remover, (most already have it in the home). Removed old wall paper glue the tub insert with one wipe, removed melted plastic bag off of curling iron, paint spatter windows and tub insert. All was removed with just one wipe of remover on a piece of toilet tissue. --DDugan  

Residue from Sticky labels: Goo Gone works great on removing adhesives left behind by stickers, store stickers, gum, etc. It is found in Sears Hardware Stores and other department stores. -- Good Luck, Patti Seizetheday

Removing Adhesive: I used vinegar to remove adhesive from glass jars, and off of our sink. it worked pretty well Jan Tani

Sticky residue  I've found Avon Skin-so-soft works great for getting off sticky residue left from labels or tape on glasses, plastic dishes, etc. and it smells good too. Put it on a cotton ball and rub on residue, then wash with soapy water. I've also used this to get it off windows and walls. Rhonda Carpenter 28 Nov 2002

Subject:  Avon Skin so Soft. to take sticky goo off of things. I use it for many things. Including the dog and cat. I use it when cleaning old glass it helps take the old grease off and leaves everything shining. Baking soda is a all around cleaning solution. It is non abrasive. Cleans the outside of a refrigerator very well and takes the yellow away if you have white. I use it in the wash instead of softeners. It sweets the clothes and softens them also. It is also good to take the bugs off the car. Remember it is non abrasive. Always keep baking soda in the car as it will put out a fire, yours or someone else's. Cheap also. We used baking soda in our pool along with bleach for 14 years and never bought another chemical. We had the best looking pool in the neighborhood. Crystal clear. I also use it in my pond for the PH.-- KD Bug

Subject: Re sticky residues Sticky residue can be removed with methylated spirits, dabbed on with cotton wool. Use sparingly at first, use more if necessary. Works for residue left behind by Sellotape/Scotch tape/decals/stickers/sticking plaster/price stickers. Works on wood, glass, metal and plastic. And skin. It's flammable so take care. -- Gerard Sagar

Subject: Sticky Residues: I have found that to remove sticky residue from many surfaces, use silicone spray. I prefer this to WD-40, cause it smells better. For labels on glass, plastic, etc, spray, wait a little, wash either in dishwater, or with a wet dishcloth and a few drops of dish detergent, and it's gone! Sometimes a reapplication is necessary if there's a lot of glue or whatever. I understand that this works, too, removing bumper stickers. Although it has to completely saturated, and has to soak longer, and usually you do have to reapply. I keep a can of silicone spray in my kitchen cupboard ALWAYS! (I even removed all the heavy glue from a plastic peanut butter jar, just to see if I could! It took a little work, but I did it!) --  (Ms) Jonnie T Williams "Jonnie"

Subject: REMOVING GUM Great way to get GUM out , rub it with PEANUT butter! I think it is the OIL in in, and though I have not tried it, I am sure oil would probably do the same thing, except the peanut butter is GOOEY, and the oil runs! -- "Kathy Ulmer"   5 Sep 2002

 Removing Sticky Labels from Plastic:

Whatever method you use, first test the cleaning/removal material in an inconspicuous part of the surface the label is stuck on the be sure it will not damage that surface. If the label on the plastic has been wet, or the article has been stored where it was hot or humid, it will be more difficult to remove.

1. Dampen a small piece of cloth, or the end of a swab stick (cotton twisted on the end of a wooden match or orange stick). Dip cotton end in dry cleaning fluid.

2. Allow the fluid to remain on the label only long enough to allow the label to be rubbed off. Wipe away excess fluid immediately, and wash article in sudsy water and dry. (DO NOT ALLOW FLUID TO REMAIN ON THE PLASTIC SURFACE VERY LONG, AS IT WILL DULL THE FINISH OF THE PLASTIC.)

This article was written by Anne Field, Extension Specialist, Emeritus, with reference from Mary Ellen Delsipee, and Isabel Jones, previous Extension specialists. Quoted from the Michigan State University Extension Home Maintenance and Repair page http://www.msue.msu.edu/imp/mod02/master02.html