Vinegar is a great cleaning product (as you may remember from previous posts on using it to wash linoleum floors, windows, cat litter boxes, etc. It is an inexpensive, versatile household cleaner and I’ve recently come across a website sharing many more uses for white distilled vinegar than I’d ever thought possible (1,001 to be exact!).
To keep this post as readable as possible, I will share with you a list of only the ones that I thought would be easy, effective, and most helpful in the household:
- Mix equal parts vinegar and water and rub on boots and shoes to remove salt/water stains
- Add 1/2 cup vinegar to the wash machine during the wash cycle to stop lint from sticking to clothing
- Spray full-strength onto perspiration stains on clothing before adding them to the wash machine
- To rid clothes of a smoky smell, add 1 cup of vinegar to a bathtub filled with water and hang clothes over the tub to absorb the steam
- Apply warm vinegar to a cloth and rub on cool iron to remove scorch marks
- Sprinkle cotton clothes with distilled vinegar before ironing them to remove any musty smell
- Spray barbecue, spaghetti, or ketchup stains with a white vinegar and water mixture before washing
- Use vinegar to clean your bathroom (items and sink) by soaking razors, toothbrush holders, etc. in vinegar before scrubbing. For the sink, cover it well with vinegar using a sponge. Let it set for about five minutes, then scrub and wipe down
- Add 1/4 cup vinegar to the last rinse cycle in your wash machine to prevent yellowing of clothes, remove soap, and work as a fabric softener
- Run the washing machine with 1 cup vinegar (and no clothing) to remove soap scum and clean the hoses
- To deodorize and clean a drain, pour 1 cup baking soda, then 1 cup hot vinegar down the drain. Let this sit for about five minutes, then run hot water down the drain (you can also do this with the garbage disposal)
- Use a cloth soaked with full strength vinegar to clean counter tops
- To remove a tough label, put a cloth soaked with vinegar over the label overnight. It should come off easily in the morning
- To clean a sponge or loofah, soak it in a vinegar and water mixture (with mostly vinegar) overnight. In the morning, rinse it well with cold water and let air dry in the sun (if possible)
- Spray full-strength vinegar on door knobs and wipe them with a cloth to remove germs
Hopefully, these tips will make some of your household tasks easier. Please feel free to share if you have any other creative vinegar uses!
