Vinegar is one of the cheapest and most versatile cleaners around. White vinegar doesn’t streak; it is safe for hands, and as an added plus, it is environmentally friendly. Read on to find out about one of the best households finds for the frugally minded individual.
Kitchens
Remove coffee and tea stains from china cups using an equal mixture of salt and white vinegar.
To loosen hard-to-clean stains in aluminum, glass, or porcelain pots or pans use ¼ cup of white vinegar to 2 cups of water. Boil white vinegar with water in the pan. Wash in hot, soapy water afterward.
Eliminate cooking odors by using one tablespoon of white vinegar to 1-cup of water. Boil white vinegar in water to eliminate unappealing odors due to cooking.
Eliminate odors in a smoke-filled room by placing a small bowl of white vinegar in the room.
Remove spots on stainless steel by rubbing kitchen items with a cloth dampened in white vinegar.
Clean glassware using ½ cup of white vinegar to 1 gallon of water. When white vinegar is added to rinse water, it will help eliminate dull soap film from glassware and leave it looking sparkly.
Soak food-stained pots and pans in white vinegar for 30 minutes. Afterward rinse in hot, soapy water.
Eliminate the former odors of peanut butter, mayonnaise or spaghetti sauce from jars you want to keep by rinsing them out with white vinegar.
Vinegar can be used to clean microwave ovens. Add ½ cup of white vinegar to 1-cup of water in an uncovered bowl and place in the microwave oven. Set on high for 3 to 4 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes. Finish by wiping out oven cavity.
Unclog a coffee maker by adding white vinegar to 6-cup level and water to the 10-cup level. Then put in an empty paper filter. Turn on the coffee maker and complete the brew cycle. After the cycle is complete, discard the vinegar solution and used a paper filter. Run the coffee maker for a full cycle with fresh water before brewing coffee.
Clothing
When washing an item that is smelly or greasy, add white vinegar to the cleaning water to cut down on the grease and remove odor.
Rinse clothes with 1-cup of white vinegar. Add a little vinegar in your last rinse water to ensure that your clothes get a thorough rinse.
Rub washables and rid them of deodorant and antiperspirant stains by rubbing lightly with white vinegar. Then launder as usual.
Eliminate undissolved lint and detergent in a washing machine by using white vinegar. Pour 1-cup of vinegar into the bottom of the washing machine tub and run through the regular cycle, without clothes, using the hot water setting.
Other
Use 2 cups of white vinegar to fluff blankets. Vinegar added to a washer tub of water makes a good rinse for both kinds of cotton as well as wool blankets.
Remove fruit stains from your hands by using a small amount of white vinegar. Afterward, wipe with a cloth.
A small bowl of white vinegar can also be used to eliminate paint odors by merely placing it in the room where you are doing the painting.
Use boiling vinegar (full strength, don’t mix with water) to clean hardened acrylic paints from paintbrushes. However, a word of caution- soaking them too long could loosen the hairs from the brushes.
If a drain is clogged, pour a handful of baking soda and 1-cup of white vinegar down it. When the bubbling stops, rinse with hot water. If necessary, repeat until the drain runs freely.
Remove burned or dark stains from an electric iron by rubbing it with white or cider vinegar and salt, heated first in a small aluminum pan. Polish the iron in the same way you do silver.
Use vinegar to eliminate cat litter box odors. After cleaning the litter box, rinse it out and pour about ½ inch of white vinegar in the box. Let it stand for about 20 minutes and then swish it around, rinse it with cold water and dry the box.
Soak your showerhead in vinegar overnight. In the morning rinse in hot water to remove water deposits and keep it flowing freely.
If ants or other insects are a problem in your home, vinegar can help. Pouring vinegar across windowsills, or below baseboards stops them from coming in, as they will not cross it (this goes for a trail of water as well). Why, is a mystery!