Sunday, August 3, 2008

Vinegar; don't you just love it

Here are multiple uses for the most common and cheap, non toxic cleaning liquid that we all have in our cupboards, WHITE vinegar! (note while most of these suggestions use white vinegar, I do not recommend ingesting white vinegar at all. It is not a natural food, in fact, it is not a food at all. It is simply a chemical created to mimic the real thing - apple cider vinegar-usually or other natually soured products

Increase soil acidity.
In hard water areas, add a cup of vinegar to a gallon of tap water for watering acid loving plants like rhododendrons, gardenias, or azaleas. The vinegar will release iron in the soil for the plants to use.Kill grass on walks and driveways. Pour full strength on unwanted grass.

Deter ants.
Spray vinegar around door and window frames, under appliances, and along other known ant trails.

Keep cats away.
Sprinkle vinegar on an area to discourage cats from walking, sleeping, or scratching on it.

Relieve itching,
by using a cotton ball to dab mosquito and other bug bites with Vinegar straight from the bottle.

Cure for colds. Mix one-quarter cup Apple Cider Vinegar with one-quarter cup honey.
Take one tablespoon six to eight times daily.

Remove fruit stains from hands. Rub with vinegar.

Laundry
Use in machine machine to cut soap.

Keep bright colors from running. Immerse clothes in full strength vinegar for 10 minutes before washing.Freshen up the washing machine.

Clean the hoses and unclog soap scum.

Freshen vegetables. Soak wilted vegetables in 2 cups of water and a tablespoon of vinegar.

Boil better eggs by adding 2 tablespoons water before boiling. Keeps them from cracking.

Coffee machine
Vinegar can help to dissolve mineral deposits that collect in automatic drip coffee makers. Fill the reservoir with vinegar and run it through a brewing cycle. Rinse thoroughly with water when the cycle is finished. (Be sure sure to check the owners manual forspecific instructions).

Brass, copper and pewter will shine if cleaned with the following mixture. Dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in 1 cup of distilled vinegar.

Clean the dishwasher by running a cup of vinegar through the whole cycle once a month to reduce soap build up on the inner mechanisms and on glassware.Make your own scouring cleanser by combining 1/4 cup baking soda with 1 tablespoon liquid detergent. Add just enough white distilled vinegar to give it a thick but creamy texture.

Clean counter tops and make them smell sweet again with a cloth soaked in undiluted white distilled vinegar.

Clean the shelves and walls of the refrigerator with a half-and-half solution of water and white distilled vinegar.

Cut the grime on the top of the refrigerator with a paper towel or cloth and full-strength white distilled vinegar.

Get rid of fruit flies by setting out a small dish of undiluted white distilled vinegar.

Create your own window cleaning solution by combining 1/2 cup non-sudsy ammonia, 1 cup white distilled vinegar, and 2 tablespoons cornstarch in a gallon of water.

And one more great idea sent by reader Evelyn Mae,
My favorite vinegar tip (other than the GREAT ones you have already posted)
is...pour white vinegar into a shallow, open type bowl and leave on the counter
for a few hours or overnight to eliminate the 'fishy' aroma left from cooking
fish!


What's your favorite vinegar tip?

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