Vinegar has been a household mainstay for generations because of its diversity. Though you might pass the vinegar by when shopping in the grocery store today, it was once frequently used for both food and cleaning purposes.
Now, you can still use vinegar in the home if you’d like and, in fact, it’s useful for a long list of cleaning hacks. Read on for more of the cleaning hacks you can pull off with standard white vinegar.
1. Clean out your automatic coffee pot
Vinegar’s natural descaling properties can work wonders on one of the hardest-to-clean appliances in your kitchen. Many people never even clean out the water reservoir of their coffee pot because of how inaccessible it is.
You should always heed manufacturer recommendations, but if your coffee pot has mineral buildup inside, try running a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water through the machine, followed by water until there’s no residual vinegar taste. You’ll probably be surprised at how much better your coffee machine runs.
2. Clean windows
When mixed 50/50 with water, vinegar makes an excellent glass cleaner. Apply the mixture with a sponge and squeegee it clean for spotless windows — naturally! This is probably one of the easiest cleaning hacks around.
3. Eliminate set-in fabric stains
If you’ve ever battled a stain, you know exactly how frustrating it can be when you can’t get it out. Next time, instead of kicking and screaming, try a natural alternative to oft-ineffective stain removing chemicals.
The first step is to saturate the soiled portion of fabric completely with vinegar. Then, scrub until the stain disappears and launder as normal. Some really troublesome stains might need a stain-fighting boost, but you can still use things you have around the house. Try scrubbing in coarse salt with the vinegar to “exfoliate” the stain out or even make a paste of a 50/50 ratio of vinegar and baking soda.
4. Mop floors
Floor cleaning chemicals can be harsh and dangerous. If you’re looking for a natural alternative, regular white vinegar might be the cleaning hack of your dreams.
To use vinegar to clean your floors, just mix one-half cup of vinegar with a half-gallon of warm water. Depending on the size of your home, you may need to change the bucket several times as the water is dirtied.
5. A multi-surface cleaner
You know those cleaning products that are under your sink that aren’t really for something specific — they’re more for … anything? Maybe it’s a “multi-use” or a “multi-purpose” cleaner. Whatever you call it, vinegar can replace it!
Vinegar can be sprayed straight onto most surfaces but you should not use vinegar on stone countertops. After about 10 minutes, when wiped away with a warm rag or towel, surfaces cleaned with vinegar are disinfected from dangerous food-borne microorganisms or microorganisms from the likes of cockroaches or other pests.
6. The inside of your microwave
Microwaves are generally used for convenience’s sake, but if you’ve ever had to clean out the inside of a messy microwave, you know it’s far from convenient. Vinegar actually changes all of that.
If you place a bowl with equal parts vinegar and water into the microwave and run the appliance for 10 minutes, you’ll end up with an extremely easy-to-clean microwave. The vinegar and water steam penetrates baked-on stains so that you can wipe them away with just the swipe of a sponge.
Just make sure you let the bowl rest for a few minutes in the microwave before handling it so you don’t burn yourself! It’s also a good idea to float a toothpick or small stirring stick on the surface of the liquid as it will reduce the likeliness of the water bubbling over. Cleaning hacks aren’t worth injuring yourself.
7. Instant pot sealing ring
If you’re using one of the instant pots that are trending these days, you’re probably looking high and low for a cleaning hack to take care of your smelly sealing ring. It’s a common problem among these appliances but it can be fixed by using regular white vinegar.
Just soak it in the vessel of your choosing for an hour or more, depending on the amount it’s soiled. Empty it, wash it and you’re sure to be pleased with the results.
8. Copper, brass or pewter
If you have tableware or even jewelry made out of copper, brass or pewter, you’re probably familiar with the tarnish that comes with owning these precious metals. Luckily for you, household vinegar can help you polish it right up. Tarnish is typically not easy to remove, but this method helps a lot.
Mix one teaspoon of salt, a half-cup of distilled white vinegar and just enough flour to form a paste with a consistency like craft glue — perhaps a bit thicker for small pieces or pieces with very intricate designs. Apply this paste to the tarnished pieces and allow it to work for 15 minutes before removing it with clean water. To finish, polish the pieces with a soft cloth or perhaps a specially-designed polishing cloth.
9. Clear away water rings on furniture
Water rings on wooden furniture are unfortunately pretty common in many households. All it takes is one forgotten coaster or unattended drink to leave a lasting blemish. Household vinegar can be used to combat these marks.
For wood furniture, mix a solution of equal parts vinegar and olive oil and apply it to the affected area following the wood grain. Make sure to use a very soft cloth that won’t create micro-scratches in the wood. If you have leather furniture that’s damaged by water rings, dabbing them with a vinegar-soaked sponge will do the trick.
10. Clean your dishwasher
Dishwashers do a great job of cleaning your dishes, but sometimes they need to be cleaned themselves. You should do it at least once a year but more often if you have notably hard water.
It’s easy to do with vinegar. Very easy. Simply pour a cup of white vinegar into your dishwasher (right into the bottom) and run a normal cycle. Your dishwasher will sparkle like your crystal glasses.
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Source: apartmentguide.com