Helpful Household Tips

The Internet has become the window on a vast storehouse of facts, knowledge, and things we never even thought about. The many RV-related web sites offer a wide subject matter of RV facts, myths, and even conjecture.

Occasionally, wisps of wisdom and wonderment seemingly pop out of nowhere to confound us and get our mental marbles aggitated enough for us to actually do some pondering.

Listed below are some helpful household hints and tips for dealing with those irritating everyday happenings that often leave us muttering off-color words under our breath.

Personal Irritations

Cure for a Headache—Take a lime, cut it in half, and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.

Reduce Itch from Mosquito Bites—Apply some soap to the affected area, and you will experience almost instant relief.

Remove a Splinter Without Using a Needle or Tweezers—When you get a splinter, reach for the Scotch tape before resorting to a needle or tweezers. Simply put the Scotch tape over the splinter, and then pull off the tape. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.

Kitchen Hints

Easily Remove Burnt Food from a Skillet—Simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Turn on the stove and bring the mixture to a boil. Presto! Rinsing is then easy.

Making Tupperware More Stain Resistant—Spray your Tupperware with non-stick cooking spray before pouring in tomato-based sauces, and there won't be any stains.

How to Make Celery Last Longer—Wrap your celery in aluminum foil before putting it in the refrigerator, and it will keep for weeks.

Enhance Corn-on-the-Cob Flavor—When boiling corn-on-the-cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn's natural sweetness.

A Use for Left-Over Wine—Don't throw out all that leftover wine (gee, didn't know there was any such thing). Pour the wine into ice cube trays, and freeze the cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

Extend Life of SOS Pads—When you purchase a new box of SOS pads, take a pair of scissors and cut each pad in half. (After years of having to throw away rusted, unused, and smelly pads, this method seems to be much more economical. And, now, a box of SOS pads lasts indefinitely.) You might also notice that your scissors get sharpened at the same time!

Around the House

How to Open and Reuse a Sealed Envelope—Put the envelope in the freezer for a few hours. Then, slimply slide a knife under the flap to pop it open. The envelope can then be resealed.

Uses for Empty TP Tubes—Use an empty toilet paper roll to store appliance cords. It keeps them neat, and you can write on the tube to which the cord belongs.

How to Remove Crayon Marks from Walls—Use a damp rag, dipped in baking soda. The crayon marks come off with only a little scrubbing.

How to Remove Permanent Marker Stains from Counter Tops—Put a little rubbing alcohol on a paper towel to remove permanent marker stains (such as those from a blue store receipt).

How to Remove Blood Stains from Clothes—Pour a little hydrogen peroxide on a cloth, and wipe off every drop of blood. Works every time!

How to Clean Artificial Flowers—Pour some salt into a paper bag, and add the flowers. Shake the bag vigorously, and the salt will absorb all the dust and dirt— leaving your artificial flowers looking like new.

"Automatic" Room Air Freshener—Spray a bit of perfume on a light bulb in any room to create a lovely light scent when the light is turned on.

How to Keep That Fresh Clothes Smell—Simply place fabric softener sheets in your dresser drawers, and your clothes will smell freshly washed for weeks to come. You can also do this with towels and linens.

Hint for Cleaning Mirrors—Use air freshener to clean your mirrors. It does a good job, and, better still, it adds a lovely smell to the shine.

How to Makae Candles Last Longer—Candles will last a lot longer if they are placed in the freezer for at least three hours prior to burning them.

Easily Know Which Side of a Window is Dirty—To easily tell which side of a window still has streaks after you have laboriously cleaned it, use vertical wiping strokes when cleaning the outside, and use horizontal wiping strokes when cleaning the inside. Then, you can easily tell which side has the streaks.

Window Washing Hints—Straight vinegar will get outside windows really clean. But don't wash windows when they are in the sun—they will dry too quickly and most likely end up with streaks.

How to Keep Ants at Bay—Get out some chalk powder and use it as a Don't Cross line for the ants. (This works well for RV tires, as well as cords and hoses.)

Keep Steps from Freezing in Cold Weather—If you have icy door steps in freezing temperatures, try this. Get warm water and put some Dawn dishwashing liquid in it. Pour the mixture all over the steps. Interestingly, the steps won't refreeze! (Oh, where has this tip been for the past 40 years or so!)

Amazing Uses for Alka Seltzer Tablets—Now, take a look at all the things you can do with Alka Seltzer tablets.

• Clean a Toilet: Drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets, wait 20 minutes, then brush and flush. (The citriuc acid and effervescent action cleans vitreous china.)


• Clean a Vase: To remove a stain from a vase or cruet, fill the vase with water and drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets.


• Polish Jewelry: Drop two Alka Seltzer tablets into a glass of water, and immerse your jewelry for two minutes. Then, rinse off.


• Clean a Thermos Bottle: Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka Seltzer tablets, and let everything soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary). Rinse out, and smile.


• Unclog a Drain: Clean the sink drain by dropping three Alka Seltzer tablets down the drain, followed by a cup of Heinz white vinegar. Wait a few minutes, and then run hot water through the drain.

Hmm, this little tidbit sure makes you wonder about ingesting Alka Seltzer, doesn't it?