Spring cleaning has arrived, but before you spend hours on end tidying up, use these experts' shortcuts for how to get everything from your mattress to your bathtub looking brand new again. The Liquor That Doubles as a Mattress Refresher Hold the tonic and lime -- vodka has a new use that has less to do with your Saturday night and more to do with where you sleep when you arrive home. That's right, vodka can be used as a way to clean your mattress, which is often an overlooked task, even though you sleep -- i.e., sweat -- on it every night. The alcohol kills odor-causing bacteria while it also disinfects the mattress—unlike cleaning sprays that often only mask smells with a scent. Not to mention a cheap 750-ml bottle (25.36 fluid ounces) of vodka costs less than $10, while a 16.9-fluid-ounce cleaning spray costs around $5 and won't last nearly as long. This is why Jolie Kerr, cleaning expert and author of My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag and Other Things You Can't Ask Martha, suggests vodka as an easy cleaning solution.
Simply pour vodka into a spray bottle, distribute it evenly across your mattress by spritzing and leave it to air-dry before remaking your bed. "The key is to spritz the mattress lightly -- you don't want to saturate it, or else it will never dry," says Kerr. The Spray That Gets Rid of Those Unmentionable Bedroom Invaders Researchers at Alexandria University in Egypt found certain essential oils to be effective at killing dust mites—the invisible-unless-under-a-microscope creatures that tend to live in bedding, carpets, furniture and drapes. If you want to keep your allergies at bay, eucalyptus and clove were proven to be the most effective oils for eliminating household dust mites. Add around 10 drops of an oil in with your laundry detergent when you wash your sheets in hot water; fill a spray bottle with 1 quart of water and 20 drops of an oil to spray on upholstery; or, put baking soda in a sifter and add in 10 drops of an essential oil to shake across carpeting. Then leave the mixture on the floor for 30 minutes and vacuum it up.
The Fruit That Cleans Your Microwave in a Zap It's bad enough that you completely blackened your bag of popcorn, but even worse when that distinct smell makes its way into every food you put in the microwave for weeks afterward -- even after you have cleaned the microwave with soap and water. Tricky smells, such as from burnt foods, are easily absorbed into the microwave and take more than a good scouring to get rid of. Kerr says the easiest way to deodorize a microwave and clean it is to cut a lemon in half, sprinkle it with some kosher salt and then to scrub the microwave interior with it. "The scent of the lemon, combined with the citric acid will help to neutralize any lingering odors." And for those of us who just wish the smell would go away on its own, this trick comes pretty close: Put a bowl of white vinegar in the microwave and shut the door. "You don't even need to turn it on," says Kerr. "Just let the vinegar work its magic for an hour, or so, and the smells will be gone."
The Salon Staple That'll Keep Your Bathroom Sparkling Sure, you've heard of Bar Keepers Friend as a way to remove rust rings from your bathtub, but there's an easier solution to prevent those stubborn marks before they even start. Coat the undersides of your shaving-cream can, metal soap dish or any other rust-causing culprits with clear nail polish, which puts a protective layer between the item and your pearly white tub. The DIY Cleaning Solution That Works in Any Room If your household is prone to drink and/or food spills, don't waste money going through containers upon containers of cleaning wipes. Instead, make your own for a fraction of the cost with Fabulessly Frugal's easy recipe, which includes items that are probably already lying around your kitchen: paper towels, vinegar, water, a few drops of dish soap and of an essential oil (although not necessary, the latter helps to mask the smell of vinegar). Then store them in Tupperware, or in an old container of store-bought wipes, and you'll be a whole lot happier when you get your monthly bank statement.
The Pillowcase Reuse That's a Breeze Ceiling fans do require a little extra effort to clean ("Where's my step ladder, again?"), but Jill Nystul, the blogger behind One Good Thing by Jillee, shows us how to tackle the task in 30 seconds or less. Hook an old pillowcase over one fan blade at a time and wipe it backward. This removes all the grime and traps it inside the pillowcase without it falling to the ground—or, worse, in your eyes -- so there are finally no more, "Oops, I have to re-sweep my floor," moments. Your mother-in-law offers to help you load the dishwasher, pulls the door open and -- ugh, that smell. How is it possible, when there's not even anything in there? There are two reasons, says Jolie Kerr, who covers all kinds of cleaning-related queries for Deadspin and Jezebel. First, water and excess soap collect in and around the gasket; together, they create a breeding ground for mold, which feeds off of soap -- and mold is what causes that mildew-y smell. Second, bits of food tend to collect in the bottom of the dishwasher over time.
The fix: First, remove any food you see, and then fill the bottom of the washer with about half a gallon of white vinegar (which seems to have no bounds when it comes to amazing uses). Run the dishwasher (empty) and the smell should go away. ... now there's melted plastic all over the oven.Detest CleaningCleaning HacksCleaning SolutionsHousehold UsagesHousehold TipsHousehold OrderHandy Household101 BakingBaking Soda Uses For CleaningForwardFreshen your mattress and sleep better tonight! All you need is baking soda and your favorite oil. For better sleep, I suggest lavender oil, but you can use so many others! This is only one of the 101 baking soda uses you'll find when you click on the image ;)Step 1: What you will needShow All ItemsHome / Housekeeping / General / How To Clean Bedwetting Stains From MattressesHow To Clean Bedwetting Stains From Mattresses 12 Comments Print EmailThose of us that don’t have toddlers or young children in the home may think tips for cleaning bedwetting stains won’t apply to us, but over the holidays I was pulling out this information when visiting family with children caught me by surprise ;).
The first tip is to plan ahead. If you know children will be staying the night, prepare their bed before they arrive. It’s nice to do this when they’re not around since no one will know what you’ve been up to (most kiddos are sensitive about their accidents so it’s nice to do this covertly).Preparation:There are a couple different things you can do. You can buy a plastic cover or lay a garbage bag down the middle of the bed (first split it open and make sure the bag covers the width end to end). If you have an old vinyl tablecloth that you don’t use, you could lay that on instead (if fabric backed–leave the fabric side up).On top of the plastic lining, lay a large towel to cover. Then put on the pad and then the fitted sheet.With this setup, chances are the little ones won’t even know you’ve prepared for potential accidents.If you were caught without your mattress protected, here are a few ways to cleanup the mess (you can use a blacklight to see what size of area you’re dealing with, the urine will glow):Method #1Mix a pourable thick paste with cornstarch and water, stir until there are no lumps and make enough to cover the entire area.
Pour the cornstarch mixture over the spot and leave it for several hours to dry. You can do this overnight if you like.Once the cornstarch is dried thoroughly, vacuum off.Use your blacklight again to see if you caught it all. If not, reapply a fresh batch of cornstarch mix.Method #21 part white vinegar 2 parts dishwashing liquidLift up as much of the urine as you can with paper towels blotting and soaking up the spot.Next mix the vinegar and dishwashing liquid in a container and apply over spot with a wet sponge, dab it on generously. Let the soap sit for 30 minutes.Take a wet sponge and pull up as much of the soap that you can.Sprinkle wet area generously with cornstarch and leave for several hours–then vacuum up.Method #3This one’s from the page for cleaning cat urine (found here).1 16-oz. bottle Hydrogen Peroxide 1 TBS Baking Soda 1 tsp dish detergent (liquid)Mix ingredients into an old plastic container and stir well with a plastic or wooden spoon (do not use metal utensils or metal dishes).
Once powder is dissolved, pour liquid into a plastic squirt bottle and squirt on urine spot, completely saturate the area. Do not scrub or touch the spot, leave the solution to set and air dry for at least one hour.After it’s completely dry, vacuum the spot–there may be baking soda residue. You can wipe with a rag if needed.Lingering Odors: If you’re concerned about lingering odors, you can also spray some vinegar & sprinkle baking powder over the now dried and cleaned stain before making a fresh bed (wait for vinegar to dry before making it up).Bedding CareWash it all as soon as possible after an accident, using a good 1/2 cup of vinegar per load (cider vinegar if you have it). This will help kill the smell.General TipsThese are for general mattress care:Use a cover to protect it and wash at least once a month.Remove stains by lightly dabbing with liquid dish detergent that has been well diluted in water. For toughies like blood spots, try blotting with hydrogen peroxide.When stripping the beds down for laundry, freshen things up by sprinkling a thin layer of baking soda directly on top of it.