Vinegar.....Economical & Natural (Cont. Pt.4 )

Part four?! A four-part series on vinegar? Seriously? Yup!  But, alas, this is the end. I have posted hundreds of tips in these four posts, and it doesn't even come close to what vinegar can do. It cleans, it scrubs, it even tastes yummy. There are so many uses, I cannot post them all.  If these four posts have you interested in uses of vinegar, and want to learn more, there are many books published on the subject. Check out your local library, bookstore, or here, online at Amazon. There is also a plethora of websites out there with loads of information on vinegar. Just do a Google search. :-)

So I'm wrapping up this party with tips on using vinegar for your health, body, your garden, and laundry. Oooooh.


Vinegar for health & body... (House-Wise Tips)


Stop insect stings and bites from itching by dabbing them with a cotton ball saturated with undiluted white distilled vinegar.

Soothe sunburn with a spray of white distilled vinegar, repeating as often as you like. Ice-cold white distilled vinegar will feel even better, and may prevent blistering and peeling.

For cuts and scrapes, use white distilled vinegar as an antiseptic.

Get rid of foot odor by washing feet well with antiseptic soap daily, then soaking them in undiluted cider vinegar for 10 minutes or so. Remember that cotton socks aid odor control more effectively than wool ones.

Clean a hairbrush by soaking in a white distilled vinegar solution.

Tone facial skin with a solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and water.

If commercial aftershaves cause rashes and itching, try using undiluted white distilled vinegar as an aftershave lotion.

Lighten body freckles (not facial freckles) by rubbing on full-strength white distilled vinegar.

Eliminate bad breath and whiten your teeth by brushing them once or twice a week with white distilled vinegar.

Make nail polish last longer. Wipe fingernails with cotton balls dipped in white distilled vinegar before putting on nail polish.


Vinegar in the garden... (House-Wise Tips)

Kill weeds and grass growing in unwanted places by pouring full-strength white distilled vinegar on them. This works especially well in crevices and cracks of walkways and driveways.

Give acid-loving plants like azaleas, rhododendrons, hydrangeas and gardenias a little help by watering them with a white distilled vinegar solution now and again. A cup of white distilled vinegar to a gallon of tap water is a good mixture.

Stop ants from congregating by pouring white distilled vinegar on the area.

Discourage cats from getting into the kids’ sandbox with white distilled vinegar.

Preserve cut flowers and liven droopy ones by adding 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar and 1 teaspoon sugar to a quart of water in a vase.

Get rid of the water line in a flower vase by filling it with a solution of half water and half white distilled vinegar, or by soaking a paper towel in white distilled vinegar and stuffing it into the vase so that it is in contact with the water line.

Clean out stains and white mineral crusts in clay, glazed and plastic pots by soaking them for an hour or longer in a sink filled with a solution of half water and half white distilled vinegar.

Remove crusty rim deposits on house planters or attached saucers by soaking them for several hours in an inch of full-strength white distilled vinegar.

Clean a birdbath by scrubbing it often with undiluted white distilled vinegar. Rinse well.

Get rid of rust on spigots, tools, screws or bolts by soaking the items overnight or for several days in undiluted white distilled vinegar.

Neutralize garden lime by adding white distilled vinegar to the area.

Avoid skin problems after working in the garden by rinsing your hands in white distilled vinegar.

Increase the acidity of soil by adding white distilled vinegar to your watering can.

Eliminate anthills by pouring in white distilled vinegar.

Cure a cement pond before adding fish and plants by adding one gallon of white distilled vinegar to every 200 gallons of water. Let sit three days. Empty and rinse thoroughly.

Sanitize outdoor furniture and picnic tables with a cloth soaked in white distilled vinegar.

Kill slugs by spraying them with a mixture of 1 part water and 1 part white distilled vinegar.

To catch moths use a mixture of 2 parts white distilled vinegar and 1 part molasses. Place mixture in tin can and hang in a tree.

Keep rabbits from eating your plants. Put cotton balls soaked in white distilled vinegar in a 35mm film container. Poke a hole in the top and place in the garden.

Remove berry stains on your hands by rubbing them with white distilled vinegar.

Clean plastic patio furniture with a solution of 1 tablespoon white distilled vinegar to 1 gallon of water.

Wash fresh vegetables with a mixture of 1 tablespoon of white distilled vinegar in 1 ½ quarts of water.

When cleaning an outdoor fountain, soak the pump in white distilled vinegar to remove any mineral deposits.

Clean a hummingbird feeder with white distilled vinegar—soap or detergent can leave behind harmful residue.

Remove mold from terra cotta pots by soaking in a solution of 1 cup white distilled vinegar, 1 cup chlorine bleach, and 1 gallon of warm water before scrubbing with a steel wool pad.


Vinegar in the laundry... (House-Wise Tips)

Prevent lint from clinging to clothes by adding 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar to the wash cycle.

To remove soap residue that makes black clothes look dull use white distilled vinegar in your final rinse.

Get stained white socks and dingy dishcloths white again. Add 1 cup white distilled vinegar to a large pot of water, bring it to a rolling boil and drop in the articles. Let soak overnight.

Some stains on clothing and linens can be soaked out using equal parts milk and white distilled vinegar.

Before washing a mustard stain, dab with white distilled vinegar.

Attack spaghetti, barbecue, or ketchup stains with a white distilled vinegar and water solution.

Remove perspiration odor and stains on clothing, as well as those left by deodorants, by spraying full-strength white distilled vinegar on underarm and collar areas before tossing them into the washing machine.

Forgot that you left wet laundry in the machine and it now smells moldy? Pour a few cups of white distilled vinegar in the machine and wash the clothes in hot water. Then run a normal cycle with detergent.

Remove smoky odors from clothes by filling the bathtub with very hot water and 1 cup white distilled vinegar. Hang the garments above the steaming water and shut the door so the steam can penetrate the fibers.

Keep the steam iron clean and in good working order by getting rid of mineral deposits in steam vents and spray nozzles. Fill the water chamber with a solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and distilled water. Set it in an upright position and let it steam for about 5 minutes. When the iron is cool, rinse the tank with water, refill and shake water through the vents onto an old cloth. Test before using.

Remove scorch marks from an iron by rubbing it with a warmed-up solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and salt. If that doesn’t work, use a cloth dampened with full-strength white distilled vinegar.

Remove musky smells from cotton clothes by sprinkling them lightly with white distilled vinegar and then pressing them.

Get water and salt stains off shoes and boots by wiping them down with a solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and water.

Give patent leather shoes and bags a better shine by wiping them down with white distilled vinegar.

Get cleaner laundry! Add about 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar to the last rinse. The acid in white distilled vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics, yet strong enough to dissolve the alkalies in soaps and detergents. Besides removing soap, white distilled vinegar prevents yellowing, acts as a fabric softener and static cling reducer, and attacks mold and mildew.

Eliminate manufacturing chemicals from new clothes by adding 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar to the water.

Remove soap scum and clean the hoses of your washing machine with white distilled vinegar. Periodically run the machine with only a cup of white distilled vinegar in it—nothing else added to the wash cycle.

Bring out bright colors by adding 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar to the rinse cycle.

Fluff up wool or acrylic sweaters (hand- or machine-washed) and rid them of soap smell with 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar in the last rinse water.

Get rid of the tiny holes left along the hemline when you take out the hem of any garment by moistening a cloth with white distilled vinegar, placing it under the fabric and ironing.

....and this concludes our four-part series on.....vinegar!

House-Wise

"Make yourself at home"