Bruce Lubin - Who Knew? 10,001 Household Solutions

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TO JACK, TERRENCE, AND AIDAN,

as always

WHO KNEW
PART 1
HEROES

For just around $2 a gallon, vinegar is the easy, low-cost secret for natural cleaning, better cooking, and health and beauty needs.

SIMPLY NATURAL CLEANING

Try a Mirror Miracle

Make your mirrors shine with a solution of equal parts vinegar and water. Use old newspapers to wipe mirrors with the mix, then add extra shine by rubbing with a clean dry-erase or blackboard eraser.

Stop Windshield Wiper Streaks

Dampen a cloth with vinegar and run it down each blade. The acetic acid cleans away any dirt and residue but also coats the wipers to keep them frost-free.

Make Chrome Gleam

Need a chrome polish? Its as simple as vinegar. Apply directly on chrome with a rag for a quick and easy shine.

Keep Ceramic Sparkling

For ceramic tile that always looks new, wipe it regularly with a sponge dampened with water and a splash of vinegar. Avoid soapy or oily cleaners, and never use abrasives, which will dull the finish and make glazed tiles more prone to dirt.

Whiten Grout Without Bleach

You can dissolve nasty buildup without harsh bleach. Simply create a paste from baking soda and water and apply it to the grout. Spray the area with a 1:1 mixture of vinegar and water. Let it sit for a few minutes before scrubbing with a brush. Then rinse with warm water and admire the results!

Power Your Shower Spray Naturally

Stay on top of mold and mildew by keeping this daily shower spray within easy reach of all family members. Mix 1 part vinegar with 10 parts water in an empty spray bottle and youre ready to go. Bonus: You dont have to worry about a toxic cleaner hitting the babys bath toys.

Clean Your Toilet While You Sleep

To remove hard-water deposits in your toilet bowl, pour 1 cup white vinegar into the bowl and allow it to sit for several hours or overnight before scrubbing.

Clogged Showerhead? A Solution Is in the Bag

Its easy to remove mineral deposits from a showerhead without using harsh chemicals. Just unscrew it and submerge it in white vinegar overnight, and the clogs will disappear. If you cant unscrew it, fill a small, sturdy bag with vinegar and attach it to the showerhead with duct tape, or use an old toothbrush and vinegar. To clean the screen in your showerhead, wash it with water mixed with a dash of dishwashing liquid.

BRUCE SAYS

Wipe Away Decals

As a dad to three boys, I found a solution for when the kids outgrow Thomas or adopt a new favorite team. Sponge a solution of equal parts lukewarm water and white vinegar on the decal thoroughly; let sit a few minutes. Stubborn sticker? Saturate it with straight vinegar and let sit for 15 minutes.

Brighten Cloudy Glass

Embarrassed by your cloudy glasses when company comes to visit? Its not uncommon for glassware to begin to develop a fine film after so many trips through the dishwasher. Before you run out to buy new ones, try this inexpensive little trick. Treat your glasses to a soak in a bath of warm vinegar for an hour. Theyll emerge sparkling clean!

Get a Dishwasher Like New

Soap film coating your dishwasher? Run it on an empty cycle using vinegar instead of detergent. It will be sparkling clean, and your next load of dishes will be sparkling, too.

Freshen Up the Garbage Disposal

Keep your garbage disposal running properly and odor-free with this simple once-a-month trick: Fill an ice-cube tray with white vinegar, and when frozen, grind about a dozen cubes. The ice sharpens the blades while the vinegar deodorizes the drain.

Mop Away Dirt and Grime

For mopping vinyl or ceramic floors, use cup white vinegar added to 1 gallon warm water. Its cheap, effective, and completely nontoxic.

Vanquish Smells with Vinegar

Vinegar absorbs and neutralizes odorsfrom smelly pets and paint to smoke. Place a cup of vinegar in any room the odor reaches. In the kitchen, try boiling 1 cup vinegar in 2 cups water. In 15 minutes, the smell should be gone. To remove odors from washable items, add 1 cup white vinegar during the wash cycle.

Make Oven Cleaning Safer

To reduce fumes after youve used a powerful oven cleaner, wipe down the inside of the oven with white vinegar. It will remove any remaining residue and help neutralize the cleaner. Your lungs will thank you.

Use a Virtually Free Freshener

Vinegar is so perfect for neutralizing odors and cutting back on dust. Keep a little in a small jar near heating vents. Our favorite Who Knew? hero will leave your room smelling cleaner than it ever did with an air freshener. Just be sure to replace it once a week.

Deodorize Your Cutting Board

Do you have a cutting board with a lingering odor that just wont quit? Remove the smell by rubbing the board with white vinegar.

JEANNE SAYS

Get Fresh-Car Smell

A bowl of vinegar set in the car overnight will remove odors left by pets, kid athletes, takeout food, and more!

Help Black Appliances Shine

Vinegar can help remove streaks on black appliances. After cleaning them with warm, sudsy water and a sponge, rub them with a rag dampened with straight white vinegar. The vinegar will remove soap residue and make your appliances shine.

Try a Spot-On Stainless Steel Cleaner

Youve scrubbed it twice, but you cant seem to get those water spots out of your stainless steel sink! The solution? A little white vinegar. Just rub into the spots and theyll disappear.

Clean That Ice Dispenser

Its so convenient to have a refrigerator with built-in ice and water dispensers, but you may have noticed how gross the dispenser tray can look after a while. That whitish mineral buildup seems impossible to wash off with soapy water, but vinegar will do the trick. Soak the tray in straight vinegar for a few minutes, then scrub the stains with an old toothbrush. Rinse with warm water, and your dispenser will look like new again!

Steam Away Microwave Mess

Microwave walls can take a beating from food and drink explosions. But cleanup and deodorizing are simple when you use vinegar. In a microwavable bowl, combine cup vinegar and 1 cup water. (You can also add a few drops of lemon juice, if you like.) Microwave for 3 to 5 minutes, then let sit for a few minutes while the steam goes to work. You should be able to easily wipe away any formerly caked-on mess.

Boost Your Dish Soap

Did you know that the acetic acid in vinegar dramatically increases the cleaning power of soap? Boost your dishwashing liquids effectiveness by adding a couple of teaspoons of white vinegar to the bottle (agitate gently to combine). Youll need less to get your dishes clean, saving you money!