Foto: BB.LV
How to Save on Cleaning Products If you think that a dishwasher can only work with expensive store-bought detergents, you are mistaken. An equivalent of such products can be made at home, saving you money. Instead of expensive tablets, you can use a mixture of borax powder and baking soda (2 tsp each). To clean the dishwasher itself, when a whitish film appears inside, I pour 0.5 cup of baking soda into the bottom and run the dishwasher on rinse mode. The film disappears completely. Grandma's Bleach Special products are required for whitening woolen clothes, as regular bleaches can damage the fibers. But if you only have a couple of white woolen sweaters, it doesn't make sense to spend money on special bleaches. I suggest using grandma's methods, which work just as well and even make the wool softer. Before bleaching, wash and rinse the items. Then dilute 40 ml of hydrogen peroxide in 5 liters of cold water or squeeze the juice of a medium-sized lemon into the water. To make squeezing easier, pour boiling water over the lemon — it will soften, and you will be able to extract all the juice. Soak the clothes in one of the solutions overnight, and in the morning rinse and lay them out on a flat surface to dry (you can place a light sheet underneath). All stains and yellowish tints will disappear from the white items. Lemon juice will also tackle rust stains from metal fittings. The Secret to a Snow-White Bathtub Mix 2 tbsp each of calcined and drinking soda. Rub the wet bathtub with this mixture. After 5–10 minutes, without rinsing off the soda mixture, apply 50 ml of vinegar and 50 ml of bleach on top. After half an hour, rinse the bathtub thoroughly. It will become snow-white — you will see for yourself. Mustard for Clogs If your drain is clogged, you can try using mustard. Boil 3 kettles of water, pour it down the sink drain, sprinkle half a pack of dry mustard, and wait. The water should drain away in a few minutes! How to Make Your Blender Last Longer To keep your blender in good working condition for longer, follow these recommendations: Do not run it for more than 10 minutes continuously to avoid overheating. Avoid grinding dry products too often, as this wears out the blades. Do not put overly large pieces of food into the bowl; cut them into medium-sized pieces first. After use, always wash and dry all blender parts, and wipe the motor housing with a damp cloth. Salt Against Residue To get rid of white residue inside baby bottles, pour 1 tbsp of salt into the bottle, fill it 1/3 with cold water, and shake vigorously several times. Then pour out the contents and rinse the bottle under running water. Instead of salt, you can use fine grains — corn, barley, or semolina. Wax Lid for Home Preserves For reliable sealing of homemade preserves, I use wax. It perfectly protects jams and pickles from air exposure. Plus, wax can be reused every year, as it does not spoil. For wax sealing, jars are prepared as usual: washed, sterilized, and filled with hot contents to the neck. The wax is melted in a water bath and poured over the preserves in a layer of 1.5–2 cm. It hardens, forming an airtight lid. To prevent dust from settling on top, cover the jar with a sheet of paper and tie it around the neck with a string. Cleaning Your Laptop If your laptop keyboard is dusty, you can clean it yourself. Turn on the vacuum cleaner, remove the nozzle, and carefully run the hose over the keyboard to collect small debris. Then take baby wipes, which are soft and good at picking up dirt. Wipe the monitor glass and the keyboard with the wipe. You can clean the gaps between the keys with a needle, wrapping a bit of cotton around its blunt end. Don't overdo it, and if the needle doesn't fit into the gap, don't force it. If you clean it once every two weeks, you will take your laptop to professionals for maintenance much less often.
