Vinegar Tips
If you have a large bottle of leftover white vinegar on your shelf, you don’t have to wait until it shows up in another recipe to use it. White vinegar has many uses around the house. Here are just some of them, sent in by reader Cheryl Maczko of Arthurdale, West Virginia.
Add to bath water. Adding a half cup of vinegar to warm bath water will give you softer skin and a cleaner bathtub with less work.
Cracked, dry skin. Smooth a little vinegar on dried skin to help it heal.
Remove calluses. Try soaking your feet in a combination of white vinegar and warm water daily and your feet will soften.
Saves pantyhose. When you wash out pantyhose, add a tablespoon of vinegar to the rinse water. Your pantyhose should last longer.
Clean glass. Mix vinegar with water or spray full-strength vinegar on mirrors and window glass. Wipe them dry with crumpled newspapers. Don’t forget your car windows!
Polish furniture. You can make your own furniture polish with one part vinegar and three parts olive oil or lemon oil.
Remove price tags. Having trouble getting that price tag or sticker off your purchase? Paint them with several coats of vinegar to ease them off. Some surfaces may require a little rubbing.
Clean your iron. Pour vinegar in the water holder and let it steam clean. Make sure to flush it with water when you’re done.
Remove spots. Use a cloth soaked in vinegar to get rid of spots on glassware and crystal.
See clearly. Put a drop of vinegar on each lens of your eyeglasses and wipe clean.
Clean jars. Remove odors and stains from jars by cleaning them out with vinegar.
Wash walls. To clean surfaces and absorb odors, wash down your walls with a vinegar-water mixture.
Clean teapots. Boil a mixture of water and vinegar in the teapot, then wipe away the grime.
Remove rust. Soak rusted tools and bolts in vinegar overnight.
Remove stains. A mixture of salt and vinegar will clean coffee and tea stains from china.
Disinfect cutting boards. To clean and disinfect cutting boards, wipe with full-strength vinegar.
Clean paintbrushes. Simmer paintbrushes in vinegar, then wash in hot soapy water.
Kill weeds. Spray full-strength on weeds, but be careful not to spray on the lawn because it will also kill the grass.
Mosquito bites. Use a cotton ball to dab mosquito and other bug bites with vinegar.
Clay Pot Cleanup. Remove white salt buildup on old clay pots by soaking the pots in full-strength vinegar.
Stop the scratching. Sprinkle or spray vinegar on areas you don’t want your cat scratching on.