Your Grandmother may have passed down some great cleaning tips to you, but I think she might have fainted from happiness if she had all 10 of these cleaning hacks for the home! These tips will save you time as well as your sanity, and all involve items you’ve likely already got around the house. I’ve tried them all out around my house, and while I might get the side-eye from other family members about what I’m doing, I know it’s all worth it in the end!
Check out these awesome hacks in the slideshow.
10 Best Cleaning Hacks for the Home
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Dryer Sheets
These little pieces of cloth are pure magic, even after they've been used in the dryer! A used dryer sheet can buff out water spots from your mirrors and bathroom/kitchen fixtures, tackle waterspots on your shower doors, and even get rid of that loathsome ring in the toilet that just won't budge! Use new dryer sheets to wipe your baseboards clean, and you'll be not only be cleaning them but adding a dust-fighting layer to them as you go!
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Ammonia and Stove Burners
Don't even think about scrubbing your stove burners with harsh chemicals again! Instead, take them outside and place in a heavy garbage bag. Add a splash of ammonia (this is why you need to be outside!) and seal up the bag. Heck, use another garbage bag to double bag it if you're worried about any escaping vapors or pets that might start sniffing around there. Wait a day for the ammonia to do its magic, then cut open the bags in a ventilated space. Take them to your sink, or use a garden hose outside, and watch the caked on grease just fall right off! This trick works great for your BBQ grill grates as well!
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Microwave & Vinegar
Make the inside of your microwave sparkle by nuking some vinegar for a few minutes! Place equal amounts of vinegar and water in a microwave safe bowl and place it in the microwave. You'll also want to add a small wooden object (i.e. a chopstick, toothpick, wooden spoon) to your bowl to prevent any boiling or explosion dangers. Then set your microwave for 5-10 minutes (max out the time if you've got serious grime to deal with!) and enjoy the steam cleaning. Wait a couple minutes to open it up, then wipe the surfaces clean with a sponge or paper towel! Now wasn't that easy?
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Clean Oil with Oil!
An oil spattered kitchen is just the worst to clean, because try as you may, the soap just never seems to be enough to clean it! So instead, use oil to pick your oil up! Add a few drops of vegetable oil to paper towel, then wipe the greasy surface and watch the oil disappear! When you're done, simply wipe it with a clean towel and stand back to admire your shiny surfaces!
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Turn Your Washing Machine or Dishwasher into a Toy Cleaner
Have a play date at your house and need all those toys de-germified? Stick the plastic ones in the dishwasher for an easy sanitizing job, or pile them up in a mesh bag and throw them in the washing machine on no-spin! Then rinse and repeat after the germy play date kids leave your house!
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Hard Water Stains with Vinegar
Hard water stains can be both an eye-sore and nightmare to get rid of! Approach them in the future by being super lazy, and watch them disappear! Just soak a few paper towels in white vinegar, then place them on the hard water stains in question: on your faucets, your bath tub, or the drip pan for your refrigerator's water dispenser! Come back an hour later and wipe clean with a towel, and witness the sparkle!
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Make Your Microfiber Couch Look like New
Want to remove the evidence of kids and pets from your microfiber couch? Rubbing alcohol is your answer! Use a spray bottle to cover your couch with rubbing alcohol, then use a clean white sponge to rub the couch. You'll see the dirt and grime coming off on the sponge, so use a few if you need to! Once the couch is dry, use a stiff scrubbing bristle brush to fluff up the fibers and get it looking like new!
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Sanitize Sponges in the Microwave
Next time you're worried about spreading germs in your kitchen or bathroom, just throw your sponges in the microwave! Make sure they're wet, then toss them in (preferably on a microwave safe surface), and turn the microwave on high for 2 minutes. You'll be eliminating 99% of all the little microbes that might be living in there (don't trust me -- the Journal of Environmental Health discovered this fact!) instead of spreading germs while you clean!
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Clean Dishwasher with Vinegar and Baking Soda
We don't often think about cleaning the appliances that clean everything else, like your dishwasher, but it needs to be done! Place a container filled with white vinegar in the top rack of your dishwasher and run it on its hottest cycle with nothing else inside. Then, sprinkle some baking soda along the floor of the dishwasher, and run it again on a short-hot cycle, and you'll have a super clean dish washing machine!
