5 Useful Household Tips

As much as I love to stay in the kitchen to cook and bake, cleaning probably is on the bottom of my favorite-things-to-do list.  Raise your hands if you’re the same.  Today, I want to share with you 5 useful household tips that can save you time, money and headache while doing these household chores.  I know, as much as we dislike it, someone got to do it, right?  So here we go…

Tip #1:  Easy way to clean those hard water stains:



Sorry, I know this is not a pretty picture.  The only good thing about it is that I know my kids had been drinking a lot of water!  Unfortunately, they don’t wipe dry or clean up after using the water dispenser.  No fret!  I've got an easy and safe method for you to clean those hard water stains out!  And my secret weapon is: vinegar!  Just plain old white vinegar will do the trick.  Simply remove the tray from the water dispenser and soak it with white vinegar for 3 to 5 minutes before rinsing.  It also works on your coffee maker or tea kettle as well.  For the parts that you can not remove to soak, simply damp a kitchen towel with the vinegar and wipe those stains off.  See picture below after the cleaning.  Much better, right?   Phew….I’m glad that we've got this taken care of.





Tip #2: How to clean those stubborn tea/coffee stains:




I drink coffee every morning and hot tea throughout the day.  So, it’s not a surprise that my mugs are easily stained with coffee/tea.  My tips and trick for easy cleaning?  A toothbrush and some toothpaste are the answers!



Gently brush the toothpaste on the stains in your mugs and it works like magic.  It will leave your mugs and cups sparkly clean in no time.  Plus, the long handle of the tooth brush is perfect for reaching the bottom of the tall mugs, making it a lot easier to clean than a kitchen sponge.  I always keep a toothbrush around the sink for this job.   I love too see that my favorite mug is as good as new again!




Tip #3: Organizing and storing the baking supplies

You all know I love to bake for my kids.  I buy and collect all kinds of cupcake liners, but not necessarily using them all at once.  If they are not store properly, they won’t hold their shapes too well when you are ready for baking.  These “recycled” coffee jars really come in handy in storing my cupcake liners and other baking supplies.  So, next time before you throw away a container, see if you can recycle it for storage use.




Tip #4: How to Remove odor from the refrigerator and the sink:

My fridge is always filled with different kinds of food and ingredients for cooking.  Besides my trusted Sriracha hot sauce, I love keeping an open box of baking soda in my fridge.  This is one simple way to keep funky odors out of my fridge and my food.  Just remember to write down the date that it needs to be changed out.  The box recommended 30 days,  but I sometimes keep it longer in there.  How long before you need to change a new box really depends on how full and what kind of food you keep in the fridge.  So, I would say, changing a new box every 30 to 45 days works out well for me.



When it’s time to change a new box of baking soda for your fridge, don’t just throw away the old box.  Simply pour it into your sink while running warm tap water down the drain will eliminate the odor in your sink as well!  See, nothing goes to waste.  And you’re very welcome!




Tip #5: Safe and easy way to clean Stainless Steel appliances/sink:

I don’t like using commercial cleaners or heavy chemical stuffs around the house.  Here, I have this homemade stainless steel cleanser that you’re going to love.  Not only it’s easy to make, it also saves you money and it works really well.




I got this spray bottle for just 79 cents, add 1 tablespoons of baking soda, 2 tablespoons of white vinegar, and 1 cup warm water.  If you don’t like the smell of the vinegar, you can add 1 drop or 2 of lemon essential oil (such as this one) into the mix.  Put the cap on and spray on stainless steel surface, then wipe clean & dry with lint-free cloth.   See how pretty my oven door is after cleaning?



It' also works on your other stainless steel appliances such as microwave oven or your fridge surface, and even your sink.  Anything stainless steel would love this spray, and so do I. 




I hope you enjoy today’s post with these helpful household tips!  Happy cleaning.