We love distilled white vinegar. We don't necessarily love the way it smells, but we put up with it because it is useful for (literally) thousands of things in your home. Plus it's cheap, non-toxic, and environmentally friendly. What more could you ask for in a cleaning product? Seriously, vinegar is useful for cleaning (it disinfects surfaces), laundry (it softens towels), gardening (it's a great weed killer), and is even healthy for your pets and children.
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Below we've listed some of our favorite uses, but there are so many that you could write a book on it. No, wait, they already have. However, to get you started, here are 10 great ways you can add white vinegar into your home.
10 Uses for White Vinegar
1. Wash produce
Vinegar is known for its household disinfectant properties, so why should it be any different for your food? Use vinegar to help wash away pesticides and bacteria from your produce and make sure that your health food is actually healthy.
To do this, mix three parts water to one part white vinegar and spray your fruit liberally. Don't forget to rise it off though! Vinegar-flavored tomatoes might not be all that nice to eat.
2. Sanitize surfaces
While you're washing your produce, you may as well make sure that the surfaces you're setting them on are just as clean.
Therefore, have a spray bottle ready and filled with one part vinegar and one part water so that you can wipe down all your kitchen countertops before you begin your next culinary masterpiece. The equal parts of the mixture work as a great cleaning solution for everything from showerheads to the coffee maker.
3. Tough towels
If your towels are more scratchy than fluffy when they come out of the wash, next time try washing them in the washing machine in a cup of white vinegar.
Not only will you save on detergent expenses, but it will also help save the environment while you clean with the wash cycle.
4. Unclog drains
It's not something that anyone wishes to deal with, but sometimes you have to clear a clogged drain whether it be from the kitchen sink or the dishwasher. However, instead of relying on those expensive, toxic cleaners that promise miracles, try a simple solution of baking soda, salt, boiling water, and white vinegar.
It works just as well, and you know you will always have these ingredients at home should an emergency situation arise.
5. Carpet care
We all spill things on the carpet. However, thankfully there is a great way to remove those stains before they set in - with products that you almost always have lying around the house.
Mix ½ cup of baking soda with a tablespoon of salt, and a splash of white vinegar. Apply this paste to the stubborn stain and allow it to dry fully. When it's dry, vacuum it up and the stain should disappear. Goodbye carpet stains!
6. Crystal clear windows
Now you too can reenact those Windex commercials in your very own home. By wiping off your windows with a paper towel and a mixture of one part white vinegar and 10 parts warm water, you will have the cleanest, clearest windows you have ever imagined.
7. Dissolve sticky residue
Can't get that sticky label off your gift? Accidentally glue your fingers together? Did you dribble honey on the counter? Got crusty gunk on your paintbrushes? Vinegar is a great multi-purpose solvent. From grease to glue it's there for you.
8. Fight hiccups
The hiccups are one of the hardest ailments to cure. There are hundreds of remedies, and none of them seem to work. However, it is said that swallowing a teaspoon of vinegar can get rid of them as quickly as they come on.
So if you've tried everything in the book and are looking for a new solution to an age-old problem, give vinegar a try.
9. Deter cats
We aren't going to take a stance on whether or not dogs or cats are better here. Instead, we are just going to hypothesize that unless they are invited into your house or are in an adorable cat video, you don't want them hanging around and doing their business in your children's sandbox or your flower beds.
If that is the case, then a quick and easy solution is to pour undiluted white vinegar around the edges of the areas you want to keep off-limits. The smell of vinegar is enough to keep them away.
10. Prevent dandruff
No one wants dandruff. It's not cute. However, sometimes the remedies to banish it are cost-prohibitive. Vinegar, on the other hand, is economically ideal and naturally contains acetic acid and water, which works exceptionally well to cure and prevent dandruff.
Can't get enough of white vinegar's magical properties? For even more ideas on how to use white vinegar in your home, visit this site.
