February 14, 2007 | Vinegar, Cleaning tips, Cleaning products

Natural cleaning folks and the green-minded have known for ages that vinegar is an important cleaning agent. You can use it as a disinfectant, fabric softener, all purpose and glass cleaner, the list goes on. But I was pleasantly surprised (as well as entertained) by what I found at Joey Green’s Wacky Uses website. Here’s a selection of the useful, surprising, and truly wacky uses for household vinegar (specifically, the Heinz brand, according to Joey Green). Italics are my comments.

• Kill bacteria in meats. Marinating meat in Heinz Vinegar kills bacteria and tenderizes the meat. Use one-quarter cup vinegar for a two to three pound roast, marinate overnight, then cook without draining or rinsing the meat. Add herbs to the vinegar when marinating as desired.

• Dissolve warts. Mix one part Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar to one part glycerin into a lotion and apply daily to warts until they dissolve.
• Grow beautiful azaleas. Occasionally water plants with a mixture of two tablespoons Heinz White Vinegar to one quart water. Azaleas love acidic soil.
• Relieve arthritis. Before each meal, drink a glass of water containing two teaspoons Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar. Give this folk remedy at least three weeks to start working. (this one doesn’t sound too pleasant!)
• Kill unwanted grass. Pour Heinz White Vinegar in crevices and between bricks. Or use a spray bottle.
  
• Cure an upset stomach. Drink two teaspoons Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar in one cup water to soothe an upset stomach. I’ll stick to gingerale and chamomile tea, thank you.
  

• Deodorize the air. Heinz Vinegar is a natural air freshener when sprayed in a room.

• Relieve itching. Use a cotton ball to dab mosquito and other bug bites with Heinz Vinegar straight from the bottle.
• Relieve a sore throat. Put two teaspoons of Heinz Vinegar in your humidifier.
• Turn a chicken bone into rubber. Soak a chicken bone in a glass of Heinz Vinegar for three days. It will bend like rubber. Who thinks of this?
  

• Condition dry hair. Shampoo, then rinse hair with a mixture of one cup Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar and two cups water. Vinegar adds highlights to brunette hair, restores the acid mantel, and removes soap film and sebum oil.
• Repel ants. Use a spray bottle or mister filled with a solution of equal parts Heinz Vinegar and water around door jambs, window sills, water pipes, and foundation cracks.
• Keep drains open. Pour one-half box of old baking soda down the drain followed by one cup Heinz White Vinegar. When the bubbling stops, run the hot water.
  

• Remove decals or bumper stickers. Soak a cloth in Heinz Vinegar and cover the decal or bumper sticker for several minutes until the vinegar soaks in. The decals and bumper stickers should peel off easily.

• Prevent lint from clinging to clothes. Add one cup Heinz Vinegar to each wash load.
• Prevent ice from forming on a car windshield overnight. Coat the window with a solution of three parts Heinz White or Apple Cider Vinegar to one part water.
• Prolong the life of flowers in a vase. Add two tablespoons of Heinz White Vinegar plus three tablespoons of sugar per quart of warm water. Stems should be in three to four inches of water.
• Relieve a cold. Mix one-quarter cup Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar with one-quarter cup honey. Take one tablespoon six to eight times daily.
• Prevent soapy film on glassware. Place a cup of Heinz White Vinegar on the bottom rack of your dishwasher, run for five minutes, then run though the full cycle. A cup of white vinegar run through the entire cycle once a month will also reduce soap scum on the inner workings.
• Unclog a shower head. Unscrew the shower head, remove the rubber washer, place the head in a pot filled with equal parts Heinz Vinegar and water, bring to a boil, then simmer for five minutes. A better idea - Put the vinegar and water in a zip-lock baggie, place over your connected shower head, and secure with a strong rubber band. Let sit 30 minutes.
  
• Relieve a cough. Mix one-half cup Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar, one-half cup water, one teaspoon cayenne pepper, and four teaspoons honey. Take one tablespoon when cough acts up. Take another tablespoon at bedtime.
  

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1. new mom says:

   
   

   Hi! I have a question: I came across your website when I was looking for “natural” way of cleaning since recently becoming a new mom (funny how now it seems to be the time to make changes). Since you are “home keepers”, I was wondering what you use on satin finished faucets, etc./ fixtures in kitchen/ bath. I don’t want to ruin the finish (as some other not so natural cleaners have in the past!). Is the apple cider vinger the best solution for pretty much the house? (Sorry to hear you don’t have a branch in FL!)- Thanks for your help!

   September 6th, 2007 at 11:41 pm

2. Broomhuggers » Satin finished stainless appliances says:

   
   

   […] Q: I was wondering what you use on satin finished faucets, etc./ fixtures in kitchen/ bath. I don’t want to ruin the finish (as some other not so natural cleaners have in the past!). […]

   September 7th, 2007 at 7:08 am

3. Double Dead Frog Blog » Cleaning Cure-All says:

   
   

   […] my pregnant nose to handle, I went to one of my new favourite sites, Broomhuggers, where I found this treasure trove of vinegary wisdom. Then I got my trusty WalMart vinegar-cinnamon-water spray bottle and voila! […]

   May 7th, 2008 at 6:40 pm

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