Trick 1

Take a look around your home at every piece of furniture you own with a knob. These knobs are typically there to allow you to easily close and open drawers. Now go around and jiggle these knobs. How many are loose?

You can easily solve this problem with the help of a cheap bottle of clear nail polish. Remove the screw holding the knob onto the drawer. Coat the screw with a layer of nail polish. While the nail polish is still wet, use the screw to reattach the knob to the drawer. After the nail polish dries, your knob will no longer jiggle and you won’t have to worry about constantly tightening it!

Trick 2

Do you hate the way your house smells after you cook? This is particularly annoying if you have made a smelly meal like fish. You can easily solve this problem by boiling a pot of water on your stove. To the water, add some cloves. For an extra kick, add the peel of a citrus fruit to the mix. After the solution has boiled for a bit, simply turn off the burner and let the scent flow through your home. It will drown out the other smelly scents!

Trick 3

Stickers. They might be price tags or name tags or something else altogether. Stickers can be so annoying when it is time to remove them. They tear and leave behind gunk and sticker remnants. There are a few easy ways to remove this stuff. One of them involves squirting the sticky area with a bit of WD-40. Rub it in and then easily wipe off the sticky leftover! Sometimes smooth peanut butter can eliminate sticker gunk too!

Trick 4

Are you sick of replacing your shower curtain because it gets coated with soap buildup? You can save money by simply throwing it into the washing machine. Make sure to spin it out well because you don’t want to put it into the dryer. Simply hang it back in the shower and let it air dry naturally!

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If you have had wine splash on clothing before, you probably know how badly it stains. Have no fear – there is a way to prevent wine from staining your favorite materials. The best part about this is that the stain remover is inexpensive and likely in your kitchen cabinet.

Salt. That is all you’ll need to remove wine stains from your clothing. The trick is to use the salt immediately. As soon as you get wine on your clothing (or any material) simply cover the spot with a layer of salt and let it absorb the wine for several minutes. After approximately 5 to 10 minutes have passed, throw the material into the washing machine and turn on the cold cycle.

There are some instances where you can’t machine wash the damaged material. If you can, try hand washing the item in a large sink or tub. You should always use caution if the damaged item is a delicate material. If it is dry clean only, you should not wash it.

I once spilled a glass of red wine on my white cotton curtains. I used salt and the cold cycle immediately after this incident occurred and there is NO trace of the wine on my curtains today!

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Method 1

Fill a spray bottle with equal portions of water and white vinegar. Spray the surfaces of windows and mirrors with this solution. Use old newspaper to wipe the vinegar solution carefully from the surface. Make sure to use even strokes to avoid any streaking that might occur.

Tip: You can throw the used newspaper into your compost pile for easy waste disposal!

Method 2

A hot shower will cause your bathroom mirror to fog over. This annoying problem can easily be solved with the help of a foaming shaving cream. Simply apply a layer of the shaving cream to the mirror. Wipe it off with a clean cotton rag. Not only will your mirror no longer fog, it will be clean and streak free too!

Method 3

Fill a spray bottle with water. Add a few tablespoons of cornstarch to the bottle and shake until it dissolves. Spray the surfaces of mirrors and windows with the solution. You can use your clean cotton rag to wipe off the solution.

Method 4

Similar to Method 1, this method also involves white vinegar and water. In addition to these two ingredients, you will also want to add ammonia to the solution. Each ingredient should be added in equal parts. Use the item (rag, paper towel) of your choosing to clean the surface of the window.

There are lots of different types of windows and mirrors out there. Experiment with each of these methods to determine which one works best for you!

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Inspect the area where the window frame meets the wall. Look for any gaps between the two that might be creating a draft in your home.

Using silicone culk, carefully seal up any gaps that were discovered in step one.

Inspect each glass window pain and look for anything that appears out of the ordinary. If you see any cracks in the glass, you will want to quickly have them replaced.

Take a look at the putty that holds each window pane into place. You will want to look for any sings of deterioration, including any cracking that may be visible.

Replace deteriorated putty by first removing the window pane and old putty.

Examine any painted area around the wooden windows.

Remove old paint and apply a fresh coat of paint to any location around your windows that have started to peel. This will protect against rotting.

Install drip caps above each window to protect the wooden frames from rotting.

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What you need:

• Dust Cloth
• Mild Soap
• Windex

Using a dust cloth, wipe the vinyl window frame thoroughly to remove any dirt that may have built up.

Use mild soap to remove any dirt from the vinyl window frame that is not wiped away with the dust cloth in step one.

Use mild soap to wash the glass surface of your vinyl windows.

Use a dust cloth to carefully wipe away any streaks that are left behind.

Repeat steps one through four every six months.

Tips:

Make sure to use clean dust cloths when you are maintaining your vinyl windows.

When cleaning the exterior side of your vinyl windows, use extra caution. Call a professional if you are concerned about accessing them.

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As part of the self sufficient lifestyle, it is important to learn how to take care of simple things like itchy insect bites. It is also important to learn inexpensive ways to care for these common problems. This article accomplishes both objectives by using household ingredients to relieve the itching while also saving you money.

All you really need to eliminate the itch is baking soda and soapy water. The first thing you need to do is examine the bite. If you see a stinger, grab tweezers and carefully ease it from your skin. If you do not see a stringer, take a piece of paper and slowly run it over the bite. This will remove the small stingers that you might not be able to see.

Once your bite is free of itchy stingers, wash it vigorously with soap and water so it does not become infected. Dry the area well with a clean cotton cloth. Take about a teaspoon of baking soda and add a small amount of water to it and mix the ingredients together. Keep adding water until you have created a paste. Cover the insect bite with the paste and allow it to dry.

As the baking soda paste dries, it will slowly pull the venom out of the insect bite. The venom is what typically causes insect bites to itch. Repeat as necessary!

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The first thing to try is ice. All you need is a single ice cube and you will be able to get gum off of many different types of materials. The first thing you need to do is put your ice cube in something like a Ziploc bag that will seal securely. This is important because if you don’t, the melted ice will complicate the gum removal process!

Hold the bagged ice cube on the gum for several minutes. This will cause the gum to become very hard. As the gum begins to harden, you will also notice that it loses its stickiness. Once the gum starts to become brittle, slowly start to pull it free of the material that it has become entangled in. Keep in mind that this process may take patience and you may need to re-freeze the gum several times before it has been completely removed.

Ice is generally one of the most effective ways to remove gum. If you have tried your luck with gum without much success, try rubbing smooth peanut butter all over the gum and materials. The oil from the peanut butter can sometimes loosen up the gum and make it easier to remove it from fabrics.

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Find a clean spray bottle that is not in use. Simply fill it with some mouthwash that you have in your house. The trick is to use a mouthwash that contains alcohol. Many popular mouthwashes do not contain alcohol and will not be effective for this purpose. Before you head outside, simply spray your skin with a thin coating of the mouthwash. Mosquitoes will be repelled by the alcohol and will leave you to your work.

Another great way to naturally repel mosquitoes is to eat a lot of garlic. If you do not particularly like the taste of garlic, consider taking a garlic supplement each day. Mosquitoes despise the smell of garlic and will steer clear of you.

There are also several inexpensive plants that you can add to your garden to naturally repel mosquitoes. Marigolds are hardy and readily available. You can find cheap seeds at just about any garden center. Plant them in strategic groupings to repel mosquitoes. Consider potting several marigolds for use on a porch or any other area where you intend to spend time outdoors. Lemon balm is another great mosquito repelling plant that you should consider adding to your garden!

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The most important thing you can do for your vehicle is change the oil regularly. While the general rule of thumb is every 3,000 miles, consult the owner’s manual for your vehicle. Many modern vehicles only require you to change your oil every 10,000 miles. This is perfectly acceptable in normal conditions, but if you live in a polluted or dusty environment (life a farm) you may want to change your oil much more frequently.

You also want to get into the regular habit of flushing the fluids in your vehicle. Approximately every 20,000 miles, you will want to flush the old antifreeze in your vehicle and replace it with new antifreeze.

When you car starts approaching the 80,000 mile marker, you should start planning for another expensive repair. If your car has a timing belt, this is about when it will need to be replaced. It is a good idea to budget for this replacement because it can be expensive. Replacing this part before it goes bad is a great way to avoid unexpected repairs and frustration.

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Many people are now purchasing high efficiency (HE) washing machines. These machines use less water to wash your clothes and this alone will save you money over the course of a year. This laundry detergent can be used in HE washing machines thanks to its low suds consistency!

Ingredients

• Cheese Grater
• Large Pot
• Bucket
• ½ Cup Borax
• 1 Cup Washing Soda
• Bar of Soap (your choice)

Take the bar of soap that you have selected and grate it with your cheese grater so that you have a pile of soap shreds. Then you’ll fill your large pot with water and bring it to a boil. Slowly add the grated soap to the water mixture. Keep stirring the mixture until it is completely melted.

In a separate large bucket, add your borax and washing soda. Pour your soap solution into the bucket and stir all of the ingredients together thoroughly. Once all ingredients have been combined, cover your bucket and let it set overnight.

When you look at your laundry detergent solution several hours later, it will likely have a combination of chunks and water surrounding it. This is perfectly normal. Simply stir up the ingredients again until they are combined.

Use approximately ½ cup of the HE laundry detergent for each load of laundry. Make sure to stir it up before each use to ensure the best results.

** You can add scents to your laundry detergent. All you need to do is add them in with the borax and washing soda and mix it all together.

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