The elixir of household goddesses

I know that I talked about going all hippie on the beautification products the other day but did I mention that I’m a bit obsessed with vinegar? So much so that I’m trying to figure out if I can take out stock in its production.

So what so special about it? Well vinegar in addition to making tasty pickles and dressings also does all these crazy things:

- As an alternative to fabric softener, simply put vinegar in your downy ball and toss it in with the rinse cycle of your laundry. Makes your towels nice and fluffy and cleans out any left over soap residue from the washer and your pipes. Also environmentally friendly.

- Fruit fly killer- place a little dish of vinegar on the counter with a squirt of liquid dish soap and give it a swirl to mix it up. Fruit flies are attracted the smell but can’t get out of the liquid soap (works best with apple cider vinegar).

- Vinegar is the new Windex- You can go full strength if you need it to cut through major gunk, but I usually do half and half with water in a spray bottle and use it for all purpose cleaner. Light acid cleans off the grit and grime from surfaces in my bathroom and kitchen without the harsh chemicals (and awful smell) and leaves everything with a streak free shine. Like lemon smells? Add half a lemon to the bottle.

- Carpet cleaner: Got a spot that won’t come out? First put down some baking soda and then spray on some vinegar (full strength). Watch it foam and bubble and scrub it around a bit. Wait for it to dry and then vacuum up. It will be so clean you’ll find yourself having to do the rest of the room. You can also just spray on your half water, half vinegar solution and give it a scrub as well. Have a pet spot? Spray on the vinegar solution and give a scrub then apply a light dusting of baking soda and let it dry, then vacuum for a poo and stank free spot.

- Floor cleaner- I’ve got laminated hardwood in the majority of my house that usually requires a pressure washer to get really clean. I hated spending so much money on all of the cleaners that are supposed to be formulated for these floors just to find them really filmy afterwards. Now I just glug about 1/2 cup of vinegar in my wash bucket and add the balance of hot water. Cleans just as well as everything else and leaves no filmy residue.

- Weed killer- This Sunday I (at 6+ month prego) felt not an ounce of guilt in loading up my back pack sprayer with full strength vinegar and going to town on the weeds in my drive way, along the side walk and borders of my lawn. As of this morning my driveway is a weed graveyard and I didn’t have to worry about making myself, my dogs or any of the rest of the flora and fauna in my neighborhood ill. I would recommend doing this when there is a streak of dry weather (I lucked out) so that the vinegar doesn’t breakdown so fast with water. Note that vinegar is a non-selective spray so it won’t act like weed and feed, it will just take out everything. So if you don’t want it dead, don’t spray it. Also, it sucks the moisture out of the leaves but may not kill of the root- so if you see that weed regrowing then you will have to either pull it out or spray it again. If you happen to kill it off at the right time, it may not regrow anyway but that’s a science lesson for another day.

Wanna know what else you can do with this wonder liquid? Go here: Vinegar Tips