Household Cleaning Tips

Think sugar is just for sweetening your tea? Think again. This everyday pantry item has a surprising number of practical uses around the home—from cleaning to beauty care and even preserving food. These sugar hacks are simple, affordable, and super effective. Here are 10 brilliant ways to use sugar at home that you probably didn’t expect. 1. Keep Fresh Flowers Alive Longer Mix 3 teaspoons of sugar with 2 tablespoons of vinegar in a vase. The sugar feeds the flowers while the vinegar prevents bacteria, helping your bouquet stay fresh for days. 2. Remove Grass Stains from Clothing Got grass stains on jeans? Make a thick paste of sugar and warm water. Rub it into the stain, let it sit for 2 hours, then wash as usual. It’s gentle, natural, and effective. 3. Clean a Coffee or Spice Grinder Pour ¼ cup of sugar into your grinder and run it briefly. Sugar absorbs oils and loosens debris, leaving your machine fresh and clean. Be sure to wipe it out afterward! 4. Get Rid of Greasy Hands After c...

Ever notice how socks lose their snug fit after a few washes? That’s the elastic breaking down—and it doesn’t have to happen so soon. By caring for them the right way, you can protect the elasticity, prevent sagging, and enjoy your favorite pairs for much longer. Here are 5 practical tips on how to maintain sock elasticity and keep them looking and feeling great. 1. Secure the Elastic Before Washing Gently tie or clip the top band of each sock before tossing them in the wash. This small step helps protect the cuff from overstretching and keeps the shape intact. 2. Use a Mesh Laundry Bag Place your socks in a mesh laundry bag during washing. It shields them from rough contact with other clothes, reducing the pull and stress on the elastic fibers. 3. Handle Gently - No Yanking Avoid pulling or twisting socks harshly when washing or taking them out of the machine. Gentle handling helps preserve their structure and elasticity. 4. Focus Cleaning on the Foot Area When scrubbing or spot...

1) Clean windows on a cloudy day or evenings  On a sunny day, water or cleaning solution dries quickly leaving the windows with streaks or spots. 2) Use newspapers or lint-free rags This will prevent lint or fibre from sticking on the freshly polished windows. Paper towel, cloth rags are the worst culprits of lint. 3) Wet the glass To remove paint specks on the glass, wet the glass. Load a new blade on the razor and scrap off. To remove droppings, wet the glass and scrub off with a nylon scrub pad. Test the nylon scrub pad on a small inconspicuous area to ensure you are not scratching the glass before going full force. To remove labels and stickers, wet the paper labels with lighter fluid or nail polish remover then lift them off with a penknife or pocket knife. 4) Use a blackboard or whiteboard eraser Rub off streaks on the glass windows with black or whiteboard erasers. 5) Best cleaning solution 1 part water 1 part vinegar If the smell of vin...

To clean up spilled oil, sprinkle flour on the oil. Leave it to stand for a minute. Scoop up the floury mess and toss them into the bin.

Ever noticed a white, powdery layer on store-bought grapes? That coating—called bloom —is completely natural and helps protect the grapes from moisture loss. But while it’s harmless, it can sometimes leave a strange taste or dull their appearance. If you want grapes that are not only clean but also fresher, tastier, and ready to serve, try these five easy, natural ways to wash them using common kitchen ingredients. 🍇1. Sea Salt Scrub Sea salt is a gentle exfoliant that helps lift away residue. How to use it: Place your grapes in a bowl. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sea salt over them. Gently rub the grapes to polish off the film. Rinse well with water. 🍇 2. Corn Starch Cleanse Corn starch binds to the film and pulls it away from the skin. Steps: Add 1 tablespoon of corn starch to the grapes. Rub gently to coat and clean. Rinse under running water until smooth and clean. 🍇 3. Baking Soda Bath Baking soda is a natural cleanser that breaks down residue without affecting...

1) Apply natural sea salt on the ulcer. (Ow, this stings and hurts A LOT) 2) Gurgle a lukewarm sea salt solution made with boiled water 3) Apply over the counter mouth gels. House brands antiseptic mouth gels or the brand Bonjela works well. 4) Apply watermelon frost or pearl powder from Chinese stores. This may be bitter tasting. 5) Apply butter! Butter creates a layer or film of protection between saliva and the ulcer and thus reduces pain. Consider using salted butter as the salt doubles up as antiseptic and speeds up the healing

You may have decided to change an old coffee table on your carpet. After replacing the old table with a new one, you found dents in your carpet where the old table used to be. Gently fluff up the carpets fibers with the tines of a stainless steel fork.

Tired of finding holes in your socks after just a few wears? You're not alone! Socks wear out quickly when we don’t care for them the right way. But with a few easy changes to your routine, you can make your socks last much longer. Here are 5 smart, everyday tips on how to prevent socks from getting holes and keep them in great shape. 1. Keep Toenails Trimmed and Smooth Long or jagged toenails are one of the biggest culprits behind toe holes. Regular trimming helps prevent nails from rubbing or tearing through the fabric. Smooth nails = longer sock life.   2. Skip the Dryer—Air Dry Instead High heat from dryers weakens elastic fibers and wears out fabric faster. Instead, let your socks air dry or lay them out in the sun. It's gentler on the material and helps preserve their shape and stretch.   3. Use Gentle Detergent Only Harsh chemicals like bleach and stain removers can damage fibers and reduce elasticity. Stick to mild laundry detergent when washing your socks—it ke...

Fill a large brown paper bag with a cup of salt Remove a stalk from the floral arrangement and placed it into the paper bag. Close the paper bag and shake it vigorously The salt will help to remove the dust from the petals and leaves Remove the stalk and gently shake off the remaining salt Replace the stalk back into the arrangement and repeat the above steps for the remaining stalks.

Rub the laundry detergent undiluted on the stain and let it stay for 5 minutes before rinsing it out Soak the garment in vinegar solution, 1 part vinegar 1 part water for half an hour to remove the lighter fluid odor. Rinse it out, OR For non-white garments, soak the garment in coke solution overnight, 1/2 can of coke 1/2 cup of baking soda 1/2 bucket of cold water. Rinse it out. Launder the garment in the washing machine as usual, according to the instructions on the garment label

Here are some suggestions: Open the windows and door wide to allow fresh air to circulate through the toilet; and Light a match in the toilet and douse it by throwing it directly into the toilet, OR Light a lighter in the toilet for 1 minute to burn up the methane in the air Add indoor plants in the toilet such as money plants,  OR Add a few drops of essential oil or aromatherapy oil into the toilet bowl, let it sit for 5 minutes then flush the toilet, OR Pour a cup of vinegar into the toilet bowl and flush it off immediately.

In case of laundry accidents, whereby bits of paper, bits of tissue paper was washed together with the whole tub of laundry, all the clothes will emerge from the washing machine with lots of lint and papers pulps sticking to all the clothes. Here's what to do: 1) Dry the laundry first 2) Use a lint remover to remove all the dried up tissue on the clothes; OR Use sticky tape or scotch tape or masking tape to remove the paper bits

Ooops...... Crack!! There goes the egg. It all messy on the floor now. If we bring out the paper towels for that, it will take tons before every last drop in wiped up. Try this: Pour lots of salt to cover up the egg mess.  Let it sit for awhile. The egg will absorb the salt and become firm. Once the egg mess firms up, pick it up and dump it off

I have just made a pot of clear chicken soup for dinner and just realised that the soup is too greasy! Oh, nightmare! The soup is ruined for good! Here goes some tried and tested methods: Keep the fire going for the soup. Shift the pot slightly to one side of the burner. The excess fat will be concentrated to one side of the pot. Use a skimmer and skim the surface to remove excess fat Or Pop some cold lettuce leaves into the soup and remove them immediately. Or  Drop some ice cubes into a slotted spoon or ladle and skim the surface to remove excess fat. Or Drag a clean paper towel over the surface of the soup to soak up the fat. Refrigerate the soup to chill it. The excess fat congeals at the surface of the soup. When that happens, lift it off with a spoon. However, do note that refrigerating the soup takes hours (at least 3 hours) before the fat congeals.

The tried and tested method is to keep the fruits and vegetables in foil bags. You need not rush out to the stores to buy them, or start googling for them in your favorite online store. You can recycle foil bags from potato chips bags (those that are non-oily after you finish the chips), oats or cereal refill packs in foil bags, coffee or other drinks refill foil bags. The shiny surfaces of the bags keep the vegetables or fruits from being frozen in the fridge. The other way would be to wrap them up in newspapers before keeping fresh fruits and vegetables in the fridge. However, be careful to keep the newspapers dry as damp newspapers will cause ice to form on the newspapers and result in fruits and vegetables rotting faster.

Pour a cup of stale milk into the iron skillet. Bring it to a boil and keep it boiling for 5 minutes Pour away the milk and wash up the skillet

Put a bunch of pandan leaves or bay leaves in an old pair of panty hose. Place the leaves in the car boot or dark corners where bugs and cockroaches hide. The bay leaves and pandan leaves will keep the bugs and pesky insects away. Another advantage of using pandan leaves, it will freshen up the interior smell of the car too!

Some of us may wonder, cleaning the washing machine? Is it necessary? Well, the washing machine is meant to clean our clothes and it needs to be kept clean all the time too. However, due to hard water or excessive usage of laundry detergent, soap scum do accumulate over time in the washing machine. Especially in the hoses of the washing machine and the drum. Here is a simple way to clean up the scum in the washing machine and hoses: Pour a cup of white distilled vinegar into the soap tray of the washing machine Run a regualr wash cycle without any clothes or laundry detergent This will flush out the scum within the drum and hoses of the washing machine.

Rub the scuff marks with a clean pencil eraser, OR Clean off the scuff with some non-gel toothpaste and wipe clean with a soft cloth, OR Rub the scuff marks with lighter fluid and wipe clean with a soft cloth, OR Rub the scuff marks with some methyl silicate fluid and wipe clean with a soft cloth OR Rub the scuff marks with some petroleum jelly or mineral oil and wipe clean with a soft cloth OR  Only for black patent leather - To cover up a stubborn scuff mark, dab ink from a black felt-tip marker onto the scuff mark until it disappears. Let it air dry To give the patent leather a brighter shine, wipe the surface with white distilled vinegar and let it air dry

Stainless steel sinks are by far the hardiest sinks and requires minimal maintenance. However, having said that, kitchen sinks can be the dirtiest place in the kitchen after stovetops. They are where we wash everything from uncooked food to dishes and oily pots and pans. Here is a tried and tested method of cleaning the stainless steel sink and giving it a showroom shine without busting the household budget or using any harsh chemicals : Wet the sink Sprinkle baking soda or bicarbonate of soda over the surface of the sink Scrub out the sink with the abrasive side of the sponge to remove accumulated scum and dirt Rinse out the sink to remove the dirt Dry out the sink completely Sprinkle a scoop of flour or more on the surface of the sink Use a soft cloth or microfiber cloth to buff the surface till it shines