There are thousands of cleaning hacks on the Internet — and it has to be said that most of them don’t work. A hack is something that should save you time, energy and money, but many of them fail on all three counts.
But every so often, you come across a little pearl of wisdom that changes the way you clean your home. Sometimes, these hacks get us out of sticky (quite literally) situations, while others allow us to cut our household shopping bills or free up time for leisure.
Whether you’re looking to save money, time or energy — or perhaps all three — these 8 cleaning hacks should help you to do just that.
1. Clean your iron with salt and aluminium foil
Have you ever noticed that black, sticky stuff that accumulates on the plate of an iron? No matter how hard we try, we just can’t stop it from appearing. Not only does it reduce an iron’s ability to do its job, it also damages fibres. But before you throw your iron away, try cleaning it with salt and aluminium. Lay out some foil on your ironing board, and sprinkle salt over it. Then simply iron the foil in the normal way. The salt should start to pull that black, sticky stuff within seconds.
2. Clean steel with lemons
If you need to clean stainless steel — whether it’s an appliance, a tap or a window frame — simply cut a lemon in two and rub it over the surface you need to clean. It’ll cut through just about anything, and leave the steel shiny and smelling citrusy fresh afterwards.
3. Remove watermarks from wood with a hairdryer
The next time you notice watermarks on your oak table, don’t waste time with expensive cleaning agents — reach for your hairdryer. Select the hottest, most powerful setting, and blast the stain with warm air. Get the nozzle as close to the wood as possible, and watch the stain disappear before your eyes.
4. Clean the bathtub with a grapefruit
Forget expensive creams and sprays, all you need to make your bathtub sparkle is a grapefruit. Cut it in half, and scrub the tub with the juicy inerds. You should be able to get rid of unsightly rings, water stains, limescale and scum. But if you run into difficulty, sprinkle a little table salt over the grapefruit and go again.
5. Clean glasses and vases with rice
Don’t waste time trying to clean the inside of a long, narrow glass or vase with a cloth. Simply fill it with rice, water and a little dishwashing liquid, cover the top, and shake it clean. After a minute or so, you’ll notice that any dirt, grease or grime has vanished.
6. Clean discoloured plastic in the microwave
Do you have plastic containers you use to store and reheat curries, chillies and similar homemade concoctions? If so, the chances are they’ve become discoloured. You can restore them to their former glory by filling them with water, dishwashing liquid and white vinegar, and boiling them in your microwave. Add a little lemon juice, and you can steam clean your microwave at the same time.
7. Clean your toaster with your vacuum cleaner
The average toaster contains thousands of crumbs and lots of bread-related debris — which can interfere with its operation. However, you can keep your toaster debris free by sucking out the crumbs with the crevice tool of your vacuum cleaner.
8. Clean your oven with baking soda and vinegar
Those horrible oven cleaner fumes that really catch the back of your throat can now become a thing of the past. Instead of using expensive commercial oven cleaners, make your own oven-cleaning paste by mixing baking soda with distilled white vinegar.
By using these relatively simple hacks, you can save time, money and energy — and perhaps the environment too.