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What Is your weirdest Household/timesaving tip

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Mary Kay

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Apr 3, 2009
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West Tampa Fl.
My father in law who was a machinist on the first shuttle project in Ca. rehabed houses when he "retired". He swore by .... and span in very cold water to clean walls before painting. He said that it removed old smoke stains. Thanks for the idea, my walls are very high in the middle of the living room...and I am very short!:rolleyes:
That might be good to use in the Swiffer!
Dryer sheets huh? Those bugs get thicker then mosquitos out here in the woods! Thanks!:)
 

CZEdwards

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May 27, 2009
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Republic of Boulder
No metal or glass is safe with CZ around! Watch out computer!!!8-o

It's my mom's fault -- when I was little, she pinned butcher paper to my walls at kid height and let me draw on it. (It also kept little kid finger-prints off the walls...) My sisters do the same with my nieblings.

Monitors are safe, though -- I'm a laptop user. I don't even TOUCH my LCD except to clean it and I shudder when I see someone else tap their screen and see the LCD blanch...
 

Junebug

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Jun 18, 2009
99
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Georgia, USA
I told my mom about the swiffer idea when she was complaining about cleaning my dad's bathrooom. It doesn't work so well in my house as I have a very defined texture on my ceilings. I have to use a two step ladder and blot with damp cloths to clean the bathroom ceilings. Thank goodness my ceilings aren't that high.

Oh and I need to buy some dryer sheets.
 

Mary Kay

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West Tampa Fl.
I have the gawdawful popcorn ceilings! I would gladly make the stupid man who invented those come and scape off every bit that hasn't aready landed on my bed, in my food or on my carpet. I am pretty sure idiot man owned one of those "we will clean your ceilings for a huge amount of money" places. We had a leak in the roof years ago, that caused a lot to peel off and fall, we had it fixed. Now the fixed is up to stay but the rest is coming down.
 

Mary Kay

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West Tampa Fl.
We are getting ready to paint the kitchen. The old owners put up some cutesy pink and blue wall paper..I am over it! But I have been way to lazy about getting it off so we can paint. Mike and I talked to the Home Depot people and got this silly roller that has tiny spikes in it, you roll it over the wallpaper then spray fabric softener on it and it's supposed to make the wallpaper just peel off.:confused:
So what I want to know is if anyone tried this in REAL LIFE..lol!

Oh and I want one wall (the shortest one with a double pantry door in it) a blue to match my Blue Willow plates, the rest will be an off white..what type of paint is best for a kitchen? Glossy? Semi Gloss..a washable?
 

hobson

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Mar 28, 2009
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Houston
MaryKay,

The trick is to allow the liquid, fabric softener or whatever, to penetrate the paper really well before you start to peel off the paper. How well it works depends on the glue used to adhere the paper however many years ago. We bought a house built in the late 30's and the paper was stapled! Millions and Millions of staples.... took me weeks to get them all out.

As for paint, I used Fuller Obrien eggshell and it's wonderful. Nice, cleanable sheen.
 

Mary Kay

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West Tampa Fl.
Thanks a ton Hobson! I was wondering if this tip was real or not! Mike went for my good fabric softener..and I told him to go get the cheap Dollar store stuff..I don't care if it smells nice or not! :rolleyes:
Some of the wallpaper just fell off with a touch, it was around the stove. I never could figure out why she wallpapered around the stove in the first place!
I love painting..but Mike is a pain, he wants to prep, and tape and put drop cloths down..I am too tired to paint after he gets done! The floor is so old I can't tell what the pattern is anyway..paint drips could be nice:D

Oh yeah..Have we welcomed you to the Women's Room yet? I don't think so ..so Welcome!! :)
 

Mary Kay

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West Tampa Fl.
How did it go? Pleezzee! Mike is still in the planning stages. It will take 12 more trips to home Depot before he sets the spike thingy to wallpaper. He needs to corner every guy in there first and get advice..to discuss the best paint and to decide what kills grass gofers or something! he will come home with stacks of flyers and tips and tons of sample stuff..which will take him a week to go through..well you get the picture. He does projects the way I spring clean, once every 5 years! :rolleyes:
We will get to this after I have settled mom and after he finishes prepping..I am safe for a few weeks. Or I could just do it and P.O. him royally.:D
 

Moonflame

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Jun 27, 2009
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Sounds like my Hubby when he decides to buy a new electronic gadget. It took him a month to pick out all the parts to build his new PC. When we got the TV I didn't give him many options, I said "This is the one I picked, find out what you can and unless you find out it's a POS This is the one we're getting." It only took him a week to research it :). At least it gives them something to do and makes them feel useful :).
 

Kelly79

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Jul 7, 2009
686
1
Alaska
I have some tips for that dreaded painting job.

When I open a new can of paint I take a large nail and put holes inside the recessed drip area at the edge of the can. This allows paint to drip back into the can and does not build up into a mess.

I also line the paint roller pans with foil. Then I don't have to wash the stupid things out. During breaks I use large shopping bags and cover the whole mess and put the brushes and rollers in bags too. I've even left them overnight. Saves a lot of time and water.

Here's an advise for leftover paint and unopened cans (don't try if you've followed the above advise lol). Store the can upside down, it keeps the paint from forming a skin on top.
 

Kelly79

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Jul 7, 2009
686
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Alaska
I am not a woman for I possess much longthick trunkiness, but I can contribute for I do single by choice. An estrogen only forum is not the best place for this discussion for that assumes my contributions are void.

1) Shower head bag of cola. Take the thick rubber bands from stalks of celery and put a sandwich bag filled with coca~cola around your shower head. Those of us that have lived in the same place for more than a year know that your shower head will go to hell in a year and a half with hard or city water. Doing the bag of cola thing every six months overnight will keep your shower head like new.

2) Shoes are dangerous. The Japanese aren't perfect by any means. They like a lot of strange things in vending machines, but they do have a tradition that makes obnoxious sense: Don't allow shoes past your foyer. Shoes are great, but socked feet will keep your carpet, even if it's an industrial strength berber, alive and vital much much longer.

3) NEVER allow smoking in your home, even if you are a smoker. Smoking, even if you are a die-hard, refuse to quit smoker, creates an insane amount of work in the upkeep of your domicile. Outside of the fact that it annoys non-smokers, it means that any event that causes "sweat' in your home, like a malfunctioning cooling or heating system, or a child's water pistol party will create unsightly streaks on your walls. Not to mention the immense life reduction you'll experience with electronic equipment like coffee makers, televisions, microwaves, and especially computers.

4) Never neglect filters. Filters are there for YOU, be they furnace, air conditioning, washer, dryer, etc. neglecting filters is a great way to reduce the effectiveness of the given device, and also provide a breeding ground for airborne illness. Always check and clean/replace filters when necessary.

Hope this helps.


Testosterone laden or not, great tips, especially the last. Unfortunately for me every time I go to the only store that carries the size filters my furnace takes they are out, I guess that's what happens when everyone in the community has the same furnace. Good thing it's summer and I am using floor and ceiling fans since I don't have AC, it'll give me time to find them.
 

Kelly79

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Jul 7, 2009
686
1
Alaska
Hilway -- yep. We write directly on the fridge. Our old fridge was smooth so we did use whiteboard markers (what else is a whiteboard but an enameled piece of metal, just like an appliance?) but the new one -- came with the house -- is textured, so that's why we use the wet erase (Whiteboard gets into the texturing and doesn't come off without scrubbing.) The overhead projector markers come off with water even in the crevices, and they don't stain -- I've had notes up there for weeks.

We also use whiteboard markers in the car -- I write directions and notes on the inside of my windshield or on the driver's side window in whiteboard marker. It's transparent but visible to me, wipes off easily (especially the driver's side window -- roll it down and it's gone) and keeps my eyes on the road, not looking at a post-it or note.

And in my office at work, I have glass windows that overlook an atrium, and I use that window as an auxiliary white board, too.

cool, I use dry-erase and hate that if they stay on there all month it takes alcohol to remove them, might run out and get some wet-erase ones.
 

bellamama333

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Jun 20, 2009
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I hear you can put Elmer's glue on a splinter and when it dries it will pull out of the skin with the glue. I heard this from a woman who was painting a wall and was sliding across the floor on her bottom on hard wood floors and, well lets just say that it was more than one splinter.

I also heard that if you take the lining of a raw egg and place it on a bee stinger, when dry it will pull out the stinger. The egg thing worked on my daughter when she got a load of cactus needles in her elbow.

I am not going to try these out until the situation arrives, but if you know or find out anything, let me know! Knowing my luck, eventually I will need this advice and many more, so keep posting!
 

BARENETTED

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Jan 22, 2009
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NEW JERSEY, USA
Our office space has been completely renovated - it is beautiful.

We have a brand new kitchen with vinyl tile floor. Every night the cleaning people clean it and keep it highly waxed. Throughout the day, I notice black scuff marks from the heels of the men's shoes.

I was getting coffee today and a co-worker came in and she was wearing a soft rubber bottom shoe. She rubbed one of the scuffs with the bottom of her shoe and POOF - the scuff was gone! All those years, I scrubbed them off with cleanser! Who knew??
 

Kelly79

Guest
Jul 7, 2009
686
1
Alaska
Our office space has been completely renovated - it is beautiful.

We have a brand new kitchen with vinyl tile floor. Every night the cleaning people clean it and keep it highly waxed. Throughout the day, I notice black scuff marks from the heels of the men's shoes.

I was getting coffee today and a co-worker came in and she was wearing a soft rubber bottom shoe. She rubbed one of the scuffs with the bottom of her shoe and POOF - the scuff was gone! All those years, I scrubbed them off with cleanser! Who knew??

Rubbing them with a sock works too, on tile or linoleum.
 

jen28f

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ECF Veteran
Jul 23, 2009
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Chester, WV
Newspapers are great for windows! And here is the solution to use with them:

Fill a bucket with:
1/2 big bottle of ammonia
1 bottle rubbing alcohol
1 teaspoon liquid dish soap
fill rest of way with water

This is great for windows and any shiny surfaces....kitchen faucet, chrome, etc.

Also, for those with babies, the best hint I ever had was to make up the crib bed in layers...rubber mat, then sheet, then rubber mat, then sheet and so on and so on....yeah, you have to start with several, but it makes it soooo easy during the middle of the night when there is an accident to simply pull off one layer and throw it in the sink to soak the rest of the night...and not have to hunt for clean mats/sheets, put them on, move the baby around, etc. Sometimes, you can even manage this without waking the baby..just take off one side, gently scoot him/her to the new sheet area, then finish!
 
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