1) Unclog a stuck drain with coffee.
"Coffee grounds can be mixed with dish soap and boiling water to unclog drains," says Alex Azoury, founder and CEO of Home Grounds. Azoury recommends mixing the grounds with soap and adding the mixture into your drain, following it up with a lengthy pour of boiling water, the combination of which will break up whatever's clogging your pipes.
2) Or use coffee grounds as a degreaser.
"Rub some coffee grounds into the grease or soap and it'll gently buff off any residue," says Azoury. Rinse off the mixture with warm water afterward and voila! A squeaky-clean tub.
3) Use essential oils to polish furniture.
"You can use lemon essential oil to quickly polish any dark wood and effectively clean stains and spots." Wilson also notes that tea tree oil is another effective furniture polish and has the added benefit of being a bug deterrent.
4) Or remove small scratches on furniture with toothpaste.
Before you go spending hundreds of dollars to get your couch refinished, try using some toothpaste to get those marks out. Using a pea-sized amount of non-gel paste, rub the scratch in a circular motion until it buffs out, and then clean the remainder with a damp towel.
5) Remove candle wax from furniture with ice cubes.
Fill a plastic bag with ice cubes, place it over the wax, and let it sit for a few minutes. Once the wax has sufficiently cooled and hardened, you can pick it up easily without ruining your furniture's finish or fabric.
6) And get it out of the carpet with a steam iron.
Spilled some hot wax on your shaggy carpet? No problem! Just put a paper bag over the wax and lightly go over the area with a steam iron. The steam will help lift the wax from the carpet and cause it to cling to the bag instead.
7) Use a hairdryer to get crayon marks off the walls.
Simply heat the offending portion of the wall with a hairdryer for a few seconds to soften the crayon's wax and then wipe any marks away with a soft cloth.
8) Use cooking oil to get rid of sticky label residue.
cooking oil makes it easy as pie to get rid of that residue. Using a cotton pad and some cooking oil, rub the sticky area and let it sit for a few minutes. Once the oil has sunk in, it'll wipe away easily.
9) Use vinegar to get odors out of your microwave.
There's a simple way to get it clean and odor-free without using harsh chemicals. Just place a bowl of vinegar in the microwave for around five minutes and simply wipe it afterwards.
10) Or use it to get your surfaces streak-free.
Make a quick solution from cold water and white vinegar, spray it on the area, and wipe with a clean microfiber cloth.
11) Clean your HVAC vent registers in the dishwasher.
Those grimy HVAC registers can easily be cleaned in your dishwasher! Just pop them off, run them through a quick rinse cycle, and dry them thoroughly before reinstalling.
12) Use towel-wrapped tongs to clean your blinds.
All it takes is a few items you already have in your home to get them squeaky clean. Simply wrap dish towels around either side of a pair of tongs, secure them with rubber bands, and you've got your very own DIY duster.
13) Limit the amount of water your toilet uses by putting a heavy item in the tank.
On overly full toilet tank could be the problem. To help reduce the cost, put a brick or other heavy item inside the tank. This will displace at least a few cups of water, helping you reduce the amount you use with every flush.
14) Clean your toilet bowl with mouthwash.
When your toilet bowl is in dire need of a good clean, grab your mouthwash instead of heading to the store to pick up yet another expensive and unnecessary cleaning product. Simply pour a capful of the stuff into your toilet bowl and let it sit for half an hour.
15) Keep your toothbrush off the dirty countertop with a clothespin.
Your bathroom counter is teeming with germs, so it's the last place you want your toothbrush to be. And if you don't want to spend money on a whole slew of new bathroom accessories, a clothespin is just as effective at holding up your toothbrush, far away from all that bacteria.
16) Use a second shower rod to store toiletries.
All you have to do is install a secondary tension rod in your shower and attach some mesh bags on S-hooks to keep those shower supplies from getting waterlogged.
17) Wrap a rubber band around the neck of a soap dispenser to avoid overuse.
Wrapping a rubber band around the neck of a soap dispenser will slow its flow, meaning you'll get an appropriate amount of soap with every pump and won't run through an entire bottle each week.
18) Clean a messy ceramic cooktop with a Magic Eraser.
A Magic Eraser can come to your rescue. This gritty sponge can remove those caked-on messes in just a few swipes without doing any damage to your cooking surface.
19) Use a magnetic rack to keep spices tidy.
A magnetic spice rack can kill two birds with one stone by both making your spices more organized and giving you something to put on your fridge other than bills and grocery lists.
20) Clean a pan with Alka-Seltzer tablets.
Fill it with hot water, drop in an Alka-Seltzer tablet, and let it sit. In about 15 minutes, that mess should wipe up easily.