House Renovation Tips

Before sweeping a large concrete floor or patio, sprinkle slightly damp coffee grounds on the surface. They will keep the dust down and pick up the dirt.
To get dried raw egg off a concrete floor, scrub the egg with a scrub brush while pouring on boiling water. Wear heavy rubber gloves for this process and [...]

Treatments for discolored glass
To clean severely discolored glass or crystal, soak the item in a solution of ammonia and water for several hours, then wash and rinse.
Another way to clean badly discolored glass is to soak it in vinegar with the contents of a tea bag, then wash and rinse.
Sometimes badly discolored glass can be [...]

Stains on suede
To get rid of stains on suede, rub them out with an art gum eraser.
Rubbing with a nail file will remove small spots from suede.
Treatments for removing stains from leather
To remove white water spots on leather, cover them with a thick coat of petroleum jelly. Leave the petroleum jelly in place for a [...]

Rust-free fabric
Rust stains on fabric sometimes can be removed with lemon juice and salt. Put the mixture on the stain and let it sit for a few minutes. Next, stretch the area of the stain over the sink and pour boiling water through it until the stain is gone. (This is best done by two [...]

It’s easy to clean your own chimney - if you don’t mind getting dirty. You can find an appropriate-size chimney brush at a hardware or wood stove store. Lay a drop cloth in your fireplace or at the base of your chimney to catch the falling creosote. Push the brush up the chimney, scrubbing back [...]

A local store was having its fur vault fumigated, as it did every year after all the furs had been moved into storage for the summer. Something went wrong during the process, and the vault was overloaded with fumes. No one knew what to do to clear out the room. There were no windows, and [...]

Get rid of the smells and odors in the fridge
Refrigerator or freezer smells can be eliminated by wiping the entire interior of the appliance with pure vanilla extract on a cloth, rubbing it on hard. Wipe again with a clean cloth.
To kill the awful smell in a refrigerator that was left closed when the power [...]

A Must-Win Solution: Dry It Out
Do anything you can to dry out that musty basement or closet: Open the doors and windows wide, take bureaus and drawers outside into the sun, turn on a closet tight and keep it on for a couple of days or place an electric fan on the floor for added [...]

Marble Marvels
Use a cream-type silver polish to remove stains and water marks from marble tabletops.
You can also remove stains on marble tabletops by scrubbing with a paste of salt and lemon juice, then wiping clean with a damp cloth.
A Tough Treatment for Tough Stains
Stains in marble that resist other cleaning methods will usually give in [...]

Rust Removal
Clean rust spots from countertops with lemon juice and salt.
You can also get rust spots off a countertop by rubbing in toothpaste (not the gel type) with your finger. Rub until the stain is gone, then rinse and wipe dry.
Counteraction
When a store package leaves a purple ink stain on a counter, remove the stain [...]