Desperate Housewives of ILX

my friend got a hoover today. she is really excited about it. she used to live in little rock, where she says full home carpeting is like a big selling point. i kind of like the idea, but i can't imagine. i just got rid of my rugs and it is so nice not to have to vacuum every day.

I have a Eureka, hotel style, that so far works great. I have wood floors here but old ones with cracks between boards, so the vac is going to be a lifesaver even without rugs down.

Speaking of rugs, I have to get my 5 x 8 wool rug cleaned soon or at least by the fall. (It's in storage for about two more days.)

how do you get it cleaned?

my recommendation for floors: MysticMaid mop, and cloud duster.

mop: not like those ropey mops, its a short microfiber nap pad that picks up everything with just a little bit of water. I add a bit of white vinegar for extra cleaning. Gets great traction and will clean scuff marks, whatever, And then you just throw it in the washing machine and air dry it, We have nastyass old vinyl linoleum that only ever gets vaguely clean even with hands and knees...this cloud mop thing has been a life changer.

The cloud duster I got last year for our hardwood - attaches to the mop handle with a Velcro pad same as the mop, and holy fucking shit. A broom and a duster, greatest ever. Nothing has ever picked up as much dust and hair as this floor duster, it's gross and awesome. Keeps the floor nice and shiny too.

I sound like an infomercial ...sorry for TL;dr

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Mystic+maid&x=0&y=0

doesnt your house smell of vinager then

nope! I just use a spash of it, and a little water. Not enough to overwhelm.

surm: I'm going to get it cleaned by sending it out for someone else to do. :) Don't know what this generally costs in the city but steam-cleaning an area rug is not something I'm prepared to do at home.

I like vinegar. It makes me think of Easter.

My sister keeps a spray bottle of water/vinegar for wiping counters, etc. No smell at all! But sometimes you just want more of a cleaner/solvent.

ever wipe the corners of yo mouth and then sniff it? it can smell of vinager becuase the bacteria that live there make acetic acid or a similar molecule - fin fact!!

pro-tip: if you have gunk and grease stuck to a stainless steel pot or pan, let it soak with dish soap, baking soda and hot water. those bits will all come off.

I baking soda-ed my lawn furniture and it has never lost the pasty finsih :(

i love lavender bleach

I use baking soda to scrub out the sink sometimes, too!

preparation H can be used to clean stubborn decks!

Wha?!? Oh, wait, you said decks.

you have to use allot - buy the "Emperor Size " tube

Oh, and baking soda and vinegar are great for keeping drains clear. As a bonus, the bubbling and crackling will keep any cats in the house entertained for some time.

ho w can I clean my brown stained coffee thermos

xp And if your decks are still burning and itching after the treatment, use witch hazel.

i just got that windex multi-surface with vinegar - i like it!

also vinegar once helped me get a red wine stain out of a rug

I take it you are impllying that I drink vinager and spit it into my thermos

Denture cleaning or natural descaling products work well on coffee and tea stains on Thermoses and mugs, FYI.

I use a couple of drops of thick bleach in very hot soapy water to ensure my dishes are clean - I noticed a bit of bleach in the mix when loading/unloading commercial dishwashers as a teenaged bus-person and extrapolated from there. Rinse with hot water, obviously.

excellent observation Chavatar - I WAS THAT BUSBOY!
so put super poligrip in the thermos

Protip: a iron on medium to high heat applied through a cotton t-shirt will remove water and heat marks on a waxed wood finish. Just tried today and am chuffed that I won't have to refinish my sister's table after a drunken revelry.

thanks for that tip - how can I clean these - http://www.greatmats.com/products/home-sport-play.php

power washer.

You can also get wax off carpet with an iron through a shirt/washcloth

vinegar also works great to polish stainless steel stove-tops.

also makes a great (cheap) fabric softener...

It seem svinager is the answer to everything.
I know you can spray it on weeds to kill em.
I hope my new vaccum cleaner came today
http://img41.imageshack.us/img41/5161/g60018g6865.gif

Vinegar and ammonia are becoming my secret weapons of everything.

And I don't care how corrosive/bad for the environment it is, but I am in love with the mighty BLEACH PEN.

And I'm gonna need it for the mildew around the sink in my bathroom.

sometimes I try just mashing an orange peel into the sink as supposedly orange oil can clean. Its also slightly explosive
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OLliGO9clI

Dried orange peels are excellent firelighters.

you can kill weeds instantly with boiling water.

Ooh that's a good one.

oh man last time i tried to buy a bleach pen i couldn't find one! sometimes i use toilet cleaner bleach gel to treat my grout since it's less risky than spraying cleaner and bleaching clothing.

i can attest to the boiling water - but they always come back

vinegar, ammonia, baking soda...so much awesomeness

also re: wax on carpet, apply ice to it (bag of ice works well) then chip off the wax bits with a spoon or putty knife. That will get rid of the chunks.
Then take a piece of brown paper, set an iron on low/warm, and apply the iron to the paper over the wax spot...it will draw the wax residue into the paper. Move to a fresh spot on the paper and repeat a few times.
Works good on tablecloths and clothes too. And with clothes/tablecloth you can even just bung the item in a bag in the freezer, instead of applying ice.

my elderly italian neighbors mix (I think) bleach and salt and pour it in between the sidewalk cracks to kill weeds!

my grandma used to leave flat beer out for snails, goddamn that works a treat...snails be boozin

When the weather gets warm and slugs start getting into the bowl of food for our outdoor cat, I put the bowl in the middle of a plate full of salt.

My wife used boiling salt water on weeds coming up in the brick walkway I laid down last year. I was curious how fast the weeds would come back from that 1-2 punch — one month and they're as thick as ever.

pro-tip: Fruit Flys, pour some apple cider vinegar into a plastic/paper cup, cover with plastic wrap and poke toothpick size holes in it...next morning wonder at the amazement of your fruit fly trap.

im also a lawn maniac, greenest on the block and done organically. i dont mess with the chemicals.

My new apt seems plagued with little dull brown-grey house moths. I'm understandably concerned for my woolen goods. WHAT ATTRACTS/DESTROYS MOTHS?

We also have a palmetto bug living in the kitchen and coming out at night, so I have to get on a campaign of washing floor, screening window, and putting boric acid powder and sticky traps everywhere. My bedroom door leads off the kit and I don't want any unannounced visits.

pro-tip: Fruit Flys, pour some apple cider vinegar into a plastic/paper cup, cover with plastic wrap and poke toothpick size holes in it...next morning wonder at the amazement of your fruit fly trap.

― Bert Macklin, F.B.I. (thebingo), Thursday, June 9, 2011 8:23 AM (10 minutes ago) Bookmark

I've done this and it totally works! It was like magic. Disgusting magic.

laurel, try some lavender oil or cedar....