Garage & Garden Tips
2. Use club soda to clean grease from a car windshield.
3. For a make-shift funnel, cut the bottom off a plastic pop bottle.
4. Neutralize battery acid corrosion with 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water. Disconnect terminals, apply with a damp cloth, then re-connect terminals and wipe them clean with petroleum jelly to prevent any further corrosion.
5. Use baking soda on a damp sponge to clean boat hulls, chrome lights and to remove bugs, etc. from windshields.
6. Using rubbing alcohol to clean the wiper blades and windshield of your car will keep them from smearing.
7. Clean the chrome on your car with dampened aluminum foil.
8. A small neck bottle, such as a pop bottle, when filled about 1/3 full of sugar and vinegar, makes a good fly trap.
9. On the outside of your home, draw a chalk line around the windows, doors, and water pipes to repel ants.
10. A convenient way to transport charcoal briquettes to a cookout is to put them into a cardboard egg cartons and ties hut. There is no mess and they can be ignited right in the carton at the picnic site.
11. Spray the blades of your lawnmower with non-stick cooking spray to prevent grass clippings from sticking to the blades.
12. Use non-stick cooking spray to lubricate bicycle chains.
13. Place chalk in tool boxes to prevent rust.
14. Place an old piece of carpet in the bottom of tool box drawers to reduce paint scrapes and damage to the drawers.
15. Use oven cleaner to clean grease and oil stains off the driveway.
16. Use club soda, vinegar or peroxide to loosen rusty screws, nuts, and bolts.
17. Rub tools with turtle wax to prevent rust.
18. Store paint cans upside down. This traps the air and prevents a skin from forming on the top of the paint.
19. Use Q-tips for small paint touch-ups.
20. Rub window panes with soap before painting. That way, the paint won't stick to the glass.
21. Make your own window cleaner with 1/2 cup of non-sudsy ammonia and 2 tablespoons of white vinegar in a quart of water.
22. Use old garden hoses which have sprung a leak to make soaker hoses. Just poke in as many holes as required and attach to the faucet.
23. Keep dogs and cats out of the garbage bins by tying an old rag or sock soaked in full strength ammonia to the lid or handles.
24. Use old pantyhose to support young plants or seedlings.
25. Secure vines to a trellis with mint flavored dental floss. It's strong, weather resistant and blends with the color of the vines, making it "invisible".
26. When planting your next rose bush, throw a banana peel in the soil next to the roots. Roses love the potassium!
27. Tint cut flowers by adding a few drops of food coloring to the water in a flower vase. The flowers will absorb the water and the food coloring will add interesting colors to the flower petals.
28. To keep cut flowers fresh, make a floral preservative with 1 can of lemon soda and 1 tablespoon of chlorine bleach mixed in 1 gallon of water.
29. If you've cut flower stems too short for an arrangement, place marbles in the bottom of the vase to give them a lift.
30. Sprinkle chalk around deck pots and plants to repel slugs.
31. Feed your indoor or outdoor plants minerals by watering them periodically with club soda.
32. To lure insects away from your patio or barbeque, place open cans of beer around the edge of your yard. Great for attracting wasps and hornets, and perhaps a few neighbors!
33. Restore the bounce to your tennis balls by wrapping them individually in aluminum foil and heating in a 200 F oven for 1/2 hour.
34. Gently clean golf clubs with steel wool cleaning pads.
35. Use an old golf bag to store garden tools - it is especially handy if the bag has wheels.
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