The pint of white vinegar in my cabinet once lasted for years. Most of it went for culimary purposes or to descale the coffeemaker. Not anymore. I’ve bought more vinegar than gasoline in the past few months.
Granted, I don’t drive much–my 2015 VW is closing in on 30,000 miles. I’m burning through vinegar at unprecedented (for me) levels and it’s not because I’m not eating tons of greens and cucumbers.
My first nonculinary use of vinegar was medical. After a biopsy to check an odd mole several months ago, the doctor said to rinse the wound with diluted vinegar twice a day. The biopsy came back fine and the wound healed quickly.
Drain gnats invaded my bathroom earlier this year. Bug spray killed visible gnats but had little impact on the infestation. Bleach didn’t work, either. A regimen around vinegar and baking soda did the job.
A mixture of vinegar (1 gallon), salt (1 cup) and dish soap (1 tablepoon) kills most weeds (but not all–Virginia creeper bounces back). It’s much safer than RoundUp and works almost as well. I’m waiting for the rain to stop to spray again–this time with cleanring vinegar (20%) rather than “regular” vinegar (10%).
My dark towels came out of the dryer a little stanky, even with scented beads and dryer sheets. Bleach wasn’t an option. Washing them in hot water with a cup of vinegar and no detergent, followed by a second wash (hot) with a cup of baking soda worked like a charm. The towels are softer too.
A friend mentioned she’d washed her walls and woodwork with vinegar and water. Hmm. I thought wall washing was only needed with gas heat or something. Impressed by her industriousness, I decided to do mine.
Armed with a bucket of diluted vinegar and a cleaning rag, I tackled the smallest room first–the guest bath. OMG! Wiping every wall from floor to ceiling netted tons of dust, pissed off a lot of spiders, and wore me out.
Little by little, I’m wiping my way through the house. Every day or so, I clean until the vinegar water gets too dirty to use. Base boards, blinds, doors and woodwork account for most of the dirt. Just another room or three and I’ll be done.
Ages ago, vinegar was an ingredient in homemade cleaning products. I wrote it off as some kind of hippy thing. Now I’m a believer.
As always, thanks for stopping by.