Have you ever been in the middle of cooking, cleaning, or just trying to freshen up your home and everything falls apart? In this lifestyle series you will find random tips to salvage those “Oh no!” moments and turn them into, “I’ve got this!” successes.
You may ask like many do… “Where did you learn that?!” Well I will tell you I have no clue! I enjoy reading and often don’t realize how much I remember until there is a problem needing a solution. You guessed it, I’m a fixer… not the mob kind 😂 but the hands on, fingers flying on the keyboard solution finder.
Oh yes… brief introduction on why I’m posting here…. My name is Nicole and I am the Director of Finance and Administration for Nicklaus Counseling Center, S. C. I have come to be known in the office as being the problem solver.
We are coming up on spring, the time has changed and the sun stays up later. It’s a time for renewal and regeneration. For many of us, it’s a time for spring cleaning. Here are some simple and fun cleaning ideas to get you started.
We are coming up on the end of prime citrus season here in Wisco, so if you get that orange, lemon, lime, or grapefruit that just feels questionable, don’t throw it out just yet!!! Instead, let’s get the house smelling great!
I’m guessing in your cabinet somewhere you have coarse salt… if not table salt also works but you will need a little more elbow grease. You may be saying, “Citrus…fruit…salt…elbow grease? Spring cleaning? What am I getting myself into?”
Well, here is a toxin free cleaning lesson for your shower, tub, or sink basin…(DO NOT USE ON PORCELAIN THOUGH!)
- Cut your citrus fruit in half between the stem and navel.
- Pour some coarse salt on the fruit.
- Begin rubbing the surface you are working on in small circles.
- When the salt is gone, add some more salt until that half of the fruit is mangled.
- Set it aside. It is not compost yet.
- Grab the other half and finish off the surface you are working on until you have covered everything.
Let your work sit five minutes.
THIS IS WHERE WE USE THE MANGLED SALTED FRUIT AS WE WAIT.
Do you have a garbage disposal?
Rip up those mangled citrus bits and put them in the garbage disposal. Add ¼ c baking soda and 2 tbsp white vinegar. Let sit five minutes.
(I know, five minutes here, five minutes there, here a min, there a min everywhere a min min…🎵 🎶 🎵 Did you sing that to Old McDonald? I did 😀)
I know, waiting again. But guess what? It is time to go back to what you were cleaning and rinse off the citrus smelling goodness. I love using my removable shower head for this. Hot water is best to use here:
- Because it helps enhance the wonderful citrus smell.
- And second, because some soap scum won’t budge without a little heat.
Guess what? We can now return to our disposal. Time to turn on the water and get that bad boy running. Mmmmm more citrus goodness!
Just a note, if your disposal is older or low powered you may need to get a cutting board or grater to make small enough pieces for it to handle.
Another quick side note, if you have wooden cutting boards, use these salty mangled bits to clean out onion or garlic smells by grinding the fruit into the board as you are breaking it up into pieces for your disposal. Rinse the board with hot water and let it dry naturally.
You will learn I hate waste. We can find something useful for almost everything! I hope you enjoyed these tips! Please join me again for another one soon. I’ve got many more where these came from and I love to share ideas💡!
Thanks for reading. I love hearing comments, so please drop me a line below!
Nicole