Chester's Clean House: Rubbing Alcohol

Showing posts with label Rubbing Alcohol. Show all posts

Chrome Polish

Chrome is one of those surfaces that cannot have any imperfections. Since chrome has a perfect mirror surface, any dirt or rust shows up immediately and ruins the entire look. Chrome has long been a standard for the automotive world, but it has also found its way into the home. Chrome accents have become commonplace on many household fixtures. Unfortunately, these fixtures usually exist around water, soap, toothpaste and other mess-makers. Luckily, we have a great chrome polish for you and a number of simple tricks to maintain the look of your chrome.

With a little elbow grease and a pinch of Nevr-Dull Metal Polish, you can bring even pitted, rusted chrome back to life. Nevr-Dull is available at most car parts shops and once you have tried it, you will find a thousand used for it. Nevr-Dull is perfect for cleaning and polishing brass, aluminum, steel and chrome. It removes even the worst tarnish and leaves behind only a light residue that, if you desire, can easily be wiped off with a microfiber clothe.

Bar Keepers Friend is also a great chrome polish. Use on a damp, clean cloth and work in circles to help buff up the chrome. Rinse well and dry to a perfect shine. Be sure to never use any abrasive cleaning pads. Chrome can be easily scratched.

Quick Tips for Keeping Chrome Fixtures Looking Great

An easy way to clean chrome fixtures is to wipe them down with a fabric softener sheet.
For really dirty fixtures try rubbing alcohol and a paper towel. You will be amazed at how well this can remove the nastiest spots.

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How to Kill Swine Flu, Bird Flu or any Flu Virus

Swine flu has been in the news for the last several weeks. Many people are starting to panic because they don't know much about the virus and the news media is really hyping this story. As of today, it looks like this variant of the virus (H1N1) is only about as deadly as the normal seasonal flu. This can change quickly as the virus evolves and largely depends on what hosts the virus can spread to. If kept unchecked, this could become much worse later in the year as the real flu season starts. This is the best time for everyone to become educated on what they can do to help stop the spread of this flue. Just remember that the swine flu can be killed in the same ways as regular or avian flu. This virus has many weaknesses.

The first thing to remember is that the flu is passed by bodily secretions. As people cough and sneeze, blow their noses and touch things, they can leave the virus on various surfaces. The most important thing you can do to protect yourself is to wash your hands frequently. You should wash your hands for 30 to 60 seconds. If you have kids remember to help them wash long enough. Washing your hands does not kill the virus. Washing your hands mechanically removed the virus from your hands and washes it down the drain. You can use waterless hand sanitizer to kill the flu virus, but make sure it is at least 60% alcohol.

On hard surfaces the flu virus can be killed with any cleaning product that states that it is a "disinfectant." Be sure to check the label as it should state specifically if the disinfectant kills the influenza virus. Things like Lysol and Clorox wipes will kill flu virus.

The following environmental factors can also kill the flu virus:

Any heat above 160 degrees Fahrenheit. So your stove, dishwasher and dryer will kill the virus.
Cooking any foods above 165 will kill any virus in food products.
Alcohol solutions of at least 70% alcohol and hand sanitizer at least 60% alcohol.
Antiseptic cleansers like Lysol and Clorox Wipes.
Bleach will kill flu virus when mixed one cup bleach to one gallon water.

Tomorrow we will talk about where the flu virus and other germs hide in your house and office.

Homemade Daily Shower Cleaner

One of the best ways to keep your showers clean is to spray a mild cleaner after every use. There are several brands you can buy at the store, but you can save money by making your own at home. Just mix 1 cup rubbing alcohol and 3 cups water in a spray bottle. If you have hard water it is best to use distilled water. Just spray all over your shower when you are done, no wiping required. This works best after you have given your shower a good cleaning and can double the amount of time before your next cleaning.

The Easiest Way to Defrost Your Freezer

If you’re not lucky enough to own on of those new anti-frost refrigerators, every now and then you will have to defrost your freezer. There are some spray products out there that claim to help speed up the melting process. They do help but you probably already have the same liquid in your home. It’s just plain old rubbing alcohol. Just fill a spray bottle with rubbing alcohol. Turn your refrigerator off and remove all the items from your freezer. Spray down the icy build-up, mopping up the water with a towel, and throwing the large chunks that break away into the sink. The rubbing alcohol is safe, will evaporate when its job is done and works so fast your frozen foods probably won’t even have time to thaw.

How To Clean Your Cell Phone, MP3 player, & PDA

Our lives are now full of little electronic devices. We take them everywhere, they get passed around. Cell phones, MP3 players, PDAs are always with us now and they can get pretty dirty. (Before cleaning them you should check your owner’s manual to see if the manufacturer has a recommended cleaning procedure.) Start with a toothpick and ever so gently clear out all the cracks and crevices. Then get a small cup and fill it with 2 parts water, 1 part rubbing alcohol and 1 part glass cleaner. These can be very small amounts as you won’t need much. Dip a Q-tip in and then roll the tip against the side of the cup until there is very little moisture in the Q-tip, you do not want to dampen the device or get any liquid into the battery. Being very gentle, rub the lightly dampened Q-tip over the device. Do not run it over any connection points! Switch out the Q-tip as needed. Dry it with a soft dry cloth. Do not use paper towels as they can scratch the screens and surfaces.

Shaving Cream For Ink Stain Removal

If you have ever left a wet newspaper on any surface you know how difficult it is to remove the ink stains. Quick tip, use foaming shaving cream. Just spray it on the surface and let it work for a few minutes. Shaving cream contains alcohol and the foaming action works it into the stain. Gel shaving creams do not work. Make sure to do a test in an inconspicuous spot to insure that the surface that you are cleaning will not discolor from the shaving cream. Wipe off and the stain should be wiped out! I have used this tip on a number of stains including the ink transfer from pastic grocery bags and it works great.

How to Clean a WhiteBoard

Dry-erase whiteboards are great, until you grab the wrong marker that is. One quick slip up and the permanent marker pie-chart that you just drew can be there for ever. Also, even dry-erase markers become permanent after a few days when left in the sun I have found. There is a way to get it clean again. I heard a rumor that you can write over the permanent marker with a dry-erase marker will allow you to wipe it off. Not true, it works on dried-on dry-erase markers, but nothing else. The two best cleaners for dry-erase boards are nail polish remover (acetone) or isopropyl alcohol. Put the cleaner on a clean cloth and, with a little elbow grease, the marks will come off. Wipe off any excess and dry thoroughly. Always be careful with acetone and alcohol. They are highly flammable, caustic, and produce a lot of harmful fumes. After cleaning, polish with Pledge to restore the dry-erase surface. This also works great when you notice that your markers are no longer erasing as easily as they used to.

How to Clean Hairspray Stains from Solid Surfaces

Most hairspray stains or overspray can be removed from most solid surfaces with a simple mixture of dishwashing detergent and warm water. Use a sponge or clean cloth and work the residue off of the surface. For set stains, rubbing alcohol on a clean cloth will break it down enough to remove with the sudsy water. If you remove hairspray from wood, make sure that you polish or wax the wood as soon as possible after cleaning.

Homemade Eyeglass Cleaner

Keeping your glasses clean is very important. Dirty glasses can lead to stronger prescriptions as the dirt will make you eyes work harder to focus. My toddler son wears glasses and he gets them very dirty every day. We probably clean his glasses at least three times a day. He just hasn't figured out how not to touch the lenses.

We use a lot of eyeglass cleaner so I worked on making the Ultimate Homemade Eyeglass Cleaning Solution. It is very simple to make and works great. It is safe for most coatings and very inexpensive to make. Make a mixture of 3 parts rubbing alcohol and 1 part water. Add a few drops of mild liquid dish soap. Mix well and put into a spray bottle. Spray both sides of the lens and rub clean with a clean, soft cloth. I find that a good microfiber cloth works the best. Be careful to never use paper towels or else you can scratch your lenses. Rinsing the glasses under the faucet first to quickly wash away excess dirt will also aid in keeping scratches away.

Removing Bathtub Decals

I love the non-slip surface bathtub decals make, but I hate how dirty they can get. Every few years we just replace ours, but removing them can be a challenge. Here are some tips that can make the job much easier.

Soak the decals in mineral spirits and use a popsicle stick or other blunt object to get under them to pull the decals off. This will leave the glue so you will have to use something to remove it. To remove the glue you can use Bon Ami or other slightly abrasive cleanser if you can use that on your tub surface. We use Goo Gone. It works great on removing the excess glue.
You can do the same procedure as above but instead of mineral spirits you can try rubbing alcohol, lighter fluid, nail polish remover, or paint thinner. I have only tried rubbing alcohol so try the others at your own risk.

As always, be careful when working in the bathtub. When you put many of these cleansers into the tub it can become very slippery and we don't want you to slip and hurt yourself.

Tips On Cleaning Chrome Fixtures

It always amazes me how fast the chrome fixtures in my bathroom get dirty. They always seem to have water stains on them, making the bathroom look dirty. An easy way to clean chrome fixtures is to wipe them down with a fabric softener sheet. For really dirty fixtures try rubbing alcohol and a paper towel. You will be amazed at how well this cleans.

How to Clean CDs & DVDs

I have seen a lot of people posting very bad ideas on how to clean CDs and DVDs. Using toothpaste will ruin your CDs. Toothpaste is a mild abrasive, even if it looks like your CDs are cleaner, you have just permanently scratched the surface. Other homemade cleaning solutions that I have read about used dish soap and alcohol. Alcohol will ruin your CDs and dish soap will leave a residue that will damage your player. Both bad ideas. The best cleaner is the commercially available CD cleaner. It is not that expensive and available anywhere that you can buy CDs and DVDs. The only other way to clean CDs is to rinse with purified water and remove smudges with a microfiber cloth. Never scrub or buff your CDs, only clean from the center out in straight lines.

Using Rubbing Alcohol to Remove Garden Pests

To kill many types of bugs such as mites, aphids, mealybugs, scales, and white flies that attack houseplants, soak a cotton ball with isopropyl or rubbing alcohol and wipe the plant's leaves. To treat larger plants, or multiple plants, combine one cup of alcohol to one quart of water in a garden sprayer and coat the plant's leaves. Routine cleaning of your plants will keep your garden free of these annoying pests!

Laundry Tips for Coffee Stains

Coffee is a fundamental part of our lives. Most of us require at least one or two cups to get us moving in the morning, some a lot more! Since it is such an essential part of our lives, removing coffee stains from our clothing is just as important. To remove coffee stains, mix one egg yolk with warm water. Using a clean, white cloth, blot the mixture into the stain until the stain is removed. Wash the garment as you normally would. If the coffee stain remains, add a couple drops of rubbing alcohol to the egg yolk and water mixture and repeat the steps.

Cleaning Stainless Steel

No one can argue with the appeal of stainless steel in the kitchen. It provides a fantastic contrast of texture and color to almost any kitchen decor. Also, it's sterile appearance provides the feeling of cleanliness. A few well-placed hand-prints, though, and its all over! Stainless steel cleaners are extremely harsh, and should be used with the greatest of care. They also require quite a bit of buffing to really get the surface perfect. One suggestion, wipe down the worst of the spots with a cloth dampened with rubbing alcohol. Once finished, wipe down with a warm, soapy cloth and rinse with warm water. This works great on sinks, but can also be used on fridges and other stainless steel appliances, just wipe them with a warm damp cloth until they sparkle.

Homemade Glass Cleaner

Glass cleaner is one of the easiest homemade cleaners to make. Everyone has windows in their house, or at least I hope. So everyone can use homemade glass cleaner. Making your own spray glass cleaner can save you several dollars per bottle, and homemade glass cleaner is much better for the environment. Here are some of my favorite recipes.

Perfect Glass Cleaner Recipe

To make this natural glass cleaner, combine the following ingredients into a spray bottle:

4 tablespoons ammonia
1 quart water
1 drop of blue food coloring to make it look store bought (optional)

If you have hard water like I do, it works best to use distilled water.

Shower Glass Cleaner Recipe

Showers can provide several extra problems related to the shower glass. Those problems include both mold and mildew and hard water deposits. I use this modified recipe for tough shower glass.

6 tablespoons white vinegar
1 quart water

Vinegar is great at breaking down hard water and soap scum stains. It is also good at fighting mold and mildew because it is acidic. You can actually use this as a cheap alternative to the daily shower sprays.

Homemade Anti Fog Glass Cleaner Recipe
For the bathroom mirrors and as a final touch to the shower doors, I use this anti-fog glass cleaner:

2 tablespoons ammonia
1/2 cup rubbing alcohol
1 drop dish soap
1 quart water

How to Properly Use Homemade Glass Cleaner

For best results use a high quality spray bottle, one with a variable spray pattern works best. I usually buy cheap spray bottles at the dollar store. After you have mixed your cleaner you are ready to get started. Be sure to spray the surfaces thoroughly. The dirtier the glass the more cleaner you will need to use. I like to use the finest mist setting of the spray bottle to keep the cleaner from becoming too runny. After it has sat there for about 10 seconds, I use two separate clean towels, usually microfiber cloths. With one in each hand, I use one for washing and the other for the final drying. Rub in circles to help reduce streaks. Don't use paper towels as they can leave lint.

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