Tausi Insider

Photo : Felipe Sanchez ( Shutterstock ) Bleach has a ton of uses outside of lifting stains from white clothes, but there are some dos and don’ts we should all remember . You already know to never mix bleach with any other cleaners or disinfectants, as it can release dangerous vapors , but there’s more that you should avoid. What you can use bleach on According to Architectural Digest , bleach can kill bacteria and pathogens left on surfaces after an initial cleaning. It’s not a cleaner itself, but works within 10 to 60 minutes of contact to kill what’s left behind after your first run-through with soap and water or another cleaning agent. What you shouldn’t use bleach on That said, there are some surfaces you should not bleach down : Laminate Stone Marble Granite Quartz Aluminum Silver Copper Enamel (with chips in it) Anything electronic The reasons for avoiding bleach vary: For instance, bleach can eat away at the protective coating on laminate and damage the laminate paper...

Photo : Brent Hofacker ( Shutterstock ) If you got a little too excited when whipping up your pie, we don’t blame you, but a pumpkin stain can be troublesome. Your approach will depend on what, if anything, the pumpkin was mixed with when it made contact with your shirt or tablecloth, according to The Spruce . If there is milk or cream in it, for instance, you have a combination stain that requires special attention. Follow steps to remove the additional factors, like butter, first, then focus on the pumpkin. Use a dull knife to scrape off excess, then run cold water against the back of the affected fabric. Use pre-treatment or liquid laundry detergent to saturate the stain before washing it, rubbing it in with your fingers or a soft-bristled brush. After 15 minutes, toss it in the machine . https://www.tausiinsider.com/10-common-thanksgiving-stains-and-how-to-remove-them/?feed_id=333163&_unique_id=647543c36715c

Photo : mady70 ( Shutterstock ) Jumping off the body wash bandwagon to reunite with classic bars of soap comes with benefits for your wallet and the environment. But it also leaves you with a relatively small but still annoying problem: What to do with the little pieces left when you’re almost done with a bar. One option is to turn multiple slivers into a “new” bar of soap—something that TausiInsider has covered in the past . But there are other possibilities, too. Here are a few more ways to use up the remnants of a bar of soap. How to use up the final pieces of a bar of soap Don’t even think about throwing those soap scraps away—especially if you splurged on a particularly nice bar. Try one of these other uses instead: Keep your clothes smelling fresh Rinse off the leftover pieces of soap, then leave them out to dry. Then p lace them at the bottom of a drawer where you keep clothes or linens, or in your suitcase when you travel. Put smaller scraps in a small mesh bag or piec...

Photo : Patrick Hatt ( Shutterstock ) Mineral oil and mineral spirits may both have a place under your sink or on a shelf in your garage, but despite sounding similar, they are very different. Not sure which to use for your project? Here’s what to know. What’s the difference between mineral spirits and mineral oil? Both start with the word “mineral,” and are clear liquid byproducts of the distillation of petroleum, but the similarities end there. Here are some of the difference between mineral spirits and mineral oil : Mineral spirits Common uses: Thinning paint or ink Cleaning paintbrushes and other tools Cleaning paint spills Stripping built-up layers of polish, wax, and oils on wood Prepping wood before staining or painting Removing residue from stickers Restoring garden tools Cleaning window frames Removing scuff marks from the floor Degreasing auto parts and other tools Cleaning plastic outdoor furniture Removing sap from garden tools Similar to: Turpentine Acetone Denature...

Photo : Fevziie ( Shutterstock ) If a baby is one of the sweetest, cutest, most precious things we could ever imagine taking up space in our homes , their diaper pail is the exact opposite. If you have one, I don’t need to tell you how horrifically odorous it is; you’re well aware. There are several ways to wrangle their smell into submission, though—here’s how. A cleaning solution To start with, i n addition to being the source of an absolutely appalling smell, it’s important to remember that the moisture-rich environment of a diaper pail can also lead to mold. When cleaning, you not only want to eliminate the stink, but the risky stuff, too. The parents at Mom Loves Best have a solution for both. You’ll need the following: Borax Warm water White vinegar Tea tree oil Add two tablespoons of B orax to a spray bottle, then two cups of warm water. Swish it around for about a minute until the B orax dissolves, then add ¼ cup of white vinegar and 20 to 40 drops of tea tree oil. S...

Photo : Maderla ( Shutterstock ) Once again , we regret to inform you that a cleaning hack you may have seen online is maybe not a great idea. This one involves sprinkling bicarb—or baking soda—on your carpet to remove stains or odors, which certainly sounds promising considering all the wonderful cleaning uses baking soda typically has . But cleaning influencer @TheBigCleanCo points out the problem here: The particles are too small for your vacuum to completely suck up, which means they’ll stay attached to the carpet fibers and actually potentially trap the odor in. This tip has been around a long time—some baking soda brands even have recommendations for how to do it, suggesting vacuuming up the bicarb after letting it sit on the carpet for 15 minutes or longer. The issue is that a vacuum cleaner may not be able to lift all of the crystals out of your carpet; they could simply become lodged there. (Just ask TausiInsider’s Managing Editor Meghan Walbert—she told me she once n...

Photo : Africa Studio ( Shutterstock ) During a recent bathroom renovation project, my boyfriend had to disconnect his water softener, and it wreaked more havoc on our daily liv es than we expected . Showering and washing clothes, in particular, were much more difficult , as hard water leads to the formation of “soap scum” that is difficult to rinse away . We opted for quick, unfulfilling showers with poor soap lathering, but what can be done to keep clothes soft and residue-free? There are a few tricks to washing clothes if you don’t have a water softener , from combating crunchiness, to avoiding residue and staining. Add vinegar to your hard water washing loads Hard water is just water containing a higher amount of minerals—specifically dissolved calcium and magnesium . To keep your clothes feeling soft , you have to do what you can to neutralize those minerals, and that is where vinegar comes in. Add a half cup to a cup of white, distilled vinegar to your final rins...