Tausi Insider

Photo : Brent Hofacker ( Shutterstock ) Dry brining is the simple act of sprinkling a food (usually meat) with a solute (usually salt, but sometimes a mixture of salt and sugar) to flavor it. The salt draws moisture out of the meat, then the moisture dissolves the salt, allowing it to penetrate into the flesh, seasoning it and keeping it juicy. It is, however, hard to find clear guidelines for how much salt your should use. According to Serious Eats , which recommends preparing a mixture of half a cup of Diamond Crystal kosher salt (or six tablespoons Morton’s kosher salt) and two tablespoons of baking powder, the application should be “generous,” but generosity can be hard to measure: Generously sprinkle the salt mixture on all surfaces by picking up the mixture between your thumb and fingers, holding it six to 10 inches above the bird, and letting the mixture shower down over the surface of the turkey for even coverage. The turkey should be well coated with salt, though not c...

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 : New Africa ( Shutterstock ) You might love essential oils, but there are good reasons to avoid putting them inside of your humidifier. Essential oils can corrode plastic A humidifier isn’t made to have essential oils in its water storage tank. The type of plastic they’re made from, usually ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), isn’t designed to hold oils long-term. They can corrode, causing the water tank to crack. The oil can actually degrade the plastic so that the plastic itself ends up in the water, causing odors and clogging your humidifier’s parts. Essential oils can damage the filter Anything besides distilled water in your humidifier can cause problems. Since the filter mechanism in a humidifier is only designed for environmental elements like dust, minerals, or pollen, oils can get sucked into the filter and cause it to break down. This’ll obviously make the filter less effective, reducing your air quality and preventing the humidifier from doing its job. It can ...

Photo : DimaBerlin ( Shutterstock ) If you live in an area that regularly gets snowfall, you know the love-hate relationship with the white stuff. A snowy evening can be a peaceful, beautiful thing—everything gets quiet, and that untouched blanket of snow creates a gorgeous blank slate of a world. There’s sledding, and snow angels, and kids having snowball fights. And then there’s the cleanup. Snow and ice look pretty for a while, but they also make getting around dangerous and difficult, so the day after a snowstorm is a day of sweaty, back-breaking shoveling. And making sure that no one slips and falls outside your house usually means applying some form of ice melt on your sidewalks, driveways, and steps. While we tend to use the generic term “ice melt” (or the very specific term “rock salt” as a generic), there are actually a lot of different compounds used as ice melt, and each one comes with some pros and cons. In order to choose the right one for your property, here are the ...

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 : rangizzz ( Shutterstock ) Whether you have a traditional green grass lawn , or one of the alternative varieties gaining traction recently—like bee lawns , clover lawns , or tapestry lawns —you probably want it to be intact when spring eventually rolls around. You also probably don’t want to put time and energy into maintaining it over the winter. The good news is that you really don’t need to do much to make that happen—just don’t kill it. Here’s how to avoid doing that. Find somewhere else to pile shoveled snow When you’re shoveling your sidewalk or driveway, it’s convenient to dump the snow onto your lawn, but try to avoid doing that if possible—especially if you used deicer on the pavement. (More on that in a bit.) Both the salt in the deicer and the weight of the snow could damage your lawn. Shovel carefully Speaking of shoveling, pay attention to what you’re doing when you get close to the edge of your lawn. In other words, try not to remove chunks of lawn or soil al...

Photo : New Africa ( Shutterstock ) For the most part, when we tell you about the unexpected household uses for everyday objects, you just use them as they are. Hairspray , vodka , Windex —they’re all multi-use and simple. But then, there’s water. You already use water every day; we don’t need to tell you water is objectively good. Unlike other surprising substances we highlight for their household uses, though, water needs just a little tweaking in order to become something new and useful: You have to boil it. Here’s what you can do around the house with boiled water. https://www.tausiinsider.com/11-surprising-household-uses-for-boiling-water/?feed_id=325936&_unique_id=63fcb4aa22658

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 : 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...

Photo : volodimir bazyuk ( Shutterstock ) There are many things that can smell gross in your home, but a stinky sink drain is one of the worst. It lingers at the corner of your consciousness, always there, vaguely bothering you. How did it come to this, and how do you fix it There are a few common ways that your drain may have gotten smelly, but that’s between you and your sink. For now, let’s focus on the ways to fix it. Try hot water first The first thing you want to try is hot water— very hot water. According to Rakeman Plumbing , this could be all it takes to dislodge whatever food, hair, or other gunk is causing the stink. (It’s true that boiling water can actually do wonders for you around the house.) Once you’ve dumped a few quarts down there, give it a few minutes, then follow up with some cold water. Repeat the process two or three times and see if the smell improves. One thing you probably don’t want to do is try a chemical cleaner designed for smelly drains. They conta...