Alcohol is the perfect accompaniment for any exquisite meal, but drink too much of it, and you may find yourself stumbling into a heap of trouble—literally. Make no mistake, alcohol is one potent substance. In fact, its properties give this versatile liquid dozens of uses besides consumption. You can find alcohol in cleaning products, polishes, and even fuels, so it’s not surprising that it has a bunch of practical uses around the household.
1. Clean Mirrors with Vodka
Clean Mirrors with Vodka
One way to make your mirrors as crystal clear as vodka is to actually spray your mirrors with vodka. It’s best to first dilute your proof with water for a gentler solution—but hold the rocks! Then load up a spray bottle, give your reflection a spritz, and wipe dust, dirt, and residue away.
2. Clean Jewelry with Gin
Clean Jewellery with Gin
Faded silver and filmy diamonds hardly reflect their true value. Make them look like the precious possessions they really are by giving them a little rub with some gin (no tonic needed). Then rings will sparkle and necklaces will shine, and the wearer of either will look mighty fine.
3. Clean a Chandelier with Vodka
Clean a Chandelier with Vodka
A dusty, cobwebbed chandelier can make even the newest home seem derelict and haunted. Before the ghosts move in, you can use vodka to help bring your chandelier back to life. Simply dilute a few teaspoons in a quart of water, dip in cloth or rag, and gently revitalize your fixture.
4. Vodka for Mold and Mildew
Although drinking vodka in the tub sounds at best like a furtive pleasure, if that tub has mold and mildew, scrubbing it with that vodka might be a pretty good idea. It will clean up the grout and make the tiles all shiny, so you can delight in a tub free from anything grimy.
5. Clean Wooden Furniture with Beer
Clean Wooden Furniture with Beer
If you happen to spill some beer on a wooden table at the local saloon, don’t feel so bad. Beer is great for cleaning antique wooden furniture. A fine cloth or rag and some flat beer are all you’ll need for the job. Of course, as with any cleaning agent, always start with a small patch for a test.
6. Grow Plants with Beer
Grow Plants with Beer
Those same sugars and minerals in beer that make potbellies grow big can help houseplants grow big too. You can put this gardener’s trick of the trade to the test by pouring a little shot from your can into the soil every couple of days. Watch as your potbelly shrinks and your potted plants flourish.
7. Polish Metal with Beer
Polish Metal with Beer
Before you polish off a six-pack, save a can and use the frothy quaff inside to polish your home’s metal surfaces. You can use whatever you have on tap for faucets, sinks, and shower heads too. Follow up by rinsing with water to prevent a sticky, bar-counter-like film from lingering.