Cleaning Hacks/Questions

[ssmjlm]

Sept 8, 2023 12:48:40 GMT -5 livinitup said:

Would someone recommend a recipe or link to strip my towels? They are great quality but very old and I think stripping would give them new life.

I bought the Dawn dish soap but am out of Borox. I’m happy to try anything folks recommend.

I haven’t done it yet, but have the ingredients (minus the calgon)

[dexteroni]

Sept 8, 2023 13:20:49 GMT -5 Bernadine said:

So which non-Dyson cordless vac does everyone have? I can’t splurge on the Dyson right now.

Mine is a brand called Orfeld, which I had never heard of before. The exact one I have is no longer available, but this one looks closest. In fact, it looks a little better. They have several models that cost a little more but are still inexpensive, so I’d browse and compare. But the brand has done well by me. I liked my first one so much that I bought a second one to keep upstairs.

www.amazon.com/ORFELD-Cordless-Powerful-Lightweight-Wireless/dp/B0CB3Z4883/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?

[dexteroni]

I have a question about laundry stripping. Is there a reason it needs to take place in the bathtub? My washing machine will fill itself up with hot water and then drain itself. And then I don’t have to carry hot dripping towels across the house.

ETA: Oh - is it because washers lock now and you need to stir it? I still have the old non locking kind so that didn’t occur to me.

[deadwing]

When I bought my washer/dryer set ~12 years ago, I splurged on a set that included steam functions. I think it was only an extra $100 ish per machine. I don't use the steam functions often, but it's a nice feature to have. I don't own an iron. A good steam cycle will get rid of wrinkles. It will also sanitize things. I highly recommend it.

[Nonny]

Sept 8, 2023 13:37:37 GMT -5 dexteroni said:

I have a question about laundry stripping. Is there a reason it needs to take place in the bathtub? My washing machine will fill itself up with hot water and then drain itself. And then I don’t have to carry hot dripping towels across the house.

ETA: Oh - is it because washers lock now and you need to stir it? I still have the old non locking kind so that didn’t occur to me.

It depends on your washer. Some newer washers will automatically drain before the items being stripped have enough time to really soak. Some front loaders (like mine) don't have a soak option.

I only sometimes strip workout clothes, and not towels, and it's still a giant pain hauling them around when my bathtub is upstairs and my laundry is downstairs.

[MixedBerryJam]

Sept 8, 2023 9:01:47 GMT -5 @sameoldstory said:

… , I just sweep the dirt and dust in to piles and then suck them up with the vacuum.

Since this is what I do I vote this is genius. Also I was a full ass adult, easily in my 40’s if not 50’s, when I realized I could vacuum the bathroom floor. I has always swept.

[MixedBerryJam]

Sept 8, 2023 13:48:22 GMT -5 deadwing said:

When I bought my washer/dryer set ~12 years ago, I splurged on a set that included steam functions. I think it was only an extra $100 ish per machine. I don't use the steam functions often, but it's a nice feature to have. I don't own an iron. A good steam cycle will get rid of wrinkles. It will also sanitize things. I highly recommend it.

This one reminded me of one of my favorite hacks. I’m THE WORST at putting laundry away so I’m constantly pulling from the clean pile to wear at that moment. I toss wrinkly stuff in the dryer with a wet sock/rag/anything small, as long as it’s wet, for a few minutes and it streams out all the wrinkles.

[wanderlustmom]

Sept 8, 2023 11:12:07 GMT -5 cattledogkisses said:

Sept 8, 2023 10:54:20 GMT -5 dexteroni said:

Mine don’t really come out super wrinkly. I take them out right away so any minor wrinkles generally fall out once they’re hung.

You could get a steamer if yours come out too wrinkly, and steam them right on the curtain rod. It’s easier to store and you don’t have to set up a whole ironing board.

As an old, I’m fascinated by not having any way to iron. Do your clothes never come out of the dryer wrinkly?

I will also confess to not owning an iron or ironing board.  I steam any clothes that are wrinkly.

I confess that we don't even steam our clothes--we just go around wrinkly.  Had to use my neighbors iron for our son's graduation gown

[wanderlustmom]

Sept 8, 2023 12:05:26 GMT -5 @sameoldstory said:

Oh, here's a new one that I'm in the process of implementing. All towels and sheets are moving to white so that I can just bleach the crap out of everything LOL

we do this and it's great any new towel we bring in is white.  our realtor suggested it to us years ago 

[wanderlustmom]

I washed my lap top case today with some dish soap, warm water and a rag, I read that it's best not to put in washer because the water resistant stuff will come off. It's nice and clean

[mala]

Sept 8, 2023 12:48:40 GMT -5 livinitup said:

Would someone recommend a recipe or link to strip my towels? They are great quality but very old and I think stripping would give them new life.

I bought the Dawn dish soap but am out of Borox. I’m happy to try anything folks recommend.

The secret is borax + washing soda. Just like 1/4 c each in your laundry plus regular detergent. Soak and an extra rinse.

EDIT: I looked up Calgon, which I'd never heard of. It's sodium citrate. I don't think it's really necessary.

[sadlebred]

Sept 8, 2023 13:20:49 GMT -5 Bernadine said:

So which non-Dyson cordless vac does everyone have? I can’t splurge on the Dyson right now.

I've had this one for about 4 years. I have had to replace the "doors" on the bottom twice since they broke, but they are a few dollars. Last time I just ordered 2. It's been really great and still holds a good charge. It's not a full replacement for a vacuum, but it works well.

www.amazon.com/Shark-Navigator-Freestyle-Brushroll-SV1106/dp/B00C351GBC/ref=sr_1_4?crid=11JX33X9U7FPS&keywords=shark+cordless+vacuum&qid=1694223220&sprefix=shark+cor%2Caps%2C126&sr=8-4&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.f5122f16-c3e8-4386-bf32-63e904010ad0

[CurlyQ284]

Sept 8, 2023 13:37:37 GMT -5 dexteroni said:

I have a question about laundry stripping. Is there a reason it needs to take place in the bathtub? My washing machine will fill itself up with hot water and then drain itself. And then I don’t have to carry hot dripping towels across the house.

ETA: Oh - is it because washers lock now and you need to stir it? I still have the old non locking kind so that didn’t occur to me.

I do it in the washer, it takes a little bit of monitoring but I let the washer fill up and start swishing around. Then I pause it and let it sit for an hour. Un-pause and let it swish a minute. Pause again for an hour, then un-pause and let it finish.

[candreco]

I don't fold our sheets, I just leave the dirty ones in the laundry basket, wash them Friday evening or Saturday morning, and put them straight onto the bed from the dryer.

[thedutchgirl]

Boiling water poured on berry stains removes them

Hairspray or rubbing alcohol takes out ink (roller ink is harder)

Bar soap removes most lipstick

And blue Dawn dish soap helps with a wide variety of stains

[redheadk]

This is fascinating, we keep our ironing board and iron out pretty much all the time because we use it so often. And I sew so I have a 2nd iron and ironing board in my sewing room, plus a handheld steamer for curtains and DD’s ballet costumes.

I hated ironing until I learned to sew, now it doesn’t bother me.

[redheadk]

Sept 9, 2023 10:20:25 GMT -5 thedutchgirl said:

Boiling water poured on berry stains removes them

Hairspray or rubbing alcohol takes out ink (roller ink is harder)

Bar soap removes most lipstick

And blue Dawn dish soap helps with a wide variety of stains

Blue dawn is my favorite way to pre-treat stains. I keep a bottle in our closet, it gets grease stains completely out even if something has been through the dryer.

[Poppy]

Be careful washing curtains! I washed and dried a set and they shrunk and looked stupid after.

We own an iron and mini ironing board but the iron broke. I haven't replaced it because all we've used it for in the last few years is fuse beads. 🤣

[ellipses84]

Sept 9, 2023 10:44:44 GMT -5 Poppy said:

Be careful washing curtains! I washed and dried a set and they shrunk and looked stupid after.

We own an iron and mini ironing board but the iron broke. I haven't replaced it because all we've used it for in the last few years is fuse beads. 🤣

That’s a good point! It really depends on the material and sometimes the liner and exterior fabric shrink differently which is a huge issue. I’m pretty brave about washing anything that says dryclean only but I wash it on gentle with cold water and hang dry. If I need to dewrinkle something I’ll try to put in in the dryer for half the normal time and pull it out wet, or stick it in dry with a wet clean tea towel (which basically steams it).

[ellipses84]

Sept 8, 2023 13:20:49 GMT -5 Bernadine said:

So which non-Dyson cordless vac does everyone have? I can’t splurge on the Dyson right now.

I have this one, bought for $266 total from Target last year on Cyber Monday. There are a few different versions of this that vary in price. I read a lot of reviews and this seemed next best compared to Dyson (or maybe expensive Sharks). In the reviews there were some complaints that it seems cheap. I think that’s due to the type of plastic which is what makes it lightweight and it’s held up great, even to my kids dropping it on our tile floor. I wish it had a little more suction and it needs to be emptied often (like all stick vacs but it’s easy to hold the top over the trash to do that). It has a wall mount charger it hangs from.