Coming clean - Vinegar, what can't it do?

Have you ever thought of using vinegar around the house other than in cooking? Bet you never thought it made a great stain remover, or fabric softner.

The history of vinegar

Around 10,000 years ago in different parts of the world, as a result of the production of alcoholic beverages vinegar was discovered. Back in those times it was used as a condiment, a detergent, a preservative and a medicine. Medicinally, it was very much valued as an antiseptic both internally and externally. Balsamic vinegar, also a by-product of wine manufacturing was traditionally made using a concentration of grapes.

During the plague vinegar was used to treat the illness and to sterilize any items that might possibly cause contamination from one person to another. Around the time of the industrial revolution it was discovered that vinegar could be produced by distilling wood. During Victorian times prostitutes used vinegar as a contraceptive which they soon discovered was somewhat unreliable. It seems that today, despite the historical uses of vinegar most of us use it as a simple condiment. Here’s a list of many more uses of this humble cooking ingredient.

• Brightening coloured clothes – soak your clothes in a bucket of about 5 litres warm water and 300mL white vinegar. Rinse well with water afterwards.
• Underarm deodorant stains on clothes – soak the underarm area of your shirts and dresses with white vinegar then throw them in the wash as usual.
• Stain remover – soak clothes stained with coffee, tea, berries and grass in pure white vinegar. Then wash as usual.
• Fabric softener – pour a good cup of vinegar into your rinse cycle to soften towels and blankets.
• Window cleaner – Add 2 tablespoons of vinegar to 1 litre of water, pour some into a small spray bottle. Spray onto glass and use a piece of newspaper to clean the solution off the window.
• Get rid of ants – pour some white vinegar into a spray bottle and spray around window sills outside the home and door openings to deter ants from crossing the boundary. Also spray into cracks where they might try to invade.
• Drain cleaner – pour about 50g of baking soda down the drain, then add 150mL of vinegar. This solution will fizz up so best to cover the drain with an old plate while this happens momentarily. Rinse the drain with boiling water. This will cut grease and dirt from your drains.
• Extend the life of your plants – make a dilute mix of water and vinegar to pour over your plants on a weekly basis
• Weed killer – Spray neat vinegar directly onto weeds on the footpath. While this does not actually kill the weeds it will burn the leaves and if repeated weekly will eventually starve the weed and kill it. Be careful to not spray near plants and grass that you DON’T want to harm.
• Mould-free shower curtains – keep a small spray bottle with neat vinegar handy in the bathroom and spray onto the shower curtain regularly to prevent mould and mildew.
  Floor cleaner – 150mL of vinegar into a 5 litre bucket of warm water is a great cleaner for vinyl and tiled floors
  
  Give these ideas a try. Not only will you make a healthy contribution to saving our planet by not having to use harsh chemicals you’ll also save some money along the way.