Fun with Baking Soda

Your mother probably taught you how to keep an open box of baking soda in the fridge to absorb nasty odors.

But it’s also great for cleaning!  Here are a few tips I’ve learned:

After your evening shower, pour a half cup down the drain, with just enough water to make a paste that coats the drain pipe.  Let it work overnight, and in the morning flush with hot water.

Then use a little on a damp sponge to attack the shower floor and walls. No more smelly soap scum!  And cheaper than purpose-made cleansers. I wonder if these work with the old box from the fridge?  I’ll try that next!

----------------------------------------------- My Alexa Joke of the day -------------------------------------------

Why are farmers so cool ? 

.... because they are outstanding in their field !

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Ouch Thumb got hot with a hammer - Here is a solution for you

Owwww!!!  I just hit my thumb with a hammer!  I hate when that happens, so I asked Camini how she holds a nail to avoid that pain…She said, “No problem, just use a comb to hold the nail.”  Wait, what?  A comb?

So she showed me and it really works! Find a normal hair comb (could be a guy’s comb for small nails, or a girl’s comb for larger nails.
Fit the nail in between two teeth of the comb, far away from your thumb!

Now hold the comb from the other end and position so the point of the nail is where you want the nail to end up.

Finally hammer that nail in!  Voila .... No more pain!

----------------------------------------------- My Alexa Joke of the day -------------------------------------------

I wonder why the cricket ball was getting bigger ? 

.... and then it hit me !

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Water Anyone - Let's give Brita Filter a try!

So continuing on my environmental slant, this week I decided to try one of those filters that fits on the end of your kitchen tap.  The box claims by drinking filtered water you can avoid buying and throwing away (or recycling) 750 bottles of water…so I’ll not only save the environment but loads of money too!  I’m up with that, especially in recession times.

Anyway, I got it home, opened up the box, spread all the parts out, and started studying the instruction booklet.  Turns out there are 2 types of faucet ends: threads on the outside or threads on the inside.  Of course mine was the type that requires more steps to install!

First step is to remove the aerator – the little screen thingy that makes your water bubbly.  If you have one of those rubber floppy things you use to open tight jars, first try wrapping that around it and grab and turn.  If it’s stuck, keep the rubber thing there (to avoid scratching the aerator, in case you want to use it again) and use a pliers over the rubber.  Or you could use an old dish towel instead of the rubber thing.

If your faucet has inner threads, you’ll next need to match up one of the adapters from the box to the size of your faucet.  Remember to put the washer in first, for a tight seal.  Screw it in hand-right.

The next step is to fit the filter base under the adapter and screw it on using the rotating collar.  This is a bit hard to grip, but the booklet has a tip where you rotate the base back and forth while tightening the collar – this works quite well!

Finally, you snap in the filter and you’re ready to start saving!  Turn the little lever to get filtered water (for drinking or cooking) or unfiltered water (for washing dishes, e.g.).  I found the flow volume is reduced somewhat when filtering, but I suppose that is the downside of saving the environment!  Enjoy!

----------------------------------------------- My Alexa Joke of the day -------------------------------------------

How did the Telephone propose to his girlfriend? 

He gave her a ring !

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Heat in the Place - We forgot the AC Unit!

Yesterday it was raining cats and dogs and I could swear I saw a cow drop down. But today the Sun is out to roast! And my poor A/C unit is struggling to keep up. Do you realise that of all the home maintenance chores around the house, we hardly ever get to the A/C Unit!

Here’s what you can do to keep your unit running smoothly and efficiently, between visits from your friendly neighborhood maintenance crew:

1. Go outside and inspect the drain hose or pipe outlet – make sure it is not clogged up with slime, and clear a path for the condensation water to flow down to a drain or to the street.
2. Where possible, place gravel (small rocks) along the path of the water, to keep algae and mold from forming – Yuck!
3. If the compressor unit outside is at ground level, make sure it has room to “breathe” – clear away any dust and debris from the grilles (make sure the switch is off first!), and don’t place barrels or other appliances nearby.
4. Inside, open the condenser unit, remove the filter screens, and brush them off outside, rinse, and let dry.