Easy Frugal Living Tips to Save Money

Here are 4 standard household items that you can use for a variety of tasks and are especially useful when it comes to cleaning.

1. Vinegar

If you have a smelly kitchen sponge, try soaking it in vinegar for 20 minutes. Then squeeze it out and leave it to dry. The vinegar will kill the bacteria and deodorize the sponge.

You can also clean a sponge by wetting it, squeezing it out, and putting it in the microwave for 1 minute. The heat from the microwave kills the bacteria.

If you have pots and pans with tough stains at the bottom, leave them soaking in vinegar. It will make it a lot easier to clean. If the stain is especially stubborn, try putting the pan with the vinegar on a flame to reheat it. That should help loosen things up.

Sometimes, if I leave flowers in a vase too long, I find a sludgy film on the vase that can be very difficult to remove. I learned that if I pour in some white vinegar and leave it sitting in the vase for an hour, the sludge comes right off. After you use the vinegar, save it for the next household job.

Do you know that sticky dust that builds up on the tops of the blades of ceiling fans? I used to have so much trouble removing it and then I tried using vinegar. I just pour some vinegar on a rag and it wipes right off.

Vinegar is also a great tool for cleaning badly stained toilets. First, we empty the toilet of as much water as we can, usually with an old cup. Then we fill the bowl with vinegar and leave it for as long as possible. We try to leave it for a full 24 hours, if possible. If we can’t leave it that long, even just 4 hours can be very effective. Once the bowl has soaked for a while, scrub it with the toilet brush; it’ll be nice and clean.

If you get detergent or bleach on your hands, it can really dry out your skin. Rinse your hands in water and then rinse them in vinegar. Vinegar helps restore the PH balance.

Vinegar and water in a spray bottle are perfect for cleaning smells like urine and vomit. Use a 50/50 water-vinegar mixture to clean out pet beds. It’ll leave your pet bed smelling so much fresher.

2. Lemons

Lemons are another highly versatile household item. You can chop and freeze lemons into ice cubes for drinks. Not only are they immune-boosting and anti-inflammatory, but they also look good in drinks.

Got an extra piece of lemon you don’t want to waste but aren’t sure what to use it for? Put it in a bowl of water, and microwave it for 2 minutes. This will make it easy to wipe down and clean the inside of your microwave. It will also leave it smelling clean and fresh.

Use lemon juice as a nail soak. Squeeze some lemon juice into a small bowl and soak your nails for 5 minutes. This will strengthen your nails. It will also have a nice whitening effect.

Need a general all-purpose cleaning spray? Pour some water into a spray bottle with a little bit of cleaning liquid and some lemon juice. This creates a lovely, fresh-smelling, all-purpose spray.

If you’re getting ants, spray the affected areas with this repellent. Combine water, vinegar, and lemon juice. It’s a natural way of deterring the ants without harming them or the environment.

Toss fresh peeled apples or pairs into lemon juice. This will prevent the fruit from browning as quickly. This hack is especially useful if the fruit is going into a salad.

Soak white clothes with yellow stains in lemon juice. It will act as a mild bleach and help drive out those stains. I’ve also heard that lemon juice can lighten liver spots, or aging spots from the surface of your skin. It works as a natural bleaching agent.

4. Cooking oils

You can use cooking oils to polish stainless steel. Just use a very small amount of oil and some buffing cloth and wipe the steel. It will leave your pots perfectly polished.

Cooking oil is good for lubricating sticky locks. It can work wonders on squeaky hinges. It can also work well on stubborn zippers.

Use cooking oil to help get rid of label residues off things like empty recyclable jars. Just rub the label gently with a little oil and leave it to soak for 10 or 15 minutes. The label should peel off like magic. You can also use this hack to get stickers off of furniture if you have kids.

Frugal living tips

Some of our basic household staples can be used for so much more than we realize. I hope this article gave you some ideas for practical ways to use things you already have in the house. Drop me a comment and let me know which tip you liked the best.