Tip of the Day #269: Get Rid of Rats & Mice

Rats will leave your home if you introduce a smell that drives them away. This gives you a natural rodent control method that doesn't introduce chemicals into your home and resolves your rat problem without killing them.

The answer is PEPPER-- but don't try black pepper for rat control. Go with cayenne pepper instead or a hot pepper sauce.

Instructions:

Sprinkle the dried spice in areas that have a proven rat presence. When the rats get a whiff of the pepper, they'll move out. Repeat as often as needed, if the rodents move elsewhere in your landscape or if new rats appear.

Tip of the Day #268: Vinegar in Toilet Tank

I was reminded of this great tip on Pinterest today!

A small bottle of vinegar can make a huge impact with your toilets. If you poke a hole into the lid of a bottle of vinegar and then put the whole bottle into your toilet tank upside down, the vinegar will prevent a toilet ring from forming by releasing some everytime you flush and also use LESS WATER with every flush!

Tip of the Day #267: Cleaning your Hood Vent Filter

Many people don't think to clean their hood vent very often, however, its extremely important as grease and debris build-up can become very dangerous! To clean, bring a large pot of water to a boil, and place filter(s) inside. Sprinkle 1/2 a cup of baking soda in VERY slowly (a tsp at a time) as it will fizz and overflow. Watch the grease just slide right off!
If you do not have a pot big enough, pouring the boiling water into your sink and following the same process will work as well.

Tip of the Day #266: Newspaper while Gardening

Lay newspaper down in in your flower beds!
Newspaper will prevent any grass and weed seeds from germinating, but unlike fabric, it will decompose after about 18 months. By that time, any grass and weed seeds that were present in the soil on planting will be dead. It’s green, it’s cheaper than fabric, and when you decide to remove or redesign the bed later on, you will not have the headache you would with fabric!

Tip of the Day #265: DIY Art Smock

Painting is fun for kids, but can cause such a mess! So why not take an old pillow case, turn so open side is at the bottom, then cut arm holes and a neck hole at the top. If it is way too big, you may choose to snip the area between the neck and arm holes (shoulder area) then tie in tighter knots!

Tip of the Day #264: Never lose your Earrings again!

1) Travel is best done in pairs. To keep a set of earrings together on your next overnight jaunt, fasten them to a button so they won’t get lost in your suitcase pocket.

2) Keep track of your earrings while you hit the gym (or the spa). Place the studs through the holes on the watch strap and then attach their backs. You can even do this when removing your earrings at night and storing for the night!

Tip of the Day #263: Removing Hard Foods

Aluminum Foil as Glassware Scrubber

To get baked-on food off a glass pan or an oven rack, use dishwashing liquid and a ball of foil in place of a steel-wool soap pad. It's one way to recycle those used but perfectly good pieces of foil you hate to throw out!