Unique Uses for Household Products

When searching for solutions to bug bites, frozen locks or tarnished furniture, you don't have to invest in expensive products. The answer to the problem is probably right in your cabinet. Get creative with everyday household products and discover unique uses for them, saving yourself a few bucks and a lot of time.

After sipping down your morning cup of Joe, reuse those coffee grounds to heal your family's wounds. Coffee grounds work well to treat the itch and sting of pesky bug bites, says Amanda Henry, owner of Alaska-based Southern Belle House Cleaning. Simply rub coffee grounds on bug bites to reduce itching right away. Coffee grounds are also a natural exfoliant. Combine them with a little brown sugar and coconut oil to create a shower wash that can help soften your skin.

Adding a bit of olive oil to your food or salad is a tasty and healthy choice, but your furniture can also benefit when you use olive oil—as a furniture polish. Simply rub on olive oil with a microfiber cloth to bring out the natural stain, Henry says. If your furniture needs cleaning, try mixing one cup of olive oil with 1/4 cup of vinegar in a spray bottle to bring out a clean shine on your wood headboards, end tables and bookshelves.

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If water stains and rings from sweating beverages have marred the look of your furniture, head to the refrigerator for a quick fix. Mayonnaise can quickly remove those ugly water marks, Henry says. Simply spread a tablespoon or two of mayonnaise on a paper towel and lightly place it on any water marks on your wood furniture. Let the mayonnaise-filled towel sit for approximately 15 minutes. Once you remove the paper towel, the stain should vanish.

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Tennis balls contribute to fun, outdoor sporting activities, but they can also provide a quick fix for messes inside. If your tile, laminate or wood floors are scuffed with black heel marks, Derek Christian, owner of My Maid Service, a residential cleaning company in Cincinnati, recommends a tennis ball to remove the imperfections. Just use a small amount of water and rub the scuffs with the tennis ball. "It is safe on the floors and you can use an old worn-out ball," Christian says.

Not only does a disinfectant spray sanitize your counters and appliances, it can also save you from over-spending on expensive service calls. A quick squirt of disinfectant spray can unfreeze vehicle locks in the winter, Christian says. "It saves an expensive call to a locksmith or being late to work."

If sweat stains on fabrics are causing a headache in your home, reduce the pain of replacing your clothing with a headache reducer. Create a cleaning paste with three aspirin and a bit of water and then rub the paste on those yellow pit-stains. Let the solution sit for approximately an hour to allow the salicylic acid in the aspirin to lift the stains. "It saves money on dry cleaning or replacing the shirts," Christian says.

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Baking soda is more than just a baking ingredient. In fact, with a few drops of water, baking soda can create a powerful cleaning paste, says Anna Moseley, California-based cleaning representative for Arm & Hammer baking soda and founder of the household answers website Ask Anna. Remove tomato sauce stains from plastic food storage containers, for example, by scrubbing them with baking soda and water on a sponge, she says. The cleaning solution absorbs the color, and the dish will look brand new when rinsed.

Once cold and flu season has emptied out the tissue boxes around your home, resist tossing those boxes in the trash. Empty tissue boxes can be used to sort or store items in drawers or on shelves, says Alice Price, New York-based professional organizer. "They are easy to label, free and ecologically friendly," she says. Use them to separate and store pantyhose or tights, hair scrunchies, doll clothes or even batteries in a junk drawer.