If you were like me growing up you fell off your bike and scraped your knee. You may have cried but the REAL tears came when you saw the bottle of rubbing alcohol come out of the cabinet. Dad always put that stuff on my scrapes to kill germs and I hated it. It stung more than the initial injury!
Since those days I have learned to love rubbing alcohol and all the other things you can do with it besides cleaning wounds. You can make shapable ice packs, eliminate the itch caused by mosquitoes and keep bugs away. It really is a great substance. And, best of all, you can get a bottle of it for less than $1. In honor of Spring Cleaning for Less, here are some of my favorite cleaning tips using rubbing alcohol:
Make Your Fixtures Sparkle!
If the chrome fixtures in your bathroom have seen better days, grab a bottle of rubbing alcohol. Pour some onto a soft, absorbent cloth and wipe down the fixtures. There is no need to rinse because the alcohol evaporates. Not only will your chrome sparkle like new but the alcohol will kill germs too!
Solve the Stickies!
I know several weeks ago y’all stocked up on Garnier Nutrisse Hair Spray. Has some of it ended up on your mirror? It’s hard to spritz your hair without that happening. A quick wipe with rubbing alcohol will eliminate that sticky residue and leave your mirror sparkling clean.
It also gets rid of other stickies like sap. Here in Texas we have lots of sap producing things: cedar trees, pine cones, etc. If you get sap on your hands, just rinse them with rubbing alcohol.
Brighten Your Bling!
If you are like me your engagement ring gets a little gunky with lotion and dirt and I never have time to take it to the jeweler to be cleaned. Simply brush the diamond with a soft bristle toothbrush dipped in a little Windex. Then dunk it in a cap full of rubbing alcohol. This will rinse off the Windex and since the alcohol evaporates, it won’t leave spots. Your ring will sparkle like new!
Clean Your Phone!
Being up against my cheek all day and then bouncing around in my purse, my phone gets a little grubby. I just wipe it down with rubbing alcohol. It removes the grime and disinfects the phone at the same time.
Eliminate Ink Stains!
No matter how thorough I am at checking pockets, a pen occasionally makes it into the wash and wreaks havoc. Or maybe your husband or kids just get an ink stain on their favorite pants or shirt. Try soaking the spot in rubbing alcohol for a few minutes before putting it in the wash. I’ve learned this doesn’t work with every stain but does work much of the time. It is most effective with fresh stains.
Rubbing Alcohol doesn’t just remove ink stains from clothes, if you have permanent marker or other ink stain on your counter top rubbing alcohol will dissolve the marker back to a liquid state so you can wipe it right off.
Do you have any amazing uses for rubbing alcohol? Please Share!
Don’t forget to checkout the past Spring Cleaning for Less Agents:
Got Lemons? Don’t Make Lemonade!
Vinegar is Vine-Great!
Don’t Ditch Your Dryer Sheets
Super (Baking) Soda
Amazing Ammonia
Shellie loves to share her frugal finds to help you get more with less. A spender at heart, she balances her frugal lifestyle with the occassional splurge.
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Shellie, Good hints. If the alcohol doesn’t get your ink stains out, try hairspray. Spray the hairspray on the ink spot, brush with an old toothbrush…should do the trick.
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