Household tips and tricks! - Are you having trouble getting the wine stains out of your carpet? Do you clean your cookware with something extraordinary? Come share!

[glass_houses]

Another option you could consider to maximize space is get some things to hook over your lower cabinet doors?
View attachment 5256652View attachment 5256653

Over the doors are where I'm putting towels, gloves etc. I want to put the pot holders on the tiles so I can just reach out and grab them without moving away from the stove.

The housemate bought a new microwave because ours died. Unfortunately the new microwave is too big. He also wants to keep his instapot on the bench because he has weak arms and taking it out of the cupboard is hard for him. Then there is the hot water jug. We have two small benches, and one is completely filled by these three items. The instapot is going in the fucking cupboard, but I don't know what I'm going to do about the huge fucking microwave or jug. Told him to get the smallest microwave he could find, but he brought the cheapest instead and it's fucking huge.

 

[Shig O'nella]

I don't know what I'm going to do about the huge fucking microwave or jug.

 

[glass_houses]

View attachment 5256700

Nice idea, but there's a wall cabinet in the way. There's only one powerpoint in the kitchen so everything has to go on that particular bench.

Yes, the kitchen is shit. It's still better than the one in our last place.

 

[Aiōn]

Over the doors are where I'm putting towels, gloves etc. I want to put the pot holders on the tiles so I can just reach out and grab them without moving away from the stove.

The housemate bought a new microwave because ours died. Unfortunately the new microwave is too big. He also wants to keep his instapot on the bench because he has weak arms and taking it out of the cupboard is hard for him. Then there is the hot water jug. We have two small benches, and one is completely filled by these three items. The instapot is going in the fucking cupboard, but I don't know what I'm going to do about the huge fucking microwave or jug. Told him to get the smallest microwave he could find, but he brought the cheapest instead and it's fucking huge.

Do you have a space to stash a kitchen trolley on wheels for him to put his appliances on at all?



As for the pot holder solution, how about magnetic hooks?
If you don't have a metal surface to attach them to directly, you can get metal stickers that you could stick to the tiles.

A bit like this
https://global.bymagnet.com/magnetic-hooks/

I used to use strong magnets to attach my spices to the wall when I had limited surface space.

 

[glass_houses]

Do you have a space to stash a kitchen trolley on wheels for him to put his appliances on at all?

View attachment 5256705

As for the pot holder solution, how about magnetic hooks?
If you don't have a metal surface to attach them to directly, you can get metal stickers that you could stick to the tiles.

A bit like this
https://global.bymagnet.com/magnetic-hooks/

I used to use strong magnets to attach my spices to the wall when I had limited surface space.

I never thought of a trolley; thank you, I'll look into it and see if it could work for us. I'll check those magnetic hooks out as well.

The housemate also decided to buy one of those huge three tier dish drying racks to 'give us more room'. Unfortunately it's done the exact opposite and is now blocking off precious bench space. Instead of just keeping my elbow raised over the old low rack and working as I need to, I have to awkwardly reach around the fucking thing to use that precious foot and a half of bench space behind it. I had a three tier rack at our old place because we had a single basin and drain sink and it was the most efficient use of the space. With a three tier rack in this kitchen, combined with one entire bench filled with appliances, we are down to two square foot of usable bench space. However, since the housemate doesn't cook, he doesn't realise that this is actually a huge problem for anyone who needs to prepare a full meal.

I've been living with this housemate for a number of years. He is far from ideal and blindly creates and propagates problems on a regular basis that I have to solve. However, given my health and financial issues, and my rats, I'm probably stuck with him for a ways yet. Unfortunately I'm not an easy person to live with either, so it's very much a case of two gimps making do with each other.

No, he hasn't replaced any of my books that were pissed on by his dog.

 

[CrossedTubes]

Just saw a cleaning influencer put a rolled up ball of aluminium foil in the dishwasher. She said this makes her plates extra shiny. Will this make you eventually die of aluminium build-up in the body, perhaps becoming a foil version of the colloidal silver smurfman?

 

[Aiōn]

While on the subject for dishwashers, this video has some good tips:

 

[FatalTater]

Teflon seal tape, or plumber's tape, may seem like just an extra step.

It is an important extra step.

Don't let your hoses, nozzles, whatever metal things fuse together! Spend the five bucks and use the tape!

 

[Quack_Quack]

I’d say the emotion he should feel is death, but you’re much nicer than me.

The cops have blacklights too. They're gonna figure out this motive really quickly, even if she can refrain from lining his GI tract with a cut-and-paste manifesto pieced together from piss-soaked treasured mementos.

Blood spatter over piss stains. If they ask, dog pissed there repeatedly, jobs a goodun

 

[Mr. Confederate Man]

Teflon seal tape, or plumber's tape, may seem like just an extra step.

It is an important extra step.

Don't let your hoses, nozzles, whatever metal things fuse together! Spend the five bucks and use the tape!

Remember to wrap that tape opposite the directions of the threads too. Makes it a lot less frustrating when putting it all back together.

Also, you can use pipe thread sealant to do the same thing, but it's messy. If it really has to not leak, I use both however.

 

[glass_houses]

I need to replace the gaskets on my ceramic tea canisters. Are there any hints or tricks I should know in regards to determining the size I need?

 

[Shig O'nella]

Take off the old one and measure the inside diameter. Subtract 1mm.

 

[Aunt Carol]

I need to replace the gaskets on my ceramic tea canisters. Are there any hints or tricks I should know in regards to determining the size I need?

Tim Hunkin says, when ordering springs for a project, order the size you think you need and also the size above and the size below. I would suspect this advice also applies to gaskets.

If your containers are from a big brand and they're still in production, you could see if they sell replacement gaskets--and then copy down the specs and order cheaper ones.

 

[Aunt Carol]

Necropost:

If you stock multiple types of adhesive bandages (Band-Aids), consolidate them into a 3x5 card folder with dividers.

This doesn't replace a first aid kit, but it's great if you started off just buying "assortment" bandages but now you realize that you need to be able to find a knuckle bandage vs. a big one vs. a waterproof one vs. hydrocolloid acne patches. Takes up much less space than the individual paperboard bandage boxes and no less protection from the elements/aging.

You could use a recipe card box or a plastic check/coupon organizer, but this is good for small-space storage in the bathroom. Flat bottom falls down less.

 

[TrainWreckSpotter]

I have a weirdly-shaped bathroom and absolutely no surface to put anything on (except the window sill). I have a wall cabinet and linen closet, but sometimes you just need to put something down temporarily while you are performing your toilette. My toilet lid is convex for some reason, so anything I put on it immediately slides off. So I was searching Amazon for hours for "over the toilet shelf" and came up with nothing that wasn't a full console. So a couple of days later I get on Amazon and EXACTLY what I was looking for popped up in my Recommended with the description "over the toilet shelf."



Where was it when I was actively searching for it???

 

[Aunt Carol]

I have a weirdly-shaped bathroom and absolutely no surface to put anything on (except the window sill). I have a wall cabinet and linen closet, but sometimes you just need to put something down temporarily while you are performing your toilette.

Those 3M Command Strips bathroom accessories work great on a bathroom mirror, if you have room there. Haven't actually tried them in the shower because my shower's OK and I'm not an optimist about adhesives in hot and wet conditions, but their shower organizer works great on the mirror for wrangling things that don't quite deserve the (limited) counter space.

My toilet lid is convex for some reason, so anything I put on it immediately slides off.

If you mean the lid to the tank, I'm going to sidebar for people with normal toilets:

It is preferable to put a tray on top of the actual toilet tank lid, so if you need to get in there and whack the chain/flapper, you aren't trying to clear it off or move a big heavy slippery porcelain lid that also has a lot of small things on top of it. It's really easy to make an expensive mistake, especially if you're tired and your hands are wet and you overreact to a bottle rolling off. Put a tray on top of the lid and you can whip everything off to safety first.

I also have a sidebar for people with a very specific problem: the flapper chain in my toilet kept getting stuck on itself in a snarl. This would happen at irregular intervals, maybe twice a week, leaving the flapper up and perma-flushing until I stuck my hand into the tank and whacked it. Rather than replace the chain like a responsible adult, my cheap and lazy solution was to cut a drinking straw into inch-long segments and thread them over the flapper chain. It's along the lines of a bicycle chain guard, and it's worked for years now.

 

[Lichen Bark]

Where was it when I was actively searching for it???

The gigantic biological machine, deep in the bowels of Amazon HQ needs time to assimilate new requests. It also needs to create a brand a new DNA blueprint for the "toilet shelf." After this, a small section of it's gargantuan mass is morphed into a birthing chamber for the new "toilet shelf." Then new cilia are grown out of this area to slurp up the raw biologics, and minerals required to grow your product from the conveyors leading up to the surface. Near the surface all the Amazon robots keep an endless supply of "food" streaming down to it. When all of it's need are met the Flesh Machine births new goods, which are transported to packing where the embryonic fluid is cleaned off by amazon associates. Following this the products are speedily shipped to your door.

Oh BTW, those "wellness pods" are actually mind wipe booths for poor employees who accidentally wander down a corridor they shouldn't have, and need the C'thontic horrors scrubbed from their mind before they clock out for the day.

Stock price doesn't come without sacrifice unfortunately.

 

[TrainWreckSpotter]

It is preferable to put a tray on top of the actual toilet tank lid, so if you need to get in there and whack the chain/flapper, you aren't trying to clear it off or move a big heavy slippery porcelain lid that also has a lot of small things on top of it. It's really easy to make an expensive mistake, especially if you're tired and your hands are wet and you overreact to a bottle rolling off. Put a tray on top of the lid and you can whip everything off to safety first.

The shelf will just be a place to put things as I'm standing at the sink. For example, whenever I color my hair I have nowhere to put down the bottle of dye, and I've had it fall off the toilet tank and splash all over the floor. (It was a nightmare getting it out of the grout.) When I'm finished, everything goes back into the cabinet because I hate clutter. Maybe I can get a nice tissue dispenser to put there, but nothing else. It wlll be easy enough to move out of the way if I have to "whack the chain/flapper." As a matter of fact, it should be arriving today.

 

[Smaug's Smokey Hole 2]

I have nowhere to put down the bottle of dye, and I've had it fall off the toilet tank and splash all over the floor. (It was a nightmare getting it out of the grout.)

I used to have similar problems but in a moment of brilliance I figured that what's good for the goose is good for the gander. A toothbrush and toothpaste will get hair dye out of both tiles and grout. Just be gentle and take your time.

 

[General Disarray]

Do you have a dry-erase list or calendar on your fridge? Do you like your new, bold markers but they did not have magnets to affix the pen to the fridge? Here is a solution that doesn't involve tape and string:

Snip a piece of the neat velcro-type closure you sometimes see on rice bags, then use a fake nail adhesive pad on the pen cap and the magnetic calendar or note list and apply the velcro strips you just cut.

Now your pen hangs conveniently where you need it.