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!

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I live in a small apartment building,8 over 2 stories.

I went away this weekend and got home this morning to find flies all over the kitchen and living room windows. I'd left the windows cracked open.

I got rid of them by spraying with kitchen cleaner (I really like method products rhubarb stuff) to stop them flying, then picking them up with toilet roll and flushing them down the crapper.

I've looked all over the place and can't find where they would have come from. I don't think the windows were open enough to let them in. There's no food about (all my opened packets get put into containers) so I am stumped.

I don't live in fucking India so I am confused as to where they came from. Does anyone have any suggestions, please, I would go as far as burning the place down if needs be.
 
BongoMongo said:
I've looked all over the place and can't find where they would have come from
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It isn't very likely that they all in through the cracked window. However, one or two that were already laden with eggs could heve. Possibly in the drain would be my guesss is where they laid them. Seeing as you went away for a couple day, that is enough time for them to lay and hatch eggs. If you aren't using the taps regularly it would give them enough time. A way to prevent this is to take some dish soap and pour the soap around the perimiter of the drain, allowing to liquid to coat the drain and pipe a few inches down before you leave.
 
CallmeCicada said:
It isn't very likely that they all in through the cracked window. However, one or two that were already laden with eggs could heve. Possibly in the drain would be my guesss is where they laid them. Seeing as you went away for a couple day, that is enough time for them to lay and hatch eggs. If you aren't using the taps regularly it would give them enough time. A way to prevent this is to take some dish soap and pour the soap around the perimiter of the drain, allowing to liquid to coat the drain and pipe a few inches down before you leave.
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Thank you ever so much,very much appreciated.
 
CallmeCicada said:
It isn't very likely that they all in through the cracked window.
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Well, yes, it is (they can come in through VERY small gaps). But more likely that one single fly got in at some point earlier and laid eggs. Which is what happened in my basement. One flew in past me as I went from the outside to the basement and next cycle - boom. However, I found out they are attracted to light, as I found out about this when once again, I opened the door and a couple of them came up the siairwell, heading for outside. One sticky flytrap and leaving the stairwell light on did them in in under 36 hours, once I realized what was going on. Didn't have to spray (because pets) and no hands-on-bugs. You can get sticky flytraps at hardware or some grocery stores. It might be a good idea to keep one in the cabinet under the sink for possible future issues. When they've caught all the flies, just wrap it in old newspaper and put it out in the trash.
 
Free the Pedos said:
Anyone got tips for making moving less painful?
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Do a donation run before you start packing, and also put an area aside for more donations while you are packing. You will end up with a fuckload of stuff to throw out, so add a dump run to your schedule. If you have a lot of books, donate as many as you can bear to part with. Depending on your part of the world, some local charities may run a pick up service. Don't count on people showing up to pick up anything you may list for sale/give away online. It's a bonus if they actually do, so always have a back up plan. You always have more stuff than you realise. One of those packing tape holder/applicator is worth its weight in gold. You will either have not enough packing tape and plastic bags or you will have far too much; far too much is preferable. If you have large pot plants, then if at all possible empty out the soil and wrap the plant roots carefully in damp paper, it's much easier on your back. Your plants might not be happy, but it's not like they pay rent. Speaking of freeholders, if you have pets and it's possible to board them out for a few days during the actual move, do so. Pack the things you need least first, with the kitchen being the last thing you pack, and the first thing you unpack. After moving and unpacking your kitchen, make your bed and find towels and toiletries. You will thank yourself at the end of the day. Those cheap foam eskies that vegetables are delivered in are your friends, both for moving food and for moving breakables.
 
Re moving: set aside one large box and out in it snacks you don't need to heat, tools, paperwork you need, lightbulbs, loo roll and other essentials, and do bit ket it out your sight, mark it "essentials", out it in the van/car last.
Best of luck, frendo.
 
Free the Pedos said:
Anyone got tips for making moving less painful?
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@glass_houses already covered the donation run, and @BongoMongo covered the "Shit I don't want to dig for" box. So I'll go back a little bit in time and recommend two things:
  1. @JanuaryViolet is right about hiring movers. It's worth it even if you need to delay the move to save up money to afford them.
  2. Delaying the move also buys you time for the pre-sweep, and the pre-sweep, while unpleasant and boring, can save you so much hassle down the line. I've experienced it personally.
Pre-sweeps are most helpful if you do them like a sliding tile puzzle.
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  1. Clear an area of space to work in, you might even want to put a tarp down.
  2. Pick a room and a space within that room to begin. I usually recommend people start with "Kitchen-Pantry" or "Bathroom-Medicine Cabinet"
  3. Take EVERYTHING out of that space and put it in the workspace area.
  4. Divide things into "Keep - Important - Donate - Trash"
  5. Put the trash in the trash and the donations into the donation bin
  6. Put the "Keep" and "Important" items back, but make a mental note of the important things, or label them.
I know it's a pain in the ass, and it'll feel like a waste of time since you're just going to be moving anyway, but it is so helpful in the long run.
 
BongoMongo said:
Re moving: set aside one large box and out in it snacks you don't need to heat, tools, paperwork you need, lightbulbs, loo roll and other essentials, and do bit ket it out your sight, mark it "essentials", out it in the van/car last.
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Agreeing with everyone on this, but noting that since you're moving your suitcase anyway, that's a good thing to pack essentials in.

Visually obvious it's not just another box, and you can kind of trick your brain that you're taking a trip and packing the stuff you need for a few days.
 
I packed my dishes and glasses. and other breakables in my clothes (non hangable clothes, ie leggings, tank tops etc) and all of my hangables. were hung and grabbed by the hangers in bunches and kind of folded over each other into boxes because fuck trying to deal with tossed about loose clothing.

My 'my back fucking hurts' box had a 2 quart pot, a small frying pan, a cookie sheet. My pour over coffee maker, toilet paper and paper towels. Advil, bandaides, new toothbrush and toothpaste. Bar of soap, towel, pair of scissors. A lightbulb, a flashlight and a lighter. Extra phone charger and usb cables. nail clippers and deodorant. A spatula, spoon, coffee cup, plate. An extra towel to go over the bedroom or bathroom window.

eta, put big signs on the outside of each room. room one, room two or kid's bedroom, master bedroom, bathroom, kitchen etc. very clearly different names. label every box exactly as the room it's going in.
 
There She Glows said:
Pantry moths: Do I really need to throw everything away? I keep certain things like beans and rice in bulk for emergency prep reasons so it would be a big waste and expensive to replace, but I've read that they get into sealed bags and cardboard boxes and lay their eggs.
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You can freeze it to kill them.
Sadly, they chew thru bags. I had to throw out plenty of good flour because of it.
They started eating my chocolate too.
If you open a package and see dust floating on strings they were inside too.
Imp said:
I have a cactus spine in my finger and can't get it out. I tried a needle, tweezers and most recently a splinter out device but I keep hitting a vein and have to stop prospecting to staunch the flow.
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If you can get a part of it out a very fine tipped tweezers will do. Else it's just wait till body pushes it out. Some cacti spines have hooks so it's easy to get them jammed in and impossible to get out.
Needle is useless honestly. I managed to get one out by pushing the skin on the end of it and pinching it so a part could be seen and picked out.
 
I store my powders (don't know and can't find the english word that could encapsulate flour, sugar, rice, breadcrumbs, etc., sorry) in glass jars with plastic screw-on lids and I've never had moth problems in those. Also a few bunches of lavender in the closet.
 
No tips here, looking for some.

How in FUCK do I prevent sand from getting literally. Everywhere? And deal with dry heat. I moved from a cold US state to a desert climate abroad. Climactically, like Arizona.

Sand and dust everywhere. In my books, my hair, my sheets, even my fucking pants sometimes.

I’m going nuts trying to keep everything not dusty as fuck.
 
I just wanted to report back to say,bleach in my drains worked on those flies I found. There were loads in the flat on Tuesday am when I got in, stuck bleach in my drains before leaving for work Wednesday evening, and have found none since. I think that must be where they came from. Thanks to the farmeress who suggested it.
 
Sonalee Rashitwar said:
No tips here, looking for some.

How in FUCK do I prevent sand from getting literally. Everywhere? And deal with dry heat. I moved from a cold US state to a desert climate abroad. Climactically, like Arizona.

Sand and dust everywhere. In my books, my hair, my sheets, even my fucking pants sometimes.

I’m going nuts trying to keep everything not dusty as fuck.
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Ime.... learn to live with it. Storing linens and valuable items in plastic totes or cupboards that seal helps, but unless you can seal and climate control your entire house, you're pretty much fucked. Covering your bed with a protective oversheet whenever you're not in it and wearing slippers can help reduce the dust there, but the key word in that sentence is "reduced". Glass door display cabinets are also a way to protect things like books, but be aware that you will still likely have to periodically empty and clean the inside.

Dust works its way into everything, everywhere, even when it seems like there's no wind to carry it. This is your life now, I'm afraid.
 
glass_houses said:
Ime.... learn to live with it. Storing linens and valuable items in plastic totes or cupboards that seal helps, but unless you can seal and climate control your entire house, you're pretty much fucked. Covering your bed with a protective oversheet whenever you're not in it and wearing slippers can help reduce the dust there, but the key word in that sentence is "reduced". Glass door display cabinets are also a way to protect things like books, but be aware that you will still likely have to periodically empty and clean the inside.

Dust works its way into everything, everywhere, even when it seems like there's no wind to carry it. This is your life now, I'm afraid.
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Thanks. Small price to pay to be safe, have actual options in my life, and be in less of a sensory hell (not sure if autist here, but it’s fairly quiet because it just seems no one got into the American habit of constantly playing music in stores and restaurants, and that aspect is very nice. You underestimate how annoying music everywhere is until it’s gone).
 
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