How to Clean Nicotine Stained Walls

Anyone who’s lived with a smoker knows cigarette smoke ruins your walls, your furniture and your clothing, not to mention endangering the health of everyone who comes in contact with it. Painting over nicotine instead of first cleaning it off is fruitless, because nicotine seeps through paint. Walls stained by the greasy residue of nicotine are notoriously hard to clean—but it’s not impossible.

 

Work your way up to increasingly strong cleaners as needed. You can start with a spray bottle filled with straight white vinegar or lemon juice, applying it in sections, rubbing it off in a circular motion with a clean cotton rag (old cloth diapers are ideal for this). Refold the cloth frequently to prevent reapplying the nicotine. Wipe down with clear warm water.

 

If this doesn’t work, open a window for ventilation, wear rubber gloves and fill a bucket with warm water and ammonia. Start with small amounts of ammonia—say a half cup—and if necessary increase the ratio of ammonia to water, up to a 50/50 mixture. For really tough jobs, you can buy a commercial product at the hardware store that removes nicotine from ceilings and walls.

 

After washing down the walls, dry thoroughly with another clean cloth. When completely dry, apply a paint primer specifically designed for sealing any residual greasy stains you may have been unable to clean. This is advised even if you believe you’ve thoroughly cleaned the walls. Apply one or two of these primer coats, then paint the room in a latex or oil-based paint.

 

Finally, for the sake of everyone’s health and to save yourself from having to repeat this kind of effort, forbid smoking in your home. Post a NO SMOKING sign on your freshly painted wall if you have to.

 

 

***Clean Home Ideas

Secrets For Easy Surface Cleaning...

Bleach stains on carpet or clothing can’t be reversed, but you can sometimes make them unnoticeable by carefully touching up the spot with a permanent marker in as close a color you can find.

 

Blood stains are tricky but not impossible to remove, especially if you catch them quickly. Start with a paste of cold water and baking soda, followed by a vinegar water rinse. If necessary, use a bit of hydrogen peroxide for a second cleaning. Some people report that cornstarch is an effective blood stain remover. Rinse stain in cold water first, rub in moistened cornstarch, then place item in the sun. If you catch a blood stain immediately, try this old folk remedy: wet a long piece of white cotton thread with saliva and roll it across the spot. The saliva enzymes will help the thread absorb the blood. Repeat.

Candle Wax can be removed from walls, wood tables and tablecloths with heat and plain paper. Place the paper over the wax and gently iron until the wax seeps into the paper. Repeat with fresh pieces of paper until wax is lifted, then clean surface carefully with a soft cloth dipped in a solution of vinegar and water. As an alternative, try applying an ice cube to dripped wax. It will become brittle and lift off more easily.

Coffee stains can be lightened or removed with this process. Wash in cold water and detergent or soap, then rinse first with water, then a water/white vinegar solution. Repeat water rinse. Rub denatured alcohol in the stain, rinse with water again. Finally, dip a white cloth into beaten egg yolk and rub yolk into stain. Rinse with clear water.

Chewing Gum can be hardened with ice for easier removal with a dull knife. Or try soaking the gum in rubbing alcohol, which will dissolve the gum.

 

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Frugal Repurposing Ideas for Your Home

If you are the frugal type,we know we are, then here are some repurposing ideas and unique tips:

> Use mustard to clean out bottles with persistent odors.
> Turkey basters can help you water your plants.
> Unstick drawers using a bar of soap.
> Use tennis balls to make your pillows fluffy again.
> Flour can help you clean stainless steel appliances.
> Paint rollers can help you dust a ceiling fan.
> Use a pumice stone to remove rust stains from your toilet.
> Plants can help you purify the air in your home.
> Tea leaves can help you eliminate litter box odors.
> Use dryers sheets to dust baseboards clean.
> Use twine to polish forks between the tines.
> Facial wipes can help you to remove paint stains on the floor.
> Use peanut butter to remove sticky price tags.

My Kitchen Escapades

Let's Protect the Air That We Breath in Our Homes

Thanks to the The Daily Green, a consumer's guide to green from GoodHouskeeping.com, here are a few tips on how to purify the air in your home...

A.) Beware of Dry Cleaning Chemicals...Dry Cleaning solvents are strong chemicals and can be toxic to breathe. Let dry cleaned items air outdoors before bringing them inside.

2.) Use Low-VOC Paints...Paint releases trace amounts of gases for months after application. These gases are called volitile organic compounds and can include highly toxic chemicals such as formaldehyde and acetaldehyde.

3.) Do Not Idle the Car in the Garage... Burning gas or other fuels indoors can produce dangerous levels of indoor air pollution and deadly carbon monoxide. Protect you health by turning off carbon-monoxide emitting motors in garages and sheds.

4.) Kill the Dust Mites...Dust allergies are actually allergies to dust mites. To fight dust mites in your home keep humidity levels below 50% indoors. Remove carpets if you can and vacuum and steam clean all of your upholstered furniture.

5.) Beware Formaldehyde...Keep formaldehyde away from your home by choosing wood panel products that are not made with urea formaldehyde glues,lumber or materials. Cigarette smoke is also a major source of indoor formaldehyde.

How to Clean Your Home to Help Reduce the Spread of the Flu

¨       Everyone in the home should wash his or her hands regularly in warm soapy water. For quick disinfecting, use alcohol-based antibacterial hand sanitizer. Make an effort not to touch your mouth, eyes or nose without first washing your hands.

 ¨       When cleaning, always wear rubber gloves to protect yourself.

 ¨       Regularly use household disinfectant on any surfaces that are commonly touched, like toys, doorknobs, appliance handles, remote controls, light switches, phones, and facial tissue box covers. Follow proper usage instructions on the product label. Some viruses can live for up to 48 hours on hard surfaces.

 ¨       Use disinfecting spray in bathrooms. Spray disinfecting cleaner on a cloth and wipe clean toilet handles and seats, faucets, showers, tubs and sinks. Allow the disinfectant to air dry for several minutes.

 ¨       Make sure to wash items like towels and bedding in hot water with detergent. Be sure not to share these items until they are thoroughly washed if someone has been sick in the home.

¨       If multiple toothbrushes are kept in a common container, boil toothbrushes for one minute in water and vinegar, put them through the dishwasher or purchase new ones.

 ¨       To protect yourself at work, use antibacterial wipes on your keyboard, phone and writing utensils regularly, in case others have used them.

 

 

To Disinfect or to Sanitize? That is the question!

Do you know the difference between disinfecting and sanitizing? When you have a big mess on your hands and need to find a product and method to clean up-do you sanitize or disinfect? Sanitizers are agents that destroy 99.999% of bacteria in 30 seconds according to a public health test called the Official Detergent Sanitizer test. According to the AOAC Use Dilution test, disinfectants are products that destroy all organisms in 10 minutes.

Sanitizing is a chemical process that will lessen or kill germs on surfaces to make then safe for use. It is important to sanitize your kitchen and surfaces that you prepare food on. It would also be wise to sanitize toys that come in contact with an infant's mouth. Usually your dishwasher comes with a sanitizing cycle during which your dishes and utensils will become as clean as possible.

Disinfecting requires a stronger solution to destroy germs rather than reducing them. You might want to disinfect the baby's diaper pail or changing table or the phone receiver during flu season. Other places to disinfect would be any area that comes in contact with blood or body fluids.

Worth Knowing- The Top 10 Genetically Modified Foods

It is important for people to be in the know to make more educated buying decisions because we now live in a world that is overrun with ingredients that are mislabeled and genetically modified .Most people are unaware of the corruption behind their food and personal products and the FTA is as corrupt as the food it deems safe. Please note below the 10 most genetically modified foods and with that knowledge, it is our hope that you can learn how to replace these with local or homemade products!

1.) Corn- The Fda has declared that genetically modified food is safe for human consumption. What they do not tell you is that this alerted corn has been injected to create its own insecticide. Mice fed with GM corn were discovered to have smaller offspring and fertility problems.

2.) Soy- Soy has been genetically modified to resist herbicides. It has been found that hanpsters fed with GM soy were unable to have babies and suffered a high death rate.

3.) Cotton- Cotton has also been designed to resist pesticides  It is considered food because its oil can be consummed. Thousnads of indian farmers working with GM cotton suffered severe rashes after exposure.

4.) Rice- Rice has been genetically modified to contain high amounts of Vitamin A. In China, the GM corn has been linked to allergic reactions.

5.) Tomatoes- To prevent rotting and degrading, tomatoes now have beem genetically engineered for a longer shelf life. Some animals that consumed GM tomatoes died withina few wekks of ingesting them.

6.) Rapeseed- Rapeseed oil is used to process cooking oil and margarine. Honey can also be produced from GM rapeseed.It has been discovered that as much as 1/3 of the total pollen present in Canadian honey amy be from GM pollen.

7.) Dairy Products- As many as 22% of the cows in the US today are injected with a genetically modified bovine growth hormone that stimulates milk production. This growth hormone has been found in humans and has been associated with breast and colon cancer.

8.) Potatoes- Health risks were revealed when mice that were fed GM potatoes had these toxins in their body for some time.

9.) Peas- A gene from kidney beans is now injected into peas creating a protein that functions as a pesticide. These peas have been found to cause immune responces in mice and humans.

1.) Papaya- GM papayas were created to prevent the ringspot virus in India. Who knows what they do to humans!