13 Unusual Uses for Vinegar

Just recently I have started using white distilled vinegar to clean my kitchen countertops. I had always heard rumors that vinegar could be used for this and so much more, but was never sure if they were true. Much to my surprise and delight, I have found that everything I have tried works.

Here are a few things I’ve found that can be done with white distilled vinegar that you wouldn’t normally suspect vinegar of being able to do. One of the best things about vinegar is that it’s safe to have around your kids and pets; relatively speaking to all the other cleaners filled with harmful chemicals, it is super cheap.

Note: Never use vinegar on marble as it can damage the surface.

Keep your pooch from scratching his or her ears by simply wiping the inside of his or her ears with a cotton ball soaked in vinegar.

Mix vinegar and water and spray it on your plants. This will keep your cat from trying to eat it.

To remove the smell of puke from a car, simply leave a bowl of vinegar on the floor of your car overnight.

Soaking stuck-on chewing gum in vinegar helps it to come loose from your car’s upholstery.

Vinegar can be used as an antiseptic on minor cuts and scrapes.

Brush your teeth a few times a week with vinegar to help with bad breath and teeth whitening.

Spray cold vinegar onto a sunburn to help relieve pain.

Vinegar can be used to remove armpit stains on your clothes by spraying them with vinegar before washing.

Adding 1/2 cup of vinegar to your rinse cycle helps to make colors brighter and to get rid of the residue that makes black clothes dull.

Clean your coffee maker by running 1 cup of vinegar through the brewing cycle. Be sure to run a few more cycles with just plain water, so your coffee doesn’t taste like vinegar.

Clean grease off of any surface on your oven by using a sponge soaked in vinegar.

Wipe your tub and faucet with vinegar and let it sit for a while, then rinse.

Kill weeds and grass with vinegar.

Wash your vegetables with a mix of 1 tablespoon vinegar and 6 cups water.

Joy Larson is a mother of four boys, graduate of The University of Montana, animal lover and writer.