Clean things Dirty Microwave: Put a dish of water in the microwave with a lemon slice and bring it to a boil. Wait until there is plenty of steam, then open and wipe out the inside with a damp cloth. Greasy Pans: Add a tablespoon of vinegar to your dishwater to help remove the grease more easily. Dirty Pots and Pans (with baked on food grime): Boil Coca-Cola in the pan and the burned, baked-on grime should come right off. Ice Trays: Soak your trays in vinegar to remove hard-water buildup. Musty Books: Place several dryer sheets between the pages of the book and place in a Ziplock bag for a couple weeks. Placing a book in clean kitty litter is also known to remove musty odors. Brass Tarnish: Soak your brass in cherry Kool-Aid for 10 minutes to remove tarnish. General Carpet Stains: Rub club soda onto the stain with a sponge and blot with paper towels. Wine Stains on Carpet: Pour some household salt onto the stain. Salt should cause stain to disappear. Glass Coffeepot: Fill the stained pot with Coca-Cola and let it sit overnight. By the morning you should see a clean pot - just wash out the Coke. Crayon on the Walls: Use a hair dryer to heat the wax from the crayon, then wipe with a paper towel. Garbage Disposal: Freshen your disposal with a quarter cup of lemon juice. Let it sit in your drain for 10 minutes. Mirrors: Toothpaste cleans mirror tarnish. Applesauce also will clean a mirror. Paintings: Use a slice of bread to run off dirt or grime from oil paintings. Crock Pot: Fill your grimy crock pot with soapy water and cook on high for one hour. Dirty Glassware: Use a vinegar-saturated sponge to clean glassware. Whiten appliances: Apply a mixture of 1/2 cup bleach, 1/4 cup baking soda and 4 cups warm water. Let set for 10 minutes before rinsing and drying. Blender: Fill part way with hot water and add a drop of detergent. Cover and turn it on for a few seconds. Rinse and drain dry. Broiler: Sprinkle the hot pan heavily with dry laundry detergent. Cover with a dampened paper towel and let the burned food set for a while. The pan should require little scouring. Can Opener: Loosen grime from a can opener by brushing with an old toothbrush. To thoroughly clean blades, run a paper towel through the cutting process. China: To remove coffee or tea stains and cigarette burns from fine china, rub with a damp cloth dipped in baking soda. Coffee Pot: Perk one tablespoon powder dishwashing detergent and a full pot of water through the coffeemaker to get it clean without any scrubbing. Glass pot: Remove stains from a glass pot by rubbing them with a lemon slice. Copper: Remove tarnish from cooper cookware by mixing equal parts of salad and vinegar or salt and lemon juice. Rub it into the tarnished area with a paper towel. Restore the copper's shine by scrubbing it with a wet steel wool soap pad. (Avoid abrasives on soft tin linings.) Crystal: Vinegar is a must when washing crystal. Rinse in 1 part vinegar to 3 parts warm water. Air dry. Crystal will be spotless! Cutting Board: To rid cutting board of onion, garlic or fish smell, cut a lime or lemon in two and rub the surface with the cut side of the fruit. To make a stained cutting board look like new, mix a couple teaspoons of liquid bleach into a dishpan full of warm water. Scrub the board. Rinse the board several times with very hot water. Deodorizer: Boil a little vinegar or a teaspoon of cloves in a half-cup water to dispel cooking odors. Detergent: Add a few tablespoons of vinegar to the dishwater. The vinegar will cut the grease and leave your dishes sparkling clean. Dishes: To quickly remove food that is stuck to a casserole dish, fill it with boiling water and add 2 tablespoons of baking soda or salt. Dishwasher: To clean, use regular powdered laundry bleach instead of dishwasher detergent in an empty machine. It cleans and disinfects. Food Grinder: After using a food grinder, get all the ground material out and make the grinder much easier to clean by running a slice of bread through it before dismantling. Formica: Polish Formica tops to a sparkle with club soda. Freezer: A piece of charcoal in your freezer will keep it smelling sweet. To clean a frost-free freezer, mix 1/2 cup of isopropyl alcohol with a dishpan full of lukewarm water. The alcohol evaporates rapidly, so you do not have to dry. Grill: When the grate is cool after barbecuing, place it inside a large plastic garbage bag with 1/2 cup powdered dishwasher detergent. Pour in enough hot water to cover the grill; seal the bag, shake it to dissolve the powder, and then let it stand for several hours. Rinse thoroughly. Ice Chest: Sprinkle a musty-smelling ice chest with baking soda, then close the lid for about an hour. Rinse with clean water and wipe with a soft cloth dampened with a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Your ice chest will smell wonderful between picnics! Meat Grinder: To clean the meat grinder of particles and grease, run a piece of bread through it before washing. Microwave: To easily clean up a spillover in the microwave, cover it with a wet paper towel and put the oven on HIGH for 10 seconds. The mess will wipe up when the cloth cools. Odors: Add a few teaspoons of sugar and cinnamon to an empty pie tin and slowly burn over the stove. Your family will think you have been baking all day. Pans: To remove badly burned-on food from a pan, scrape away as much of the burned-on food as you can. Fill the pan with cold water, add a cup of salt and let it soak overnight. The next day bring the water slowly to a boil and allow it to boil gently for about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the water cool. Pour water out and finish cleaning with a scouring pad. Refrigerator: Wash the inside of the refrigerator with vinegar and water to prevent mildew. Be sure to keep the coils at the rear of your refrigerator clean and dust-free. Remember to unplug the refrigerator before cleaning. Repellents: Put a few bay leaves in your flour and cereal bins. They will keep the bugs out. Sink: If your drain is clogged with grease, pour in a cup each of salt and baking soda followed by a kettle of boiling water. This will usually open the drain. Stainless Steel: Use rubbing alcohol or salad oil to clean stubborn water spots off a stainless steel sink or counter. Shine with a sponge dipped in vinegar. Faucets: Clean faucets and appliances with vinegar. For stubborn buildup around faucets and fixtures, put paper towels around the fixtures and soak with vinegar, then let stand until the grime comes off easily. Thermos Bottles: Keep them uncapped and they won't get a musty odor. To clean, fill with warm water, add 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and allow to soak. Walls: Wax them and grease will wipe off easily. Return