10 Aluminum Foil Hacks That Will Give You A Cleaner Home
There's no doubt that there are plenty of uses for aluminum foil. In fact, it was first used in the U.S. for commercial purposes in 1913 when it was used to wrap candy like Life Savers and chocolate bars. It was then used for cartons before eventually making its way into homes in the 1920s. Now, it's the go-to for covering food and even cooking, not to mention countless crafts. On top of that, it's also an ideal tool for keeping your home clean in more ways than you might have imagined.
Thanks to the fact that aluminum foil is rather thin, it can be shaped, folded, and crumpled as needed which makes it great to use on rounded items, in corners, and other hard-to-reach spots. It's also somewhat tough and abrasive which helps you really scrub things that have become dirty, grimy, and gritty. While that might have already sparked a few ideas of how aluminum foil could help you tackle various chores around your abode, we can suggest a few hacks that you definitely don't want to miss out on.
Remove rust from your shower
If there's rust on your metal shower curtain rod, hooks, or grommets, then aluminum foil can come to the rescue. You can use aluminum foil to clean your shower by first giving everything a quick wipe so that they're as clean as you can get them. Next, grab a bowl and pour in a touch of white vinegar. Put a piece of aluminum foil in the vinegar and make sure to soak it. When it's covered with vinegar, use the aluminum foil to scrub the rust off of the metal. Wipe it down with water to remove any debris and the vinegar smell.
Clean your oven door
For this handy hack, you'll need aluminum foil along with baking soda, a microfiber cloth, and hot water. To use aluminum foil to clean your oven, start by covering the inside of the oven door with hot water and leave it so that it can potentially soften anything that's been baked on. Add some baking soda before making a ball out of aluminum foil which you can then use to scrub the door. Wipe any of the ickiness away and then finish things off by using the microfiber cloth to leave the glass with a nice shine.
Polish your silver
This is another aluminum foil hack that also requires hot water and baking soda. Take whatever silver piece you'd like to revive and wrap it in aluminum foil. Then pour hot water into a bowl with a couple of tablespoons of baking soda. Place your aluminum foil-wrapped silver item into the bowl and let it sit. The tarnished bits on the silver will end up on the aluminum foil which you can simply unwrap and throw away when you're done. You can also leave the silver unwrapped and use boiling water, baking soda, and salt if wanted.
Run it through your dishwasher
When you have a piece of aluminum foil that has gotten covered in food, you can still get more use out of it by running it through your dishwasher. All you need to do to reuse aluminum foil is unfold it and place it in one of the racks. You might want to make sure that it's placed down on the top rack so that it stays in place during the cycle. Turn your dishwasher on and let it do its thing. You'll end up with aluminum foil that's clean and ready to use again.
Fix up your fireplace
Wood-burning fireplaces are a lovely addition to your home until the ash starts to build up and leave a nasty grime behind. To keep cleaning up ash easy in your fireplace and a chore that you don't dread, all you need to do is put a piece of aluminum foil at the bottom of the fireplace which can simply be picked up and thrown out when filled with ash. You can also use a ball of aluminum foil to scrub the grime off of the fireplace as well as your metal pokers.
Scour your grill
If you have a dirty grill, then you need aluminum foil to clean it. As with other hacks, grab a piece and crumple it into a ball. Use this to scrub the grill and remove the grime. The aluminum foil will scour the grill but won't slide through which makes it ideal. If there's food on the grill that just won't come off, then turn on the heat for a few minutes to loosen things up. Once it's cooled enough for you to touch it, then scrub again and wipe the grill off with a clean cloth when you're done.
Scrub your dirty dishes
Whether you enjoyed a delicious but messy meal or forgot to soak your pots and pans after making dinner, you might need to wash a few dishes by hand in order to target what might be leftover and caked or baked on. Although you could always use a piece of steel wool or a brush with tough bristles to give you some extra scrubbing power, aluminum foil can do the same thing to clean your dishes. Make a ball and get it wet before using it to remove any annoying residue on your dishes.
Make gaps easy to clean
When tidying up your kitchen, you can't forget about cleaning the gaps between your stove, fridge, dishwasher, or countertops. Of course, these spots can be hard to reach which means that crumbs, dirt, and dust can build up. To make things easier, fold a piece of aluminum foil in half and open the top slightly to create a boat shape. Insert this down by the floor in any gaps so that they can catch whatever falls there. When it starts to fill up, simply remove it and toss out what's inside.
Clean your oven racks
In the same way that you can use a ball of aluminum foil on your grill, you can use it to clean the racks in your oven. In this case, you'll want to remove the racks from the oven and place them in a sink with water. Add a few drops of dish soap before you get scrubbing. If this doesn't get your racks clean, then place some old towels in your bathtub before adding the racks wrapped in foil and dishwasher pods. Let them soak before scrubbing.
De-rust your cast iron skillet
It's never fun to discover that rust has started to form on your cast iron skillet. However, aluminum foil can be just what you need to remove rust. For this hack, you'll either want an aluminum pan or foil that you can shape into a pan. Place the skillet inside along with an equal amount of vinegar and water. Leave the skillet to soak for an hour before you use a scrubbing brush, scouring pad, or even a ball of aluminum foil with soap to clean the rust off.