62 Uses for Vinegar
by Matthew Sparkes, London, UK on 07.18.07
Vinegar is a pretty versatile substance. Basically just acetic acid, it can be used to replace many commercial cleaning products which can be harmful to the environment. Our guide to greening your cleaning says, "most of the conventional cleaning products we all grew up with are petroleum-based and have dubious health and environmental implications.". Also, if you're like me, some cleaning products can give you a bit of a headache after use, which shouldn't happen with vinegar. Another benefit is cost - some cleaning products are very expensive, but vinegar can be bought quite cheaply.
ODYB has an article which lists 62 uses for vinegar, from cleaning to health care. Whilst you can't make use of all 62, you will probably find something that you will find useful. There have also been some good comments left on the piece which list even more uses. Going on from this there is yet more ideas on the Wikipedia entry for vinegar. Of course, you need to buy the right sort - rubbing balsamic vinegar into your white carpet is not going to make that stain any better. We have also covered many brands of green cleaning products if vinegar isn't for you, such as Method.
Also on the Wikipedia entry for vinegar are some random facts for your reading enjoyment; the Prophet Muhammed said vinegar is one of the best condiments, Lord Byron consumed lots of white vinegar to keep his complexion pale and Roman legionaries also used to drink vinegar mixed with water - it was called Posca. ::ODYB
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
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You know you should really give hugg credit for the link. You know that sister site that is all but forgotten...
Jilted, that is my fault, I forwarded the lead to Matthew and forgot to forward the Hugg reference. I apologise....
Lloyd Alter
Actually, the gladiators didn't drink the Posca, it was used to rinse the mouth and temporarily allay thirst.
uh, i think at least one of those pics in the 62-uses article is NSFW (i didn't let my eyes linger on the yeast infection one to figure out what part of the human anatomy that is), and some of the rest are just gross. i know what a wart is without needing a picture, thank you very much.
Use # 63 I Just used a white vinegar yesterday to strip the varnish off my old hardwood floors. I mixed it 50/50 with warm water and ran a mop over the floor several times getting it good and wet, Then I waited about a half hour and used a basic floor scraper and all the old glue from some tile floor that was installed over the hardwood came up easily including the varnish. I have tried using the hardwood floor striper that sells in the store for $10 to $20 a gallon (which is basically a gallon of superglue remover) with harmful vapors and it doesn't even come close to how well vinegars work.
Use # 63 I Just used a white vinegar yesterday to strip the varnish off my old hardwood floors. I mixed it 50/50 with warm water and ran a mop over the floor several times getting it good and wet, Then I waited about a half hour and used a basic floor scraper and all the old glue from some tile floor that was installed over the hardwood came up easily including the varnish. I have tried using the hardwood floor striper that sells in the store for $10 to $20 a gallon (which is basically a gallon of superglue remover) with harmful vapors and it doesn't even come close to how well vinegars work.
With the way vinegar smells, I can't hardly see using it for anything.
vinegar is probably better than mainstream disturbing chemical cleaners. however, it's not entirely environmentally sound. the cheapest kind of vinegar, the kind you'd use for cleaning not on your salad, is white or distilled vinegar. unlike culinary vinegars like red wine or apple cider, this is made from distilled corn, wood or petroleum (tasty!).
so it's a lot less toxic than chlorox bleach but remember that it does have to come from somewhere...
Use #64 Five gallons of white vinegar and a circulating pump once a year will keep your tankless water heater squeaky clean on the inside!
My mom has always used vinegar for mopping floors simply because that's what her mother used to do. Vinegar is cheaper than environmentally damaging cleaning products. I'm beginning to see the light as well, too. I'm beginning to equate the vinegar smell with "clean," which is half of it, really. I have to be able to smell that something is clean.