Do you reuse something in some way that others might not know about?

Dh will sqeeze the little ketchup packets into the bottle of ketchup that he gets from restraunts.

 

LOLOLOL That's is funny!

 

I save the sweet&sour packages from places like McDonald's and use them for dipping at home. Also, when we go drive-through, I keep any extra napkins in the car so that the next time we go and they don't give us enough, we have an extra supply!

 

Here's a new one:

A lipliner cap. No, really!

My toilet has been making a running sound and nobody has had time to look at it. It runs all day and night and moving the handle doesn't make it stop. I took the lid off and the white tower looking thing is what was making the water sound. When I lifted it up, it stopped! But then started up a few minutes later. So, I found a lipliner cap and stuck it under the arm thingie on the tower and wa-la, SILENCE!

 

Did I mention he does that with the salt and pepper? LOL

 

NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

UGH...ya know I can't even stand to touch those things at restaurants!

All the germs on them!!!! YUK!

 

The packets or the actual salt and pepper shakers? He uses the packets.

When we are in a restaurant I always use a spare napkin to touch the shakers and the sugar shaker. You never know what someone has left behind.

I was at Wal-Mart waiting in line to use the restroom. A lady came out of the stall, went to the sink, looked like she was going to wash her hands, shoved a piece of gum in her mouth and left. YUCK! She touched the gum before washing her hands!

 

When my ds was about 7yrs old we had been Christmas shopping and he took a drink from a water fountain. Well he hadn't been anywhere else and he ended up getting mono and ebsteinbar (sp?). He was on the couch sleeping for a month! If not treated it could end with heart failure. Well he was treated and is fine but that really made me think twice about germs. I am really cheap but now I always buy the water when we are out shopping.

 

Brilliant!! My toilet does the same thing. I will have to try that out.

 

Love all the ideas!! Wish I had some to add, but it seems they've all been mentioned. I'll try to think of something creative :angel:

 

these are great! I'm still reading them all! someone mentioned ways to not have so many containers- sorry if I'm repeating these:
*make homemade cleaners: laundry soap- store in a container from something else, same with homemade cleaners. use vinegar as a fabric softener/ rinse agent. the ingredients go farther, are much cheaper, don't use chemicals, and use less packaging than buying detergent, fabric softeners and all kinds of cleaning products. Plus, it costs the environment to have all of these products manufactured, packaged, shipped and set on a shelf, so I like the idea of a few key ingredients. I did see a post in here with a window cleaner recipe, I don't know if others were mentioned- vinegar & water for floors and dusting, baking soda &/or borax for the bathroom, olive oil and lemon juice for wood polish, baking soda as an oven cleaner and overall grit remover. Borax as a grit remover, whitener (like on grout, sinks, etc.) and clothes brightener/laundry booster. Fels Naptha and washing soda for laundry (Fels Naptha is great on stains-even old stains) and like I mentioned vinegar for a rinse/softener. (and my laundry doesn't smell weird- vinegar removes odors and rinses so well that my laundry smells like nothing) oh- another one (I thought it sounded strange, but figured it was worth a shot!)-you can wash your hair with just a tablespoon of vinegar every few days and now and then use apple cider vinegar as a rinse and you don't have to buy shampoos and conditioners that are full of chemicals, bottled in plastic, etc.... I have been using only baking soda and acv for over three months and my hair has been looking healthier and healthier, so I'm convinced I'll never use anything else. I'm interested in simple ingredients for my face, but I found a good tea tree soap made locally that seems to agree with my skin. I tried a honey mask and rinsed with grapefruit juice and that made my skin feel good. another bonus is I have more room under the kitchen sink, the bathroom, utility closet, etc where I stored all sorts of cleaners.
Basic ingredients (I buy in bulk when I can): Fels Naptha soap (about 1 bar every 6 wks for a family of four) Washing soda (2 boxes a year maybe?) Vinegar (1 gallon will last me several months), Borax (1 big box/year), baking soda (1 big box every few months- I actually buy in bulk about once every 6-8 months) Olive oil- just a 1/4 cup or so to wipe down all the wood in my house (mixed 1/2 and 1/2 with lemon juice)
oh, and you don't have to use bleach to kill germs or anti-bacterial soaps. anti-bacterial soaps pollute the water, and don't really work to kill germs when you wash your hands. You have to soap your hands for 3 minutes for the anti-bacterial soap to kill the germs on your hands when regular soap degreases your hands, removes dirt, oil and germs and you wash it down the drain- removing the germs from your hands. homemade cleansers do the same and vinegar is acidic enough to kill many germs which is why it's so nice to wipe things down with. I still use a product with bleach about once a week in the bathroom- two boys and a husband=gross!
I'm also trying to figure out a better choice for dish soap- Ive hear castille soap works well- any ideas?

 

Yikes! I go through a gallon a month. lol. Then again, I use it in all of my laundry (except diapers), to wash my floors (and I have ALL hardwood except the kitchen and bathroom), clean my windows, wipe surfaces, on my dust rag, etc.

 

that's probably due to how often I clean!
we've been in porch construction/ interior remodeling mode and I just quit doing anything to my floors (hardwood) except sweep! the house is only 1200 square feet and I don't have lots of knick-knacks, etc....and I don't do windows! :lol: -we're replacing them soon, and they're so old you can't even tell when you've cleaned them! so maybe if I was better at that stuff I'd use more!

 

It's fun to see lots of things listed here that I already do...I've been using old washcloths on my Swiffer for ages now. How fun to see that someone else does that, too!

One thing I reuse are Softsoap foam soap dispensers. My kids love the foam soap but the refills cost a fortune. I found a recipe online for a super-cheap refill. Just fill the bottle 1/4 to 1/3 full of an inexpensive bubble bath or shampoo (this is a great way to use up shampoo that didn't work well with your hair). Fill the rest with water, put the lid on and shake well. It's less harsh on their skin than some soaps, and for this winter I've refilled it with a strawberry V05 extra moisturizing shampoo. It smells great and leaves our hands so soft. I had a coupon so I got the shampoo for .50 and have gotten five refills and counting from this one bottle. Can't beat that!

I reuse little plastic spice bottles for small craft objects like beads, etc.

My cats like playing with the little plastic rings that come off the milk jugs.

I reuse foam produce trays for painting pallettes, and margarine tubs, disposable plastic bowls, and plastic restaurant kiddie cups as water containers for painting.