Vinegar: The Magic Cleaning Product

If you have any sense of smell, you know the pungent scent of vinegar. Think of it as the smell of clean.  This mild, organic acidic can clean and sanitize a coffeepot, keep drains running clear and smelling fresh, and among other uses too numerous to mention, it can even repel insects. And if that’s not enough, it’s safe and inexpensive to use.

But first, a few cleaning tips:

- Removing lipstick from carpet can be tedious. Use a mild solution of liquid dish soap and warm water. Work in gently with a soft cloth and flush with club soda or water. A carpet spotter may also work on the stain.

- To clean solid brass, mix lemon juice and salt together, dip a cloth into the mixture and clean the brass. Rinse and dry. An application of car wax on the clean brass will help repel future tarnish.

- Keep white wine handy to neutralize the color in red wine if a tile grout stain occurs. Clean the stain with a paste of lemon juice and cream of tartar, or use hydrogen peroxide. The process may have to be repeated to remove the stain completely.

Vinegar and Its Applications:

- Cleaning eyeglasses: Rub with vinegar and dry with a soft cloth. Don’t worry about any odor from vinegar remaining on the glasses -- it will quickly dissipate.

- Repelling Bugs: Dab vinegar on skin when working outdoors; bugs will hate the taste of the skin and leave.

- Getting rid of musty odor in trunks, drawers and closets: Place a slice of white bread (it must be white bread) in a bowl and cover with vinegar. Leave the bowl in the musty area for 24 hours. The yeast action in the bread combines with the acid values of the vinegar to absorb the odor. Close doors and drawers for the best result.

- Eliminating fish frying odors: Place a shallow dish of vinegar by the pan while frying fish.

- Eliminating onion odors: Spray vinegar on hands, knife and cutting board while chopping onions.

Resource:  DIY Network

10 Must-Know Room Measurements

Get your measurements right: here's a handy guide to home measurements that's worth printing and saving.

1. Dining Room Table
A 36-inch-wide rectangular table is perfect for conversation. A round table with a diameter of 48 inches seats six; a 60-inch round will handle eight standard dining chairs or 10 ballroom chairs.

2. Light Fixtures
How big should an overhead light fixture be? Just add the length and width of the room in feet, and whatever number you come up with is, in inches, your guide for the fixture's diameter. So a 15-by-20-foot room would need a 35-inch-wide chandelier.

3. Paint Coverage
One gallon of paint will cover about 400 square feet of wall.

4. Curtain Height
Mount curtains as high as possible to give the room more height, and let them break 1½ inches on the floor.

5. Kitchen Island
A kitchen island should be about 38 inches high-a little taller than the countertops-to be comfortable for prep.

6. Window Treatment Width
Curtains should be 2½ to 3 times the width of the window. So if you're doing two panels, each should be 1¼ to 1½ times the window width. Buy a rod that's 20 inches wider than your window so it extends 10 inches on either side. Your window will seem much wider than it really is.

7. Dining-Room Chandelier
The bottom of a dining-room chandelier should hang 36 inches above the table.

8. Light Switches
Install light switches 36 inches above the floor and 1½ to 2 inches to the side of the door trim.

9. Fabric for a Sofa
For a standard 84-inch sofa with exposed legs and a tight back, you'll need 14 yards of plain 54-inch-wide fabric. Add two yards for a skirt.

10. The Golden Ratio
From classical times to today, the golden ratio has always been the perfect proportion: 1 to 1.62.

Resource:  By House Beautiful Magazine | Decorating Guide – Fri, May 18, 2012 12:42 PM EDT















Make Your Air Conditioning Dollars Go Farther

Make your air conditioning dollars
go farther this summer.

When temperatures rise outside, it's natural to seek cool shelter indoors. For many people, that means flipping on the air conditioning unit and taking it easy. Keeping the air cool is more than a luxury for some families; elderly parents and young children cannot tolerate excessively high temperatures. However, the need for air conditioning puts many families at financial risk. A pricey combination of rising fuel costs and high electrical demand make summertime electric bills hard to manage.

According to Energy Star, the American family pays nearly $1,000 a year on heating and cooling their homes; that figure is above other electrical costs! You don't have to risk exposing your loved ones to brutal heat to save money. Take advantage of some money-saving tips and beat the summer heat.

-- Help circulate cool air through the home by placing an oscillating fan in family rooms, like a living room or dining room.

-- Keep the temperature at constant temperature and avoid dropping the thermostat too low. Lowering the temperature costs you money and won't cool the home any faster.

-- Raise the thermostat 2 to 3 degrees before you leave for work if no one will be home. The energy experts at APS say that moving the temperature up 5 degrees for eight hours a day can save you $3 to $5 a month.

-- Install a whole house fan system. Whole house fans pull the hot attic air out of the home and keeps the air circulating, giving your home a cooling effect. This move could chill your home by a few degrees.

-- Replace old air conditioning units. If your window unit is a decade old, it needs to be replaced with an energy efficient unit. If your home has central AC, have the thermostat calibrated and the system charged yearly. APS says homeowners should replace their older SEER units (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) to save energy bucks. Replacing a unit with a SEER rating of 10 with one that has an 18 SEER rating you could save up to 50% on your AC costs annually.

-- Change the air conditioning filters regularly; once a month is suitable. Good air flow across the filter will cut down on cooling costs and stop allergens from floating around your home. FPL Energy Services say that air filters cost between $10 and $25 a piece, but replacing them can save you 5 to 15 percent on your monthly bill.

-- Hang insulated curtains in your windows. Sheer curtains look nice, but they don't provide any barrier between you and the outdoor heat. Keep windows covered during hot afternoons.

Also, do a walk through of your home while the air is on. Check for leaks around windows and doors.

Sometimes your energy dollars simply float out the window!

Resource:  By Monica Bullock | Yahoo! Contributor Network – Mon, Jul 2, 2012 10:32 AM EDT