This post originally appeared on Real Housemoms where I am a contributor. Here are 10 amazing uses for toothpaste around the house you won’t believe! From cleaning to repair one simple tube can do it all.
I love finding uses for things around my home that are not normal like 20 Uses for Aquaphor Ointment, 30+ Uses for WD40 and 15 Baking Soda Uses for Cleaning Your House ! Let’s face it even though things are made for a certain purpose you can many times find more than one use and toothpaste has many. That little tube of white paste can really do more than just clean and deodorize your mouth. Not all toothpaste will work for these tips. You will want to get simple old fashioned white toothpaste, the slightly gritty kind. Gel paste will not work and whitening formulas may contain bleach so you will only want to use those on certain items which will be noted in the descriptions below.
10 household uses for toothpaste
Remove watermarks from furniture – You may have coasters but people forget to use them and you’ll find a little white ring left by sweating beverages. Using a soft cloth gently rub toothpaste on the wood then wipe it off with a damp cloth and let it dry before applying furniture polish.
Remove fruit juice stains – Your kids might love a glass of fruit punch or Kool-Aid but you may often find rings of it on your counter top. We all know those are a pain to remove. Just a dab of toothpaste on a damp paper towel cleans up those stubborn stains. It will also work on your skin.
Remove crayon from walls – Almost every mom had come into a room only to discover your little artist creating a masterpiece on their wall. Grab the toothpaste and an old toothbrush or non-scratch sponge. Put some toothpaste on your tool of choice and lightly scrub. The crayon will disappear and just wipe down the wall with water to remove any toothpaste residue.
These uses for toothpaste will help you clean around the house
Clean chrome silver and brass – Instead of bathroom or glass cleaner put toothpaste on an old toothbrush or soft rag, scrub and rinse. It will make your chrome fixtures shine and old toothbrushes are great for getting in the cracks and crevices of your faucets.
For silver and brass use a soft toothbrush to apply a small amount of toothpaste and scrub lightly. If any toothpaste remains in small decorative designs on your silver clean your toothbrush thoroughly and brush the item under cool water to get rid of any white paste. Rinse thoroughly with cool water and polish with a dry, soft cloth.
Clean your refrigerator seal
Toothbrushes are the perfect size for cleaning refrigerator seals and toothpaste is perfect for whitening those seals. In other words, altogether a perfect combo.
Remove scuff marks from shoes and clean your sneakers – A small amount of toothpaste will keep your leather shoes looking great! Squirt a small amount on a soft cloth and rub to remove any scuff marks. Just in case you are wondering this will also work on vinyl floors!
For the white rubber part of your favorite pair of sneakers take an old brush and toothpaste and scrub clean. This is one time you can use whitening paste for a brighter clean.
Clean your clothes iron and hair appliances:
If your clothes iron gets that gunky residue after a while scrub the plate on the bottom with toothpaste and an old rag then rinse. This will also work on your curling or flat irons to remove the brown coating you get from hair products after prolonged use. The silica in toothpaste gently grinds away this layer of residue. It goes without saying, of course, all of these should be cool and unplugged before you clean them.
Polish diamond jewelry – A little toothpaste on a soft toothbrush will make your diamond rings, earrings or necklaces sparkle like magic. Just scrub them and rinse under water then dry by setting them aside or wiping with a soft cloth.
Get your DVDs and Video Game CDs working again – This has been a life saver in my home. I can never get my kids to put these little disks in the cases or the CD Binder I bought and inevitable they get scratches on them which often leads to complaining about the game not working. To remove shallow scratches and smudges apply a thin coating of toothpaste to the disc and rub GENTLY in a circular direction around the disk, do not move back and forth across the disk or you may cause more scratching. Rinse thoroughly with cool water and buff with a soft, cotton cloth. The mild abrasive evens out the playing surface and you will be a hero.
Cover nail holes – This is an old trick my dad taught me. Toothpaste is also called poor man’s caulk for small unsightly nail holes. Just squeeze a small amount on your finger and rub over the hole. Let it dry a bit and just touch up your paint.
If you liked these uses for toothpaste more great tips visit my home tip section.
