Cheating at housework

[Opiñanita]

I am dreading the pile of clean laundry downstairs that needs to be folded. Time to pull my favorite cheat, I'm just gonna throw it back in the dryer with the other waiting clothes. dh will come home to a clean house in the morning.

How about the rest of you? Do you sweep the dirt under the rug?

Cora,
I don't know if this is cheating as much as it is getting back at your dh for all the times that you've left the house to run some errands and come back to find loads of clean laundry left on the couch by him for you to fold.

 

[In the Kitchen]

Thank You

We don't use dryer sheets in our house, but for those of you who do, please follow a simple safety step.

The dryer sheets are impregnated with the softner/non-cling components. Regular use of these products can hamper the functioning of your dryer and make the motor work harder. This is caused by the lint trap being clogged with the softener/non-cling residue. The lint isn't filtered properly and this could lead to overheating and, in some cases, a dryer fire.

To test your lint filter, remove it, clean all the visible lint from it and then run it under your kitchen faucet with running water. If the lint filter allows the water to run through it like a colander, your filter is just fine. If the water runs off the filter and doesn't pass through, your filter is blocked.

Just give it a good soap-and-water wash and run water over it again. This time it should run through just fine. Try to do this about once a month if you use your dryer frequently. Your dryer will last longer and you could avoid a dangerous dryer fire.

Even though we don't use dryer sheets here, I still test my filter occasionally.

What good advice! Can never be too cautious. Your response saved me. I went shopping yesterday and picked up some Bounce Dryer Sheets. Instead of throwing them in the dryer, I think I will use t hem in the drawers where I place the clothes. I am now fearful about starting to use them. I am trying to avoid more bills before Christmas. Seems once they start coming trying to use strategy to avoid t hem is not easy.

Thanks again

 

[lulu]

Katie E, you are absolutely right, I have heard that, and indeed I do wash the filter every now and then, the water has always run through mine, perhaps it is because the dryer really is a fall back for us....in winter I use it maybe a couple of times a month when I have been disorganised and things are taking forever to dry, lol

bounce in my shoes, thats a great idea! And yes, they are in my drawers too! I am such a fan of them, I can't think how I got so hooked! Especially wierd when you look at how I used them before we even had the dryer, lol

 

[Half Baked]

I've read this before and my filter doesn't come out. When you open my dryer door the lint catcher is is right under the drum. I'll have to ask Mr HB if it is sealed in or am I not strong enough to pull it out.

The Cable guy came today and I certainly cheated with cleaning.

 

[cheers2wine]

Socks

My worse chore that I keep putting off is matching up the socks. I throw them into a large basket to do "later". When it's overflowing, we have to have sock folding party.

cheers2wine

 

[lulu]

I just realised, that of course right now, while I am in UK I am the biggest cheat of all, I am staying with my mother who has a fantastic housekeeper who comes in! LOL, what a cop out, huh!? I just take care of my own rooms in the house right now!

 

[Half Baked]

Oh Lulu, I am so jealous. I had a housekeeper from the time I was a baby until 3 yrs ago when my company went under. I think I miss her more than anything.

 

[Constance]

I used under my bed for about 4 years untill my parents found out and forced me to do an empty and complete clean of my entire room. It took me 4 hours.

All kids do that, Gobo. Periodically I'd get my nerve up and look under my kids' beds...usually when they ran out of socks. You would not believe (or maybe you would) some of the things I found under there...lots of dirty clothes, of course, homework that never got finished, test papers with scores they didn't want me to see, lost school books, candy wrappers, glasses, dirty dishes, and all kinds of food scraps. Once I found a cereal bowl that still had very old milk and Fruit Loops in it.
It's no wonder we had mice.

 

[Katie H]

My worse chore that I keep putting off is matching up the socks. I throw them into a large basket to do "later". When it's overflowing, we have to have sock folding party.

cheers2wine

We solved this problem a long time ago in our house. But, bear in mind, there are only the two of us here. At any rate, Buck only buys one color of socks of the same brand, so matching is a breeze.

 

[Alix]

My worse chore that I keep putting off is matching up the socks. I throw them into a large basket to do "later". When it's overflowing, we have to have sock folding party.

cheers2wine

Oh boy. That is me to a tee! Usually when the sock bin gets really full though I will make one of the kids match and sort them. What a mean mommy I am! LOL.

 

[corazon]

We solved this problem a long time ago in our house. But, bear in mind, there are only the two of us here. At any rate, Buck only buys one color of socks of the same brand, so matching is a breeze.

We do this too. Before that, if there were any unmatched socks, I just threw them back in the dirty laundry. I figure the socks would find eachother eventually. Sock destiny.

 

[Barb L.]

I just got this new product called "Wrinkle Free" - It is a spray you mist on wrinkled clothes - you put on hanger and smooth with your hands - wrinkles gone - Try it you will be amazed - I have also known to put clothes back in the washer on rinse cycle and retoss in dryer to get the wrinkles out - lol

I have done this too! Hate wrinkles!

 

[Katie H]

To continue with the softener sheet idea, I keep one in each pocket of my winter coat. I wipe it on my car door handle before trying to insert the key in the wintertime. No more zapping from the static electricity.

When it comes to cheating at housework, several houses ago I had a kitchen that had open spaces above the cabinets. Nice to display decorative and seldom used items, but a pain to keep clean, especially from cooking film.

I solved the problem by measuring the width and depth of the tops of the cabinets. I cut newspaper to those dimensions and put 12 sheets of newspaper on top of the cabinets. Once a month I removed a sheet. No more scrubbing the tops of my cabinets.

 

[3babies]

What an excellent idea for the tops of cabinets!!

 

[In the Kitchen]

Katie E

That is so good! Should get some kind of special award for that. My mother lived in an old farmhouse w/high ceilings and cabinets were the same. Had lot of room but when she wanted to clean those cabinets she would call me and felt bad that she couldn't do herself. Had to climb ladder and would not get done as often as it should. She would have appreciated your idea. Always grateful to someone who helped her. This is good hint even if you don't have high ceilings. Just trying to clean the grease from the tops of things bothers me. Really have to scrub to get off. I have tried Greased Lightning on the wall behind my stove and that is only and i do mean ONLY thing gets it off. I have tried pure ammonia and also clorox and nothing gets it off but this stuff. I never ever heard of this before. Even the egg came off and I don't know how that even got on the wall! it was dried too!!

 

[Barb L.]

Have any of you tried the cleaner called "Awesome" we get it at the dollar store. It quite is awesome - we use if for everything, counter tops, walls, floors, my son keeps a bottle in his truck, also on our fifth wheel, its a concentrate, (it says) but we use it full strength - not on glass though ! Comes in a plastic spray bottle !

 

[mudbug]

All kids do that, Gobo. Periodically I'd get my nerve up and look under my kids' beds...usually when they ran out of socks. You would not believe (or maybe you would) some of the things I found under there...lots of dirty clothes, of course, homework that never got finished, test papers with scores they didn't want me to see, lost school books, candy wrappers, glasses, dirty dishes, and all kinds of food scraps. Once I found a cereal bowl that still had very old milk and Fruit Loops in it.
It's no wonder we had mice.

LOL, Connie and gobo. Gobo, you sound like my kid (15). Recently I removed 27 towels from her room. I didn't even know we had that many towels!

She also swears that she has at least 3 weeks' worth of underwear (I didn't buy that much), so she doesn't have to do her laundry that often.

Right.

I guess I was a slob at that age - and beyond - too. But not any more. I can live with a fair amount of dirt, but clutter sends me up the wall. And I still have that as well. HH's specialty is little wadded up pieces of paper, which turn out to be credit card slips usually, or phone numbers that he's forgotten who they belong to.

 

[NancyG]

In case anyone's looking for more ideas with dryer sheets other than the dryer! (from Bellaonline)

BOUNCE DRYER SHEETS
And all this time you've just been putting Bounce in the dryer!
It will chase ants away when you lay a sheet near them. It also repels mice.

Spread them around foundation areas, or in trailers or cars that are sitting. It also keeps mice from entering your vehicle.

It takes the odor out of books and photo albums that don't get opened too often.

Repels mosquitoes. Tie a sheet of Bounce through a belt loop when outdoors during mosquito season.

Eliminates static electricity from your television (or computer) screen.

Since Bounce is designed to help eliminate static cling, wipe your television screen with a used sheet of Bounce to keep dust from resettling.

Dissolve soap scum from shower doors. Clean with a sheet of Bounce.

Freshen the air in your home. Place an individual sheet of Bounce in a drawer or hang in the closet.

Put Bounce sheet in vacuum cleaner.

Prevent thread from tangling. Run a threaded needle through sheet of Bounce before beginning to sew.

Prevent musty suitcases. Place an individual sheet of Bounce inside empty luggage before storing.

Freshen the air in your car. Place a sheet of Bounce under the front seat.

Clean baked-on foods from a cooking pan. Put a sheet in a pan, fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. The anti-static agent apparently weakens the bond between the food.

Eliminate odors in wastebaskets. Place a sheet of Bounce at the bottom of the wastebasket.

Collect cat hair. Rubbing the area with a sheet of Bounce will magnetically attract all the loose hairs.

Eliminate static electricity from Venetian blinds. Wipe the blinds with a sheet of Bounce to prevent dust from resettling.

Wipe up sawdust from drilling or sand papering. A used sheet of Bounce will collect sawdust like a tack cloth.

Eliminate odors in dirty laundry. Place an individual sheet of Bounce at the bottom of a laundry bag or hamper.

Deodorize shoes or sneakers. Place a sheet of Bounce in your shoes or sneakers overnight.

Golfers put a Bounce sheet in their back pocket to keep the bees away.

Put a Bounce sheet in your sleeping bag and tent before folding and storing them. Keeps them smelling fresh

 

[Barb L.]

OMG-Thank you so very much for all these tips !

 

[In the Kitchen]

Nancy G

You sold me! Never bought Bounce before yesterday. Now I feel where have I been? I am going to copy your comments and keep near my recent purchase of Bounce. Like I said, I don't know where I have been! Worth the price of the box. I won't forget this. Would have saved me a bundle w/mice pellets to keep them away. All I had to do was check w/you. Even mosquitoes and I hate them. I put some in my drawers and even though I haven't cleaned in the room yet it smells good. Thanks and keep us post ed w/all your information.