Salt is not just for seasoning

Getting back to the basics and living a simpler life is a learning process.

One lesson I've learned over the last several years is that you do not need to buy all the latest cleaning chemicals. There is a cleaner for EVERYTHING! These cleaners take up lots of room.

I stockpile 3 basics. Baking soda, vinegar and salt. All three are cheap and do a great job. And it is so much easier to store just these three items than all those cleaners.

Here is a long list of uses for salt. It's a good idea to print this out and keep it handy. I have a hard copy in my household management planner that I can refer to at any given time.

Sixty Uses Of Salt


• 1. Soak stained hankies in salt water before washing.
• 2. Sprinkle salt on your shelves to keep ants away.
• 3. Soak fish in salt water before descaling; the scales will come off easier.
• 4. Put a few grains of rice in your salt shaker for easier pouring.
• 5. Add salt to green salads to prevent wilting.
• 6. Test the freshness of eggs in a cup of salt water; fresh eggs sink; bad ones float.
• 7. Add a little salt to your boiling water when cooking eggs; a cracked egg will stay in its shell this way.
• 8. A tiny pinch of salt with egg whites makes them beat up fluffier.
• 9. Soak wrinkled apples in a mildly salted water solution to perk them up.
• 10. Rub salt on your pancake griddle and your flapjacks won't stick.
• 11. Soak toothbrushes in salt water before you first use them; they will last longer.
• 12. Use salt to clean your discolored coffee pot.
• 13. Mix salt with turpentine to whiten you bathtub and toilet bowl.
• 14. Soak your nuts in salt brine overnight and they will crack out of their shells whole. Just tap the end of the shell with a hammer to break it open easily.
• 15. Boil clothespins in salt water before using them and they will last longer.
• 16. Clean brass, copper and pewter with paste made of salt and vinegar, thickened with flour
• 17. Add a little salt to the water your cut flowers will stand in for a longer life.
• 18. Pour a mound of salt on an ink spot on your carpet; let the salt soak up the stain.
• 19. Clean you iron by rubbing some salt on the damp cloth on the ironing surface.
• 20. Adding a little salt to the water when cooking foods in a double boiler will make the food cook faster.
• 21. Use a mixture of salt and lemon juice to clean piano keys.
• 22. To fill plaster holes in your walls, use equal parts of salt and starch, with just enough water to make a stiff putty.
• 23. Rinse a sore eye with a little salt water.
• 24. Mildly salted water makes an effective mouthwash. Use it hot for a sore throat gargle.
• 25. Dry salt sprinkled on your toothbrush makes a good tooth polisher.
• 26. Use salt for killing weeds in your lawn.
• 27. Eliminate excess suds with a sprinkle of salt.
• 28. A dash of salt in warm milk makes a more relaxing beverage.
• 29. Before using new glasses, soak them in warm salty water for awhile.
• 30. A dash of salt enhances the taste of tea.
• 31. Salt improves the taste of cooking apples.
• 32. Soak your clothes line in salt water to prevent your clothes from freezing to the line; likewise, use salt in your final rinse to prevent the clothes from freezing.
• 33. Rub any wicker furniture you may have with salt water to prevent yellowing.
• 34. Freshen sponges by soaking them in salt water.
• 35. Add raw potatoes to stews and soups that are too salty.
• 36. Soak enamel pans in salt water overnight and boil salt water in them next day to remove burned-on stains.
• 37. Clean your greens in salt water for easier removal of dirt.
• 38. Gelatin sets more quickly when a dash of salt is added.
• 39. Fruits put in mildly salted water after peeling will not discolor.
• 40. Fabric colors hold fast in salty water wash.
• 41. Milk stays fresh longer when a little salt is added.
• 42. Use equal parts of salt and soda for brushing your teeth.
• 43. Sprinkle salt in your oven before scrubbing clean.
• 44. Soaked discolored glass in a salt and vinegar solution to remove stains.
• 45. Clean greasy pans with a paper towel and salt.
• 46. Salty water boils faster when cooking eggs.
• 47. Add a pinch of salt to whipping cream to make it whip more quickly.
• 48. Sprinkle salt in milk-scorched pans to remove odor.
• 49. A dash of salt improves the taste of coffee.
• 50. Boil mismatched hose in salty water and they will come out matched.
• 51. Salt and soda will sweeten the odor of your refrigerator.
• 52. Cover wine-stained fabric with salt; rinse in cool water later.
• 53. Remove offensive odors from stove with salt and cinnamon.
• 54. A pinch of salt improves the flavor of cocoa.
• 55. To remove grease stains in clothing, mix one part salt to four parts alcohol.
• 56. Salt and lemon juice removes mildew.
• 57. Sprinkle salt between sidewalk bricks where you don't want grass growing.
• 58. Polish your old kerosene lamp with salt for a brighter look.
• 59. Remove odors from sink drainpipes with a strong, hot solution of salt water.
• 60. If a pie bubbles over in your oven, put a handful of salt on top of the spilled juice. The mess won't smell and will bake into a dry, light crust which will wipe off easily when the oven has cooled.