I gave myself a lesson in cleaning a grill the other night. My grill, that is being babysat by my brother since I can’t have it at my apartment, hadn’t been cleaned in at least three years. And let me tell you, it was ugly. There were at least two inches of charred crap that had built up in the bottom of the thing and enough grease coating the walls to lubricate a whole army of Tin Men. Luckily, remembering how to clean a grill is like…well…that whole bike thing. It’s simple. It doesn’t take terribly long either. Which is fantastic since I got to my brother’s house about 30 minutes before sunset. That gave me just barely enough time for grill cleaning. You will see by the procession of pictures in this article that I was rapidly running out of light. Needless to say, I was a little rushed and could have done a better job had I gotten there about a half an hour earlier. But my real reason for being there that day was to teach you the best way to clean a grill. The steps for cleaning a grill that are found in this article are laid out clearly and will tell you exactly what you need to know for grill cleaning.
Dryer vent cleaning isn’t as glamorous as other household chores. Everything behind the dryer, including ducts and the vent itself, is completely out of sight. You won’t get a high five, a pat on the back or butt for your efforts. However, the time you invest just may save your record collection from a fiery death. The same goes for you and your loved ones. Each year, clogged and unclean dryer vents cause thousands of fires in the United States. “Nah,” you think. “It’s too big of a hassle.” Not true. I learned how to clean a dryer vent in minutes, and I’m no Bob Villa. Even if I were Bob Villa’s nemesis, Tim Taylor, and I suffered a massive stroke after a botched episode on roofing, I’d still have the ability to clean a dryer vent. Read my latest article to learn how it’s done.
I can’t wait to have children. That way I can blame them for the messes in the dryer. I won’t have to try to explain why I left crayons in my pocket…or what a 27-year-old man was doing with crayons in the first place. The dryer is sort of my domestic Achilles’ heel. I’ve left gum, candy, pens, markers, and yes, crayons in the dryer. If my wife didn’t know me, she would think I enjoyed terrorizing our innocent, clean dryer. Oh well, live and learn. Or, in my case, learn to live with yourself. I’ve learned how to clean a dryer that’s been spoiled in many ways, and because I own a gas dryer, I’ve learned how to do it with safe, non-flammable supplies. Play it up. Tell your spouse or significant other (or neighbor, dog, etc…) that it can’t be done. Then read my lastest article and bask in applause and domestic accolades, which won’t melt in the dryer.
For those of us with some sinus conditions, a humidifier can be a blessing in the winter months when the air is dry. Unfortunately, an unclean humidifier can be a hazard to your health. The moist area of a humidifier is the perfect place to grow bacteria. And water vapor is the perfect carrier of that bacteria. There are four types of humidifiers: ultrasonic, cool mist (impeller), evaporative, and steam vaporizers. Of the four, the safest are evaporative and steam vaporizers because the evaporated water cannot carry bacteria as well as the tiny water droplets the other two create. But they can still harbor microorganisms in the tank. Use of a bacteriostatic additive and regular cleaning can nearly eliminate any risk of infection. The following is the best way I have found to clean a humidifier. The humidifier in the pictures is an evaporative wicking console humidifier. But you should be able to use the advice here to clean any humidifier. Read How to Clean a Humidifier.
The funny thing about a machine that cleans things is you don’t expect to have to clean them. To me, the dishwasher looked fine, we use it often and everything comes out clean. But when I began to remove racks and spray arms I was surprised to find stains, limescale and even a broken glass. I also discovered that a piece had broken in the main spray arm. So it turned out to be a good thing that I wrote this article. As far as cleaning the actual dishwasher I discovered that a mixture of vinegar soap and elbow grease was all it took. I managed to have the entire dishwasher cleaned in less than 20 minutes. And then as a final nail in the cleaning coffin I ran a quick rinse cycle with baking soda in the soap dispenser. That really put on the shine. Here read the full article How to Clean a Dishwasher and see for yourself.
Cleaning stoves can be one of two things: very difficult, or very easy. If you’ve been using a splatter guard while you cook with oil and butter, you’re probably looking at an easy clean up. If you throw caution to the wind while you cook, like I do, then you’re looking at a more difficult stove cleanup. In this article I approach how to clean a stove using nothing more than baking soda and a little elbow grease. Oh, there’s some vinegar in there too, but it’s mostly there to clean up the baking soda after it’s clumped up with grease and oil. Have you always wanted to know how to clean a stove without using toxic chemicals that may end up in your food? Well, this article will show you how.
