How to Clean Things: Blog http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:24:37 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.3 en How to Clean Coins http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-coins http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-coins#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:24:02 +0000 eric http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-coins

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know, never clean coins. Numismatic value blah, blah, blah. You know what? I don’t care. Sometimes you have a coin, it’s dirty as hell, and you want to clean it. Nothing wrong with that. People are smart enough to realize or figure out on their own if coin cleaning is a good idea. It could be a foreign coin you picked up on vacation and you just want it to look nice. It could be something you found on a good day. Maybe it’s something as simple as a coin from the same year you or your kid were born. Maybe you want to clean old coins for a school project. Whatever. All you want to know is the best way to go about cleaning coins. Well you’re in luck! I’ve been collecting coins for years and even though I know most of them aren’t worth crap, I still like them. Some of them, I like even better after I’ve done a little coin cleaning. So, if you simply want to know how to clean coins, regardless of their value, check out this article.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-coins/feed How to Clean Oil http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-oil http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-oil#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2009 19:50:06 +0000 eric http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-oil

I had to learn, by threat of death, how to remove oil at a fairly young age. My first car was an ‘81 Olds Toronado with a sphincter control problem. As much as I loved that car, it was perhaps the most environmentally unfriendly car in America at the time. I think it would have passed Mexican emission standards, but not by much. And then it would have thanked them by leaving behind a nice oil slick. While it is more common to have to clean up oil under older cars, new cars are often guilty of dripping oil too. It’s just one of those things. And these days, with the economy doing what it’s doing, many people are simply choosing to live with cleaning oil instead of spending all the cash to have someone find and fix the leak. That’s where I come in. If you need to know how to clean oil spills or how to clean up oil stains that have been there awhile, check out this article.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-oil/feed How to Clean a Glass Pipe http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-glass-pipe http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-glass-pipe#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:10:22 +0000 abjerk http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-glass-pipe Passing around a dirty glass pipe is kind of like setting the table with soiled dishes. Sure, you may not mind eating your dinner with a fork that is caked with month-old Spagettios, but you may lose friends if you expect them to do the same. People let their glass pipes fall into a morbidly disgusting condition because resin is just plain hard to deal with, and most commercial cleaning solutions are either very expensive or…you’re just too lazy to go get it. Fear not, you’ve come to the right “tobacco” enthusiast. In my latest article, I demonstrate how to clean a glass pipe using everyday household items that are both safe and inexpensive. If you’ve just used your filthy pipe and reading proves a daunting task, no worries - my demonstration comes complete with pictures and bolded commands. In no more than twenty minutes’ time, you’ll be smoking from a clean glass pipe.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-glass-pipe/feed How to Clean Stains http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-stains http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-stains#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:49:53 +0000 abjerk http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-stains Because I’m impossibly clumsy, and I understand that one can’t be taken seriously with a large splotch of coffee on one’s shirt, I have learned to clean stains, in all their various forms, on many different fabrics. When removing stains, there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, with the exception of suede, getting to your stain quickly is crucial. I act swiftly by doing what the professionals do; I separate stains into categories depending on how they can be treated. After spilling ice cream on my new dress shirt, I leap into stain- cleaning action. I also keep a stain removal guide pinned up in my laundry room. If you have children, or you yourself are just plain awkward, you’ll benefit from reading my latest article on how to clean stains.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-stains/feed How to Clean Dust http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-dust http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-dust#comments Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:04:46 +0000 eric http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-dust It would be a blatant lie if I were to say that cleaning dust was one of my favorite past times. I know some people love dusting. My grandma is one of them. She’s crazy. I love her, but…damn. I just don’t understand where the enjoyment comes from. Maybe it’s just the feeling of having accomplished something. I don’t know. All I know is that I’m pretty damn lucky. My lady, Amber, does almost all of the dusting. I know it sounds misogynistic, but please believe me, I’ve tried helping. She doesn’t even really enjoy doing it, she just knows how she wants it done and wants it done that way. I’m untrusted. Oh well. Less dust makes everyone happy. In cleaning dust, you also get rid of dust mites, and…yuck. Dust mites are beyond ishy. If you’re looking to learn how to clean dust, check out my latest article. In it you will find some good ideas like HEPA filters and different dust cleaning methods.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-dust/feed How to Clean Vinyl Records http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-vinyl-records http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-vinyl-records#comments Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:39:03 +0000 Nils Hoyum http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-vinyl-records When I was born, vinyl albums were still popular but, they were beginning to phase out with the advent of the 8-track. Which was quickly followed by the cassette tape. I always felt like I missed out on something really special. Growing up in relative isolation I listened to my parents vinyl collection frequently. So the first Beatles, Dylan and Young albums I listened to were on vinyl. Which for someone who grew up predominately in the 90’s, is pretty damn good. Well anyway, in college I started to collect my own vinyls and so had a nice vintage collection. To spin my albums I was using whatever garage sale player I could find. I had been through a couple of them by the time I purchased my first Stanton direct drive turntable. I never looked back. SO anyway you should start collecting vinyl and when you need to clean them. Read my article How to Clean Vinyl Records. Happy hunting.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-vinyl-records/feed How to Clean a Camera http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-camera http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-camera#comments Mon, 18 May 2009 18:59:58 +0000 Nils Hoyum http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-camera Dust is the main cause of most camera dirt-related issues. There are a few things that you can do at home to get rid of the dust inside your camera. The following steps are simple and safe for your camera. If they are not enough to get rid of the dust, you should have it professionally cleaned. If you use a digital camera, never ever try to directly clean your sensor with anything other than a manual squeeze bulb. Anything else will scratch or possibly even break it. The camera I use in this example is a Canon 5D, a digital SLR. But you should be able to use this advice to clean any type of camera. read the full article How to Clean a Camera.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-camera/feed How to Clean a Tub http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-tub http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-tub#comments Mon, 18 May 2009 18:57:26 +0000 Nils Hoyum http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-tub When I was first transforming into a clean person, I assigned value to the cleanliness of each part of my home based upon the frequency it would be viewed by others. The living room and the kitchen were most important. Next was the toilet, then came my bedroom, and lastly the shower/bathtub. I rarely cleaned the bathtub because unless my guests were staying over, they would almost never see it. It is kind of embarrassing, but I still clean according to this philosophy. And if someone is coming to stay, I usually do a once-over on the whole apartment. Unfortunately, letting the tub go a few months before cleaning it can lead to some pretty intense filth. But I have found an easy, cheap, and earth-friendly way to clean the tub. I have described my technique in my article How to Clean a Tub. And for those of you who are disputing my statement of cleaning not being any fun, you are deranged. If cleaning is so fun, then come clean my house. Oh you don’t want to? Ha. I say ha, sir.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-a-tub/feed How to Clean Wax http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-wax http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-wax#comments Mon, 18 May 2009 18:51:12 +0000 Nils Hoyum http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-wax The first wax humanity became aware of was probably earwax. Ears never became a popular source for wax. We went with the beehive instead. Beeswax proved to be the wiser choice of the two. Nowadays we get wax from other animals, like sheep, sperm whales, and insects. We also can get wax from plants, like carnauba, jojoba, bayberry, rice bran, and soy. There are mineral waxes, synthetic waxes, and petroleum waxes. The three most popular waxes are beeswax, carnauba (plant), and paraffin (petroleum). So chances are if you are removing wax from something, it’s probably one of these three types. Luckily, since all waxes have similar properties, the advice for getting rid of wax in my article “How to Clean Wax” will work with any type of wax.

]]> http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-wax/feed How to Clean an Xbox 360 http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-an-xbox-360 http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-an-xbox-360#comments Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:25:19 +0000 Nils Hoyum http://www.howtocleanthings.com/blog/how-to-clean-an-xbox-360 I grew up in a relatively video game-less universe. The only game we had was Pong which my brother and I played until it broke after only a few months of use. After that I had the occasional opportunity to play the Nintendo at a friends house. But I sucked so I was not a big fan of it. Eventually we got a computer that could handle a few games. I remember playing Duke Nukem, Doom, and Tie Fighter a lot. But it wasn’t until I got to college that I bought my first console. It was a PS2 and I played it quite a bit at first, GTA 3, Rogue Agent and Vice City. But eventually I got bored with it too. It wasn’t until last year that I really got into gaming. My roommate is a born-gamer, he is way better at it than I ever hope to be. Mostly because he has been gaming since the womb, he came out of it with a silver Nintendo controller in his right hand. He bought an Xbox 360 and we started playing, a lot. We would play for entire days. It was awesome. We had tons of games to play, Halo 3, Fable 2, Dynasty Warriors 6 and The Force Unleashed. I should mention that I played Dynasty Warriors 6 just this morning. Neither one of us can get enough of that game. That and GTA 4. Anyway with all this use and with the added bonus of living in a dusty apartment, I thought that our Xbox would be really dirty. But when I cleaned it for the article How to Clean an Xbox 360 I discovered that it was hardly dirty at all. I think it helps that I dust and vacuum on a regular basis. Anyway if you need to clean your Xbox, PS3, Gamecube or Wii, you should check out my article How to Clean an Xbox 360.

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