Random Frugal Thoughts (Help Needed)

October 25, 2007 · Filed Under · 16 Comments 

earlyfall_2007-109.jpgOver the past 24 hours I have done some staring off into space in search of answers. Frugal answers of course. Here is what I need help with, as the staring off into space has only given me drool spots on my shirt collar.

  • Kill the ants NOW. How can I kill the ants that are coming into our kitchen on a nightly basis. I can’t seem to find where they are coming from. And when I do (and I will dammit), what can I use that won’t cost a lot and is kid friendly (is there such a thing, perhaps a home remedy?)
  • Messy Firewood. My wife gives me the evil eye when I bring in firewood and some sawdust, tiny piece of bark, or some dead insect part falls on her clean tile floor. I try to shake anything off the wood before I bring it in, but without fail, something almost always falls off. Anything I can do to avoid this? Anybody use some type of wood carrier?
  • My rain gutter keeps clogging. Has anybody had any success with those rain gutter, wire mesh, guard thingee, that keeps leaves from clogging your gutters and downspouts? If so, can you make them yourself?
  • How to get stains out? Lastly, anybody have a good tip on getting stains out? My wife is always asking her friends what they use as she is not happy with what she does. She has not gotten any good answers. I believe she currently uses Spray n Wash to fight the battle. Also, do you know if it will take drool stains out of shirt collars?

All suggestions welcomed!!

Please Pass This Post Along and Comment Below!
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Furl
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati
  • YahooMyWeb

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Comments

16 Responses to “Random Frugal Thoughts (Help Needed)”

  1. Bellen on November 5th, 2007 3:13 pm

    Ants- wipe trails with vinegar; sprinkle their favorite spots with cinnamon; check outside to see where they are coming from, kill there, caulk at entrypoints

    Firewood – use an old sheet, drop cloth, etc to make a sling – sort of a large, rectangular hobo bag

    Rain gutters – figure out how to stop the debris from getting in the gutters (maybe overhanging branches that could be trimmed?). Try a ball of chichen wire to catch the debris at the downspout

    Stains – Zout, recommended by MaryEllen who writes hint books. I’ve tried all kinds of stuff and this is the only one I’ve found that will even remove tomato based stains.

    For persistent stains: 1 cup powdered dishwasher soap in 1 gallon very hot water, use a bucket, stir well to dissolve, soak at least 4 hours, overnight is best. Dump out excess, wash as usual. Will get out baby food & other baby related stains. Comes from Heloise about 35 years ago when I had my first baby.

  2. Jennifer on November 5th, 2007 3:14 pm

    For Ants-sprinkle cinnamon where they come in as a deterrent. Also sprinkle grits (as in breakfast grits) which they will take back to their queen, she will eat them & die.

    For stains I have tried zout, oxy, fels-naptha, homemade stain remover, etc. And I don’t like any of them as well as my current systems. We haven’t had an article ruined by a stain in a very long time…here’s what I do:

    Required products-Biz, Shout, & Enzyme Cleaner (found in the pet department at walmart, nice because its safe for kids & pets)

    For all Bodily Fluid based stains I use the enzyme cleaner. This would be blood, urine, feces, vomit, etc from either person or animal. I saturate with enzyme cleaner & wash in cold water, check the garment to see if it is all the way out before drying. Blood stains that aren’t removed in one washing with enzyme cleaner can be removed with hydrogen peroxide as long as they haven’t been set with heat. Enzyme cleaner also sometimes works for grass stains and tomato stains and is a good back up stain remover when you are out of Shout.

    All other stains= Shout + Biz.

    The nice thing about Shout is you can leave it on the clothes after you spray it, even if you don’t wash for a week, so I spray the stain as immediately as possible and then toss it in the hamper until wash day. Add 1/4 of a scoop of Biz to the wash water (as warm as the fabric & stain will tolerate. (IE-no hot water for blood, etc.)

    Check the garment after it comes out of the wash, but *before* drying. *IF* that doesn’t get the stain out I make a paste of Biz powder & Shout & work it in with an old toothbrush. Rewash in cold water & evaluate again before drying. (I usually have a stain stubborn enough to do this step once every 2 months or so.)

    If it is still hanging on (this would be like a once in a year to 2 year occurrance that the stain is still not out) I get a big bucket of warm water, put in Biz and soak it for a few days, replacing warm water & Biz a few times a day. I don’t do just one article to the bucket, I also throw in anything that needs brightened (socks, undies, etc) , or old hand me downs that are ready to be used again that have had stains magically appear while they are in storage, the Biz soak for a day or two makes them look like new. No need to waste all that water & Biz on just one item!

  3. Jennifer on November 5th, 2007 3:14 pm

    PS-Try the enzyme cleaner also for drool stains, perspiration stains etc. If they have been set-in with heat, try the Biz soak!

  4. Jennifer on November 5th, 2007 3:15 pm

    Sorry, I can’t stop thinking of more stuff…enzyme cleaner also helps take out new milk-based stains like formula spills, spit-up, etc. The Biz soak will remove old stains like the old drool stains you find on the baby’s shirt after its been in storage for 3 years.

  5. Andrew on November 5th, 2007 3:15 pm

    Wish I could help ya, Kyle. For ants we generally just call our exterminator who uses a fairly safe (in terms of the kids) spray. He does a heavier spray outside the perimeter of the house, which is much easier to keep the kids away from and helps keep more ants from coming in.

    And wow, my wife’s been complaining about stains for a while now. We’ve tried a few different detergents, I’ve changed deodorants, etc. She uses Spray N Wash on the tough stains which seems to work somewhat. But washing our clothes separately from the messy kids clothes definitely helps make a difference.

    Oh, and while I’m here, I just tagged you to go back to school: http://www.ultimatecoupons.com/blog/?p=314

  6. Kyle on November 5th, 2007 3:16 pm

    Wow, great tips, all of you, thanks!

    @ Bellen, I am going to try the vinegar and cinnamon (Jennifer suggested that too) on the ants. Will let you know how it goes. Also, I like the wood carrying idea, I will see if I can rig something.

    @ Jenny, thanks for M30 suggestion, with a name like that is must be powerful! Can’t beat the price on it, I will tell my wife to keep an eye out for it.

    @ Jennifer, great stain tips! Especially since with kids many of our stains are the nasty bodily fluid ones! As for the grits, do you use the box of grits precooked or do you cook them up and then serve to the ants? And I gotta ask, how and why does it kill the queen? Does the queen have Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) or something?

    @ Andrew, good tip on washing clothes seperately, I think my wife does that?!? And thanks for the tag, I also enjoys those and this one looks like fun. From the looks of this post one of the classes should be Home Ec!

  7. Jennifer on November 5th, 2007 3:16 pm

    Re: the grits-just sprinkle the uncooked grits on the anthill if you know where it is, or along ant trails. They take it home to the queen who eats them, they expand with moisture and then she explodes…not very nice, but effective.

  8. paidtwice on November 5th, 2007 3:17 pm

    With that drool, you are just outta luck.

  9. Julia on November 5th, 2007 3:17 pm

    Well, the fact of the matter is this….woodstoves are messy, but necessary. We heat almost entirely with wood (as much as I can) and the mess it makes I tolerate when my bill arrives and I see that using it has made a big difference in the price. For stains…I swear by Dawn dish soap. Also, you can use a bar of Felsnaptha and it works pretty good too.

  10. Kyle on November 5th, 2007 3:18 pm

    Julia, agree 100%. I have a fire going almost every morning all winter long, then I get it going again in the evenings. We rarely turn the heater on. I think I found a nylon bag in the garage with handles that I can use to carry in the firewood. I will give it a shot. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment.

    and Paid Twice, you may be right!!!

  11. Rachel on November 5th, 2007 3:18 pm

    For the ants — second the cinnamon or cayenne pepper.

    Messy firewood — we haven’t found a good solution yet. We have a carrier and we still drop stuff on the floor.

    Rain gutters — we got some of that plastic (not metal) mesh and it works great. Did not DIY, however, but got it on a really good deal. If you have lots of trees with little tiny leaves, I would wonder if it would be as effective, however. I’d give the name of the tree I’m thinking of, but I’m arboreally challenged. We have one with teeny leaves (think .25 inches wide and .75 inches long) and I think those might get caught up in the guard and still clog a bit — luckily it’s far from the house.

    Stains — if it’s a grease/oil stain, try shampoo or dishwashing detergent (Dawn or the like). Both have grease cutters. Fels Naptha is a good one for other types of stains.

  12. Lynnae @ Being Frugal on November 5th, 2007 3:19 pm

    For ants we use Terro in places where the kids can’t get it (shoved way back on the side of the refrigerator, etc). Nothing beats Terro for killing ants.

    You can use Cascade and Clorox 2 as a last ditch stain remover. Put 1/2 cup Cascade powder and 1/2 cup Clorox 2 Powder in the hottest water your clothes can tolerate and soak overnight. Then wash as usual. I’ve had very good luck with this, but it does fade some clothes, so only use if everything else fails.

  13. girlcarew on November 5th, 2007 3:19 pm

    I gotta second the Terro for ants. It is far and above THE best thing. Once they get into it and get it back to the nest, they will not return. I can’t tell you how much I hate ants and how much I love Terro. It is amazing.

  14. Kyle on November 5th, 2007 3:19 pm

    @ Rachel, good tip on the rain gutters, I may have to get some of the plastic mesh and give it try. My leaves are fairly big so I think it will work.

    @ Lynnae and girlcarew, I have seen those orange Terro ant traps, they have an outdoor one that I think I can put in a place where the kids can’t get it. Thanks for the tips!

  15. JvW on November 5th, 2007 3:20 pm

    I used the outdoor Terro ant traps this spring and my ants were gone in 2 days. I tried a bunch of things before, and these did it for me!

    For stains I use regular Tide laundry soap soaked in for an hour or two before washing it. The only thing I couldn’t get out was olive oil.

  16. Aimee on November 5th, 2007 3:20 pm

    Hi everyone! I’m Kyle’s wife! Thanks for the tips on stains….I’m looking forward to trying them out. Right now I just do the spray&wash/ oxy in the wash bit.
    Looking forward to trying the cinnamon and cayenne pepper on the ants! We also use terro and I love the fact that it kills the ants but HATE it when it spills out of the trap and I feel like I have poison on my kitchen floor.
    Thanks for the GREAT ideas!!!

Leave a Reply




Bad Behavior has blocked 968 access attempts in the last 7 days.