Home & Cleaning
Microwaves, ants, stains, and household fixes for people who just moved out.
How to Clean an Oven
Clean an oven with a baking soda paste left overnight, a vinegar wipe, and a long soak for the racks, without commercial oven cleaner.
How to Get Rid of Mice
Get rid of mice with snap traps set on their routes, clean up droppings the way the CDC advises, and seal the quarter-inch gaps they use to get in.
How to Grow Tomatoes
Grow tomatoes in a pot or a garden bed, from choosing a variety that fits your space to planting deep, staking at planting time, watering evenly, and picking the fruit ripe.
How to Paint a Room
Paint a room with clean edges and no roller marks, from choosing and buying paint to taping, cutting in, rolling two coats, and cleaning up without paint on your floors.
How to Unclog a Drain
Unclog a kitchen or bathroom drain with hot water, pliers, baking soda and vinegar, and the P-trap under the sink, before you reach for chemicals.
How to Fix a Running Toilet
Fix a running toilet by checking the flapper, the float, and the fill valve, in that order, with no special tools.
How to Get Rid of Gnats
Tell fungus gnats from drain flies and fruit flies, clear the soil or drain they breed in, and trap the adults while the last eggs hatch.
How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies
Trap fruit flies with apple cider vinegar, find and clean out where they breed, and keep them from coming back.
How to Clean a Microwave
Soften dried splatter with 5 minutes of vinegar or lemon steam, let it stand for 5 more, and wipe the inside clean with a damp cloth.