i have a bad habit of leaving the water in my iron. naturally, the time came when it was all clogged and in desperate need of cleaning. so i employed the time honored method of filling it with vinegar and water. not an instant fix, but the gunk eventually cleared away.

then, someone recently recommended vinegar in the water as a way to get those stubborn creases out of fabric off the bolt. (which means it's also great for pressing of all kinds.)

i have also noted that a lot of quilters seem to worry about attracting bugs if they starch their fabs before storage. which reminded me that when i was in the Army and sometimes had to spend days or weeks "camping" in the local swamp, i'd swallow two tablespoons of ... you guessed it ... vinegar every morning. the result no chigger bites, and very little bother from the mosquitos.

sooooo ... since vinegar water will clean and iron, make pressing more precise, and repel nasty chiggers and skeeters ... i have started automatically filling my iron with a 50/50 solution of vinegar water. my iron stays clean, pressing is easier, and i'll bet it wouldn't attract bugs in storage. (can't test that one. my son stays on bug patrol around here, so we don't have any.)

smells a bit on the awful side at the ironing board, but it disappears by the time i get back to the sewing table. just thought i'd share.

Oh, I'm excited that we are starting a "what all can vinegar do" thread!!! I loved the Vick's one...learned a lot. Patrice, that is a great tip about the iron...didn't think of that one. I do clean my coffee maker with vinegar/water mixture frequently though (we have well water). I also keep a spray bottle of vinegar to soak down the hard water stains in the bathroom...takes a little while, but I don't mind sewing while I wait :wink:

I was told adding some to our whirlpool tub would keep the jets clean, so would think that it might work in the iron???? Do you think if I added it to my coffee every morning I would never have to clean my coffeemaker??
:lol: :lol:

I use it straight for mildew and mold....I'll try a shot of it this spring for the black flies :D

i think you'd be the only one in the house who would drink your coffee. :lol: :lol: :lol:

We have VERY hard water here in Spain, and I use white vinegar to clean the kettle every week :D

Patrice, my iron was playing up so I decided to add vinegar, boy did I make a mess, I have no idea HOW much gunk was in the iron, but it came out so rusty coloured.. I changed the water over and over, kept using the burst of steam and thought I would never get it back to normal it was disgusting, I might try adding vinegar at every fill.....thanks for the tip!!

Never thought about putting it into the iron. I'm not sure how DH will react the first time he reaches for the iron and the smell comes out. :lol:

Great idea. Off to mix a jug up and keep to fill iron with.

Very interesting. Gonna try it!

You laugh but my boss does this at work (she owns a Chinese restaurant) and no one has ever seemed to notice the tiny squirt of vinegar mixed in with the water. <shrugs> I don't drink coffee so I don't have the personal experience to tell you whether or not it taste funny.

Patrice, just how much vinegar are you adding to your iron at one time? I am completely intrigued with this idea and I think I am going to try it. I am assuming you are using distilled vinegar and not the apple cider vinegar, which I would think would leave stains. :lol:
Piece ~ Tiffany

Me too!!!

A couple of months ago at Bernina Club, she did a bit on how to make our clothes/fabric smell good when we ironed. There are lots of recipes about using cheap vodka and smell good oil. Wonder if we could use vinegar and her recipes?????

Cheap vodka??? Wouldn't that just leave you smelling like a drunk? :?

My girlfriend uses lavendar water in her iron. I don't really smell any difference between her fabrics and mine though.
Piece ~ Tiffany

LOL -- No the vodka doesn't smell!! I don't know why. And she said to use the CHEAP stuff as the good stuff didn't work as well....

Now isn't that just the oddest thing. (Things that make you go "Hummmm")
Piece ~ Tiffany

I know folks who swear by cider vinegar and honey as a daily tonic. Vinegar and salt make an easy copper cleaner.

i can attest to the vinegar through the iron to reduce clogs. worked great for me! used about a 50/50 mixture, let it sit for a while, then turned the heat all the way up, several bursts of steam, ironed an old cloth over and over, then drained, and refilled and drained until the vinegar was gone.

now i don't have to buy a new iron!

i use a 50/50 solution. and ... yes ... plain white vinegar. also, when i turn the iron off, i set it face down on the metal rack at the end of my ironing board. that way, it can work its cleaning magic on all the holes while i'm out in the world.

vodka is alcohol. most likeley works on the same principle.

I quit using the steam setting on my $100+ Rowenta Iron. It just spit and dripps....I am going to try the vinegar.....thanks ladies. I will let you know if it works.
Connie

i run vinegar through the dishwasher about once a month. it cleans away the hard water deposits and really freshens it. and when i was a kid (yes - i was) my grandmother made me drink it warm when i was sick. it made me sicker. i can still taste it.

Thanks for the tip on using vinegar & water in your iron. I am going to try that out today, as I sew on a few projects.

Happy Sewing,
Cheryl

I run a cycle of vinegar through my washer. I have an HE and use cold water all the time to conserve energy. This helps to keep any gunk down that may not dissolve since I don't use the hot water.

I pour it in the detergent, fabric softener and bleach dispensers. Then run with warm water through the normal cycle.

My mom is the vinegar queen! She bought me "The Vinegar Book." http://www.vinegarbook.net/

I've never really had a cold, but if my throat is scratchy, I gargle with vinegar. Now I need to put it in the iron! Isn't it fun to find an inexpensive, natural ingredient that does so much?

You can wash your kitchen and bathroom floor with water and white vinegar. It cuts grease.

Great info. Patrice. Thanks!!!

My Mom was told to use vinegar to wash the wood floors. She uses it too on her kitchen floor. Can't remember what that stuff is made of! :oops:

:D :D :D :D :D :D :shock: :shock: :lol: :lol: ......Of all the things.....Vodka and vinegar.... I know I haven't bought glass cleaner in 15 years....I make my own....even add a drop of blue food color to make everyone think it's the other stuff.....mostly water, rubbing alcohol and a little bit of ammonia works for me....I use a lot of lemon, vinegar,ammonia, baking soda and rubbing alcohol.....best cleaners....

White vinegar in your rinse cycle will soften the clothes without the perfumes or expensive dryer sheets, too.

And sprayed or dripped onto the roots of weeds, poison ivy, or any where there's something growing you don't want...........it kills it. But be careful where and how you spray it or the yard may end up dust.

I did try the vinegar for bug bites, can't do that with the diverticulitis anymore, but I do keep a bottle of vinegar water to spritz on when I'm going in the yard. Helps with misquitoes and chiggers but not so much with spiders.

The first time you clean your iron with white vinegar, I would use it straight, no water. Let it boil in there, highest setting. Then 50/50, I've found I keep my iron much cleaner and don't get the spits and sputters anymore. We have hard water here on the coast, too.
Hugs,
Sharon

Vinegar will restore the black in my clothes? I have so many pairs of pants that are graying - so how do I do it - just add a cup or so to the wash? Soak in a tub?

Thank you so much for sharing this great idea, Patrice. The only things I have ever used vinegar for is to clean the streaks off my glass stove top, clean my coffee pot, and dye easter eggs. I can only imagine what I am going to find in my iron!!!

I am so impressed that your husband irons!!

This really works! Done it for years. Swallow 1 tablespoon of vinegar for leg cramps. They go away instantly. DH has asthma and gets cramps in his chest from coughing he tried it at poof gone.

That's a great tip! :thumbup: :thumbup:

there was just an article this a.m. in the news paper about vinegar:

if there are hard water stains on your glasswear, boil vinegar, pour over glasswear, and scrub with non-scratching pad. it's supposed to work.

i also used it to clean out and freshen my cats boxes. they weren't crazy about it, but they got over it.


isn't vinegar the product of wine or wine grapes that have been sitting around too long?

I use it to clean my coffee maker and also I pour it in the wash when I do my husbands work clothes. He's a mechanic and they can smell pretty nasty and its hard to get the smell out. But the vinegar really helps. I'm going to try in my iron. Another great tip!

I think I need to add vinegar to my grocery list. I have just a little left in the bottom of the gallon jug but with all of these ideas I need more.

Thanks.

Cool! I live in the country, we have well water with gunk in it sometimes. What kind of Vinegar? White or Apple Cider Vinegar? I "CAN" in the summer so I have lots of different kinds of vinegar!

It also works wonders on laminate flooring by the way.

WELL DUH I cannot read........nevermind on the what kind of vinegar.....<SMACKING> head

Works great to remove pet smells when they have accidents. I put white vinegar in my mop water and clean all my floors with it. Makes them clean and shiny. Works on wood, laminate and tile.

These are all great ideas! My DD is pregnant and has a sore throat and gets leg cramps. I just emailed her to try swallowing a tablespoon.

I have vinegar water in the garage in a spray bottle. Not long ago we found a big possum behind the dryer and he would not go out the door. Bit the broom handle and everything. I finally grabbed the squirt bottle and soaked him. He took off like he was on fire!

So vinegar gets rid of rodents too, I guess!