Ok so I know I didn't link to the project but I didin't want to spoil the surprise. And besides, this is actually not about the project itself.
You see, I am kind of in the middle of it and have been filling nail holes (hint hint - woodwork) and seams. I am getting so excited because the painting is really the last thing I have to do and I was wanting to get a jump start on that while the caulk was drying. I am way to impatient to sit around and watch caulk dry, so I went to get my brushes and to no surprise at all they hadn't been rinsed enough (guess I am too impatient for that too) to keep from getting all hard and yucky = unusable.
Before I had kids I would have said screw it and went to the hardware store and just purchased what I needed. But, being how I have kids (who were napping quietly and I would not dream of waking up) I wasn't in the position to load up the posse and torment the store clerk with questions via Emma Bean. She has become quite the question girl. Plus, I made that whole budget resolution and all.
Totally frustrated, like it wasn't my own fault, I jumped on my trusty pinterest account. "I know I saw something on here about rinsing brushes." Of course pinterest did not fail me and I found a couple of sites discussing the paint removal strategy.
Since there were several sites on it and not one of them a blog. I don't really know what genius came up the original idea, so I am just going to share what I did.
What you need:
Vinegar
A pot to boil in
And of course, your crusty old brushes
I let my brushes soak about an hour, while I impatiently walked around fiddling with trying to smooth over some of the caulked areas. Why I would even mess with it, I don't know.
Anyway, then I simmered the brushes in the vinegar for about 15 min - until they start to soften up.
Let cool and rinse, ok rinse vigorously .
Only the Sureline brush survived the rinse. And I wouldn't say it looked all that great, but it is useable and it saves me from having to drag the kids to the hardware store (though a paint brush is on my list for my next trip), so it served its purpose! Next time I will make sure my ziplock is sealed (keeps your brush from drying out if you aren't done with a project.)
Although I wouldn't call this a total success, vinegar is still awesome for other things. If you haven't used vinegar for other cleaning, you are missing out on some pretty cheap and effective cleaning methods. I actually keep a spray bottle of it under my kitchen sink.
Here are some great things to try:
- Cleaning the microwave: In a microwave safe bowl or cup (I use a coffee mug) boil a half and half water and vinegar mixture, you don't need much, once you take it out wipe down the inside. I know, its amazing right?
- Cleaning the carpets: when my kids were a little smaller it seemed every time I vacuumed I would notice new spots on our carpet (dripping bottle or with Eli, the random spit up.) I would just spray with my trusty bottle of vinegar and blot with a paper towel. It got up about 98% of everything.
Also if a dog has an accident. Clean like normal. Then spray and let soak for a couple min, then blot. It will keep the dog from using the same spot and should keep a stain from forming.
- Weed Killer - works great for driveway cracks, all natural too!
We also use it on the brick and sometimes our fence in the backyard gets this green stuff on it...
-Hard water: we have hard water so sometimes we get build up around the faucets and on the water dispenser tray in the refrigerator. A little soak in vinegar and it wipes off.
- Clean grout: pour on the vinegar, soak about 15 min, scrub with toothbrush
-Polish patent leather : you know all those cute shiny shoes little girls wear. well rub them down with a vinegar soaked cloth then buff with a dry cloth
And there you have it Vinegar, Wonder Product!
Talk at ya later,
Terra
No comments:
Post a Comment