Your toothbrush has faithfully served your oral hygiene needs for the past three months, and now it’s time to retire it from its regular duty. But before you discard it, you’d be surprised to know that you can actually extend its usefulness beyond brushing your teeth. Your old toothbrush can be a very handy tool that can serve many purposes around the house. Here are eleven creative – and slightly quirky ways that you can reuse your old toothbrush and give it new life.
Clean Grout Lines
Cleaning grout lines can often present a challenge. However, using an old toothbrush can simplify the process. Mix baking soda and water to create a paste, and then apply this paste to the grout lines on your kitchen or bathroom tiles using your old toothbrush. This method is highly effective and will leave your tiles looking great.
Make Your Jewelry Shine
Old toothbrushes are handy tools for cleaning jewelry. Their bristles are well-suited for getting into tight spots, ensuring your beloved ring, necklace, or bracelet remains beautiful and free from rust. By softly brushing with your preferred jewelry cleaner, your retired toothbrush can effectively remove dirt from those small spaces that are hard to reach.
Polish Metal
Much like cleaning jewelry, an old toothbrush can also be useful for polishing various types of metal and tools. Metal objects often collect dirt and residue in their nooks and crannies, but you can utilize a toothbrush to give them a polished appearance. To achieve this, just use the old toothbrush with baking soda and water and scrub away to eliminate dirt and oil stains.
Dust Your Keyboard Off
Keyboards endure a lot, from persistent typing and labor they receive on a daily basis. If you are annoyed by the accumulation of dust and grime around the edges of your keys then you can use an old toothbrush to clean the spaces between your keys. Just glide the toothbrush between the keys and tilt the keyboard at an angle while brushing.
Remove Crayon Marks from Walls
For those with kids, dealing with crayon marks on walls is a familiar situation. If you’ve encountered this issue, using an old toothbrush and shaving cream happens to be a practical and efficient method for removing crayon marks from the wall.
Clean Your Shoes
Cleaning your shoes isn’t always as straightforward as tossing them in the washing machine. Maintaining the quality of your footwear might require a bit more attention. When dirt and mud become trapped in the soles of your shoes, using a toothbrush is a practical approach to loosen and remove it.
Polish Your Faucets
Sink faucets may lose their initial shine and collect grime over time. A reliable tool for cleaning around and behind your faucets is an old toothbrush. Use the old toothbrush along with soap and water to eliminate build-up in areas where the faucet’s base meets the sink, as well as around the handles.
Spot Treat Your Clothes
Use an old toothbrush handy for dealing with stains and spills on clothing. To address a stain, apply a stain remover to the area and gently scrub with the old toothbrush until the stain lifts. Be cautious not to scrub too vigorously, as this could damage the fabric.
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Clean Your Garbage Disposal
Take an old toothbrush and dip it into a grease cutting kitchen cleaner like Dawn dish soap. Use the old toothbrush and clean the splash guard of your garbage disposal. Scrub away any residue and grime, then rinse thoroughly with water.
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Apply Hair Product
An old toothbrush can serve as a tool to apply hair products like hair gel. It’s particularly handy for managing the edges of your hair, allowing for a more uniform application of the product across these finer strands compared to using your fingers.
Scrub the Crevices of the Baseboards
Baseboards can be tricky to clean, especially in tight spaces. A regular cloth might not do the job effectively. That’s where an old toothbrush can be useful. Take an old toothbrush and use it to gently brush along the top of the baseboard, removing any built-up dirt and dust.
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Baking soda and vinegar are natural, non-toxic products that are excellent for cleaning. When the two products are combined, they result in a powerful cleaning agent that can eliminate the toughest dirt, stains, and grime. Here are 18 ways you can clean with baking soda and vinegar around the home.
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Guest Bathroom Essentials List
If you are anything like me and want to adequately prepare your guest bathroom for your house guests, check out this extensive guest bathroom essentials list. This list includes many bathroom items your guests may need while prioritizing style, comfort, and some luxuries.
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15 Tips on How to Declutter Your Home
Although clutter can accumulate quickly and easily between you and your life, decluttering can spark immense joy and accomplishment. Here are 15 tips to help you tackle the task of decluttering your home.
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10 Uses for Dryer Sheets You Probably Didn’t Know About (And It’s Not Laundry)
Dryer sheets have earned their place as a laundry room essential, adding fresh scent and reducing static in our clothes. They’re appreciated for making laundry softer and more fragrant. But these sheets offer more than just laundry benefits. In fact, they can be quite handy around the house. Here are ten ways you use laundry sheets for more than just laundry.
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How to Deep Clean Your Shower Head with Vinegar
If your showerhead is not showering you with as much force or is clogged, here’s the best way to clean it using vinegar – to revitalize your shower experience.
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Tamara White is the creator and founder of The Thrifty Apartment, a home decor and DIY blog that focuses on affordable and budget-friendly home decorating ideas and projects. Tamara documents her home improvement journey, love of thrifting, tips for space optimization, and creating beautiful spaces.
