Oily Rag: Money saving tips from our readers

One of the readers tips gives your towels more body and absorbency.

This week we have more creative money-saving tips from readers.

Giselle has this tip from her grandmother. "My grandmother taught me to put about half a teaspoon of baking soda in a cup with a splash of water to make a paste. Rub the inside of the cup with this solution and it will get rid of stains. If it doesn't work the first time, just add more baking soda and water. "

Lee from Whangarei suggests, "Try Chux Magic Eraser Hard Surface Cleaner. There are eight disposable blocks in the packet and they can be bought at the supermarket. You can also buy them as a block and cut to the required size. It's amazing for cleaning around light switches, removing crayon, scuff marks off floors, etc -- just wet and lightly rub. You can use each piece more than once."

Tess from Auckland has this tip for cleaning burned pots. "To clean burned pots, cut a lemon in half, squeeze the juice and rub the lemon on the burned area, then scrub with Goldilocks or steel pot mitts. I find the burned-on food comes off easily."

To clean water spots from shower glass Mervyn from Dunedin uses a cake of sand soap. He says it's a lot cheaper than similar cleaning products.

Margaret from Mt Maunganui has this suggestion for keeping your towels in tip- top condition. "Reconditioning your towels is as simple as running them through two hot loads. Skip the detergent on both loads, run them through once with hot water and a cup of vinegar, then again with hot water and half a cup of baking soda. My towels all have more body and absorbency, plus my white towels are cleaner and brighter. I usually do this every six months or so."

To keep away the winter chills Pamdelilah from Christchurch has this tip for a DIY heater. You will need tea light candles, a bread baking tin, and two ceramic flowerpots. "The tea lights (up to four) are placed into a bread baking tin then covered with the smaller upside-down flower pot so the pot sits on top of the edges of the baking tin. The drainage hole in the top of the upside-down pot is covered with the metal casing leftover from one of the candles. Then a second larger ceramic flower pot is placed over the first (making sure they don't touch). The hole in the bigger flower pot is left uncovered." Apparently this creates a very efficient heater. If you want to see this in action, go to YouTube and search "flower pot heater". A word of caution though -- the pots get very hot since there is a flame from the candles, so only do this on a hard surface that is not at risk of burning. We don't want you burning your house down.

C.A.S. from Whakatane has a tip for those who have a wood fire. "We have found that by placing a fan in front of our built-in fireplace we use less wood and get more heat from the fire. Basically, the increased airflow over the fire's surface transfers the heat to the air at a faster rate, which makes the room much warmer. The same fan can be used with free-standing fireplaces, just aim the fan at the flue and feel the warmth."

Jess from Community Energy Action in Christchurch has these tips. "Free recycled curtains for bedrooms and living areas are available to people on low incomes through the Community Energy Action's Curtain bank. Call 0800 GET WARM for a measurement form."

"Do-it-Yourself window insulation is available through Community Energy Action. It starts from $29 and can be as effective as retrofit double glazing in reducing heat loss and condensation. It will help keep your home warmer and healthier for a fraction of the cost of double glazing. " Visit cea.co.nz.

Send us your favourite low-cost hearty winter recipes to share with the oily rag community at www.oilyrag.co.nz or write to Living Off the Smell of an Oily Rag, PO Box 984, Whangarei.