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#tipofday

3 posts2 participants0 posts today
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cobalt

Here I am posting another #TipOfDay, what the heck—why not, in the face of pervasive societal anxiety and continuing traumas as fascism coalesces daily. Here’s a teeny tiny bright spot I enjoy and have a bit of control over. I finally have my full arsenal of household cleaning brushes. Latest ones include the crevice brush and a new favorite the small slim white brush with stiff bristles that go over the top and continue on a curve back down. This one is perfect for all the percolator filter basket parts. Great to get coffee grounds out of this filter basket with small slits. #Brushes #Cleaning

Almost a dozen cleaning tools laid out on the counter on a black silicone mat with 2 red round silicone trivet mats. The crevice tool brush is at bottom. The favorite slim white brush is 3rd down, under my standby old toothbrushes.
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cobalt

Not expecting comments of stars on this post, but I’m much more alert now because I’m onto my second cuppa of double brew coffee and the world is looking brighter now. I do want to note my rant about eggs. Hey! I have never had trouble getting eggs here in Phoenix even at the worst of the bird flu disruptions. There were times there were a lot less eggs and brands of eggs in the stores here, but never complete outrages. And I never once had to pay more than $5.69 for a dozen. Your experience?#TipOfDay #Recycle #NoTech #Eggs

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cobalt

And now for banal! But practical! And I really need my second cuppa right now. Up at 5 am because holy cow, I fell asleep last night at 7 pm. Yikes. So here’s my #TipOfDay what I do with just a few eggs left. It’s when I really need to make more space in the fridge. I cut down a cardboard egg carton to fit 4 or 6 eggs. It holds the few stray eggs just fine. I imagine Amazon sells an egg holder but this is fine and recycles. 😄 #Recycle #NoTech #Eggs

2 egg cartons I cut down to make a holder for up to 4 eggs or 6. One egg is in the carton for 4 eggs. Gray formed cardboard egg cartons set on black granite counter with white cutting board on right.
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cobalt

Oh how weird is this, I greet my friends with a photo of our new toilet seat and bidet. #TipOfDay it’s really worth it to spend extra $ on a good seat not a $20 cheap seat! The lid is in action. It is a “soft close” that goes down by itself slowly and quietly. The bidet is the kind that just hooks easily in the water line in the back and there’s a flat piece that installs under the toilet seat using the same holes in the toilet base.

A truly simple thing, a little luxury, eh? Oh and btw Happy 420 to those who celebrate! 🎉🙌🥳

Photo of our new white toilet seat on white toilet next to white sink cabinet and beige blotchy time floor. From the top view the lid is almost closed.
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cobalt

Woot, a pan is cleaner! Sometimes I like to figure out a good way to clean something very well, like solving a puzzle. When daily the “news” and world events seem quite mad, maybe to control one tiny task at hand is helpful for stress relief. #TipOfDay

Use Barkeepers Friend to scrub off heavy dirt and deposits off stainless steel or aluminum pots and pans. Not for nonstick surfaces! Before and after of large aluminum skillet I use almost daily. This buildup of black grime is from about 6 months of use.

You wet the pan and sprinkle a small amount of cleaner on it to set 1/2 hour or so. I generally spread a light paste of it on the pan using bits of paper towel. To scrub, sturdy scrubbing in the direction of the grain. Here it is circular. I also put a paste on again and scrubbed with a brush with strong bristles. One more rinse and paste again. Final scrub and finish in After photo.

Heavy aluminum bottom skillet, close view with cleaner and water paste started and will be spread around to set about 1/2 hour. See next photo for result. This pan is dark gray with some black grime.
After photo shows cleaner, shiny heavy aluminum skillet bottom after cleaning most of the black grime off the pan. See Before photo previous.
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cobalt

Oh Lordy, after letting out that dirty water and rinsing with the spray faucet, on to the soak with OxiClean and light laundry soap. I can already tell there are likely 2 more drain and rinse cycles coming before I can spread the carpet runner on the backyard wall to dry in sunny, warm Arizona this afternoon. Hope this is ready to use again before nightfall. #TipOfDay

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cobalt

Here is that same dirty gray and tan carpet runner now soaking in the utility sink outside. This is the second soak. The first soak I used only water. Drained it and now soaking in Super Washing Soda. One more soak with a light detergent coming up next. #Cleaning #TipOfDay

Thus tan and gray carpet runner shown in the sink is on the 2nd soak as described in post. You can see the water is still dirty light brown. There are various bottle and cups on the top ledge of the utility sink outside. The spray faucet is far right.
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cobalt

Ok, so here is a #TipOfDay for USians right now where there is a time we are transitioning to Spring from Winter. With the change from shutting off the furnace to using fans and being able to open windows day and night, I had forgotten the DOG would be shedding like crazy. Took a carpet runner outside to shake it out a vacuum. Oh my it was dirty and only 2-3 months “old”.

Shocked how much that low pile carpet held dog hair. My vac suddenly chugged and strained. Straight to the knife I went. Had to cut away hair caught in the brush roller and then remove the beater bar roller to get it mostly out. Then continue until time for soaking in utility tub. After this post with 2 photos, another photo of a soak. I’m hoping for a ta-da photo to share later. Next time, cleaning every month is the plan. Does this tip qualify for #DogsOfMastodon?

Close view of bottom of upright vacuum stuck from working by so much dog hair caught in the brush roller (middle) and beater bar left.
View of vacuum tipped over to cut away stuck dog hair caught in the roller and the orange fuzzy beater bar shown pulled out of vacuum. Knife shown upper right. The carpet runner is being cleaned so it is starting to show a pattern again instead of being all dirty light gray and tan.
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cobalt

At long last, another #TipOfDay this for heavy duty floor cleaner. I mix it up in a gallon container and pour into a spray bottle as needed. Non toxic, not smelly. Great for small areas and using rags.
Ceramic Tile Floor Cleaner

• 1 gallon of warm water
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup Borax
• Spray bottle

#Cleaner
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cobalt

Ritual? I’ve become a coffee connoisseur (at least in my eyes) over the last 5 months since I began using a stovetop percolator. #TipOfDay for keeping your stainless steel pot and parts clean, no coffee oil stains.

Let’s say this photo is a still life study. Forgot to finish cleaning the percolator and parts last night after letting it soak with the pot full of water, parts inside, with 1 tablespoon of baking soda.

In the morning I scrub all with a mix of my 3 favorite dishwashing accessories: fine nail brush for delicate areas, sturdy brush with medium-soft bristles and a mesh net nylon cloth cut in smaller pieces. It’s all still super clean and shiny 5 months out from daily use brewing coffee from fresh ground beans.

A couple more tips in comments. And please do add your tips of any sort here. Nice to initiate this hashtag in top of post. I had it
going over a year in my old instance. And these #Coffee #Cleaning #Shiny.

As described in post, parts of a percolator pot in stainless steel sink with gray mat in bottom and over the saddle of this right side sink. All the shiny parts of the percolator fill the sink. Shiny, so shiny! There is a glow at top and bottom of sink from the reflection if the bright yellow mesh cloth scrubbers and also at the sink bottom front a purple glow from the handle of the purple nail brush.
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cobalt

@RickiTarr We have ham about 4-5 times a year, always cooked/heated in the large slow cooker. Every time I am looking for that can of crushed pineapple I use on top with brown sugar and other added. I dislike opening and not using it, storing open can in fridge and then tossing out a month later. Now I freeze it in 1 cup portions and I get 3 roasts made from 1 can.

Another #TipOfDay is freezing spaghetti sauce in 1 or 2 cups portions in heavy freezer bags, flat. I can file these easily in freezer.

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cobalt

I think it’s time for more of my followers from “the old instance” be sure to follow me at this #NotACult party. So I present a tiny #TipOfDay for dog owners who want to give good quality dog food economically. Our terrier Buddy has the nerve to be picky about his food. Pretty uppity for this dog from a shelter. Oh, who am I kidding: he’s smart enough to have figured us for patsies.

Dry dog food from Aldi or Costco that is grain-free works but he rarely will eat it alone. We usually add 1/3 cup of “wet food” (canned dog food). It also works out with 1/4 cup cat food! Since Covid took hold in 2020, have you noticed the availability and choices for dog food has dropped by maybe half? AND unless you want Chicken you are limited. Buddy likes beef, duck and sometimes-rarely salmon or tuna.

So I continue to make his food about every 2 months. I’ve shared the photos and recipe I developed, in the past at the old place. Do you have tips to share about pet food? This cat food I get is whatever is on sale in a small can. Gets about 3 or 4 meals mixed with the dry dog food. Only a few times a month for the added cat food. I rotate his food a few times a month, adjusting the ingredients in small steps. Oh yes, I save a LOT of money and it’s better nutrition. #DogsOfMastodon

Early morning in dark kitchen I prepare our dogs meal in 2 stainless steel bowls. On the left is dry brown dog food kibble with canned cat food being mixed in. Small can cat food top center. To right is bowl with water and tartar control added to deter tooth decay.
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cobalt going beige today

Make sure to see the Before photo and the second photo in the post. I use only a pinch of sodium percarbonate in a mug of water. It’s maybe 1/8 tsp, if that. When a mug is cleaned I pour that into the next mug to clean. It works great on dark soda stains as well as coffee and tea. I am using this non-toxic chemical all the time now. You can go back in my November and December posts to find more uses and other #TipOfDay posts. 2/2

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cobalt going beige today

I’m starting to make sure I get those I want to continue to follow over to my alt account which will be my sole account in 6 weeks: @cobalt123
So you may notice random notifications that there is a Real Cobalt following you now.
Unsure if I will continue my #TipOfDay posts there but here’s a lightweight one: sodium percarbonate in water soak takes out coffee and tea stains. Before and after photos. How I use it next comment. 1/2

Old mug interior with white glaze shows coffee stain and brown ring stains. despite washing it. Before view. See next photo.
Same mug after soak with sodium percarbonate in water. The white interior is completely white with no stain. Mug behind also cobalt blue exterior is now soaking with the solution I poured out of first mug. This is the After photo to the previous image.
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cobalt going beige today

The last of the ham, on the last day. As far as this photo shows and I’ve got to spend about 20 more minutes later today to chop and dice 2 more bags of ham scraps for the freezer. Buddy Jax been very happy to have tiny ham scraps added to his dry food. But time to freeze small bits to space out these luxuries for him. Dice and frozen going to be for omelettes in a few weeks. #TipOfDay #Ham #Meat

Small bags of ham, 2 on left are very tiny pieces in vacuum seal bags. To right, quart bags dividing ham to slices, pieces to dice and freeze, and bottom bag is more scraps to cut smaller and freeze for dog.
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cobalt going beige today

Before and after photos for #TipOfDay. Here’s a brand name product it’s worth getting for several common uses. Bar keeper’s Friend (BKF). First use for me is cleaning burnt food marks in a pot. But every 3 months I use it to restore 50-year old stoneware to white when daily use causes faint gray scratch marks. I got an app to make photos side by side. 3 photos: 1st one to see both photos together. 2nd to show before photo so you can enlarge. 3rd photo to see and enlarge for after.

Set of 2 photos side-by-side. Closeups of white stoneware plate and bowl show majority of each piece is white inside with cobalt blue rim 3/4” with all white center. Left side shows top plate is evenly white and bottom bowl has many fine gray scratches. Right side photo after cleaning it shows both plate and bowl are white.
Before photo: closeup to allow enlarging. The bottom bowl shows light gray scratches inside while the plate above has none.
After photo: Closeup shows after treatment with product, the blue rim plate and bowl are both white centers again. You don’t notice gray scratches in the bowl.
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cobalt going beige today

@Pineywoozle @SRDas I had forgotten about this but apropos Chemistry in the Kitchen I’ve spent a month now researching and testing use of environmentally-friendly pure chemicals and formulas to make 4 sets of everything I use, including thick microfiber cloths, and a giant jug of vinegar with each, given at Christmas. My tests show up with the tag #TipOfDay

awscommunity.social/@cobalt/11

AWSCommunity.socialcobalt (@cobalt@awscommunity.social)Attached: 1 image I’ve got a regular factory going on here, complete with label maker and pure chemicals. #TipOfDay. Decided since I’ve been in a research mode of cleaning product alternatives, I’ll make a set for family for Christmas. No they won’t think it’s weird, because it’s from me. Goals: non-toxic, environmental safety, avoiding branded products for things that work better, far cheaper. Decided on making sets of small laminated cards for more directions, best uses verified by me and on hanging ring.
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cobalt going beige today

Here’s the finished eggnog, so at least you have an idea what quantity this recipe makes. I think I’m “supposed” to show a glorious mug of eggnog now, but “everyone” says wait 24 hours. We each had a spoonful and were pleased! Can’t wait to later today when 1/2 goes in the “virgin” bottle and the other I’ll had rum, bourbon, whiskey and/or brandy. Just to try it for the record 😉#TipOfDay
#Eggnog
Recipe comes when we do try it for reals.

Eggnog finished in gray pot in front of counter clutter and the stove. My famous red tea kettle is far left behind, as is my blender.
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