Little-Known Uses for Salt

While your doctor may be telling you to cut back on salt, according to The Green Hour, there are still many ways to use it—besides sprinkling it on food, that is.

Just for the heck of it, the next time your doctor asks you if you have “cut back” on this little, white granule, just smile and say, “Oh no! I use it for everything!”

KITCHEN USES

Brass, Silver, and Copper Cleaner: Make a paste of salt and vinegar, scoop it onto a soft cloth, rub the metal, rinse, and buff dry.

Drain Deodorizer: Mix ½ cup of salt with ½ cup of hot water, and pour it down the drain periodically to eliminate odors and cut through grease buildup.

White Marks on Furniture: Combine a teaspoon of salt with enough olive oil to make a dry paste. Scoop some of the paste onto a soft cloth, and then rub into the white marks until they are gone.

Grease Cutter: Scrub greasy pans first with salt before washing with a detergent.

Deodorize Cutting Boards: Dip a damp cloth in salt and rub it into the cutting board.

Prevent Food from Sticking: Rub the pan with salt. This will also prevent smoking.

Refresh Coffee Percolators and Pots: Add 4-5 tablespoons of salt to and processing as if there was coffee in the pot.

Clean Sponges: Soak in cold saltwater after you have washed them.

HOUSEHOLD HINTS

Deodorize Shoes: Sprinkle salt into the shoes at night; brush out in the morning.

Drive Away Moths and Ants: Sprinkle areas the pests travel with salt.

Brighten Colors: Add ½ a cup of salt to colored wash loads to enhance the colors. Note that salt is used to set dyes, so it works as a fixative.

Eliminate Mold and Mildew Stains: Scrub with salt and lemon juice, then set in the sun. Wash, rinse, and dry.

Put out Grease Fires: Cover the fire with salt. (Don't use water on grease fires.)

ANTISEPTIC AND PERSONAL CARE USES

Sore Throat Gargle: Add 1 teaspoon of salt to a glass of warm water. Gargle.

Teeth and Gum Cleaner: Pulverize salt with baking soda (1:2 ratio).

Mouthwash: Combine equal parts of baking soda and salt. Add 1 teaspoon to a glass of water, rinse out mouth.

Bathe Your Eyes: Make a salt solution of ½ teaspoon of salt to 1 pint of water. Soak a soft washcloth in the mixture and lay it on closed eyes.

Puffy Eye Help: Use the mixture, above, on puffy eyes, but soak longer.

Foot Soak: Fill a pail of warm water to just the right temperature. Add ½ cup or so of salt. Soak your feet for as long as it feels good, rinse.

Dry Salt Scrub: Exfoliate dead, dry skin, by giving yourself a massage with dry salt.

Removing dry skin: After bathing and while still wet give yourself a massage with dry salt. It removes dead skin particles and aids the circulation.

GARDEN USES

Weed Killer: Sprinkle salt along the cracks of patios where weeds are, sprinkle with water, then pull out the dead weeds and dead grass.

Poison Ivy Killer: Dissolve 1 cup of salt in 1 gallon of hot water. Pour onto the poison ivy. Note that fresh bright green shiny, poison ivy leaves are the most vulnerable to this solution.