Life Hacks You Wish You Knew Earlier – “Life hacks” are clever tips, tricks, and shortcuts that can help make everyday tasks easier, more efficient, and more enjoyable. Here are some life hacks across various aspects of life. These life hacks will make your daily to-dos (plus a few random projects) so much easier!
1. Pasta Lighter
We’re sure you’re stocking up on sweet smelling candles to make your home extra cozy for the colder months. But, if your candles are burning too low to reach the wick, there’s no reason to go without your favorite scent. Instead of burning your fingers, light a piece of uncooked spaghetti. It’ll reach into those deep candles and burn long enough to light the candles on grandpa’s birthday cake!
Everyone enjoys saving money, especially when it comes to improving your home.
2. Remove Highlighter Stains
Ever wish you could remove highlighter marks from a book? Lemon juice fades highlighter enough to make it virtually undetectable. Cut a lemon in half and get some juice on a cotton swab. Run the swab over the highlighted text and watch the color fade.
Lemon juice from a container also seems to do the trick. Though not quite as well on the pieces we tested, and the older the mark, the more stubborn it is to remove.
3. Puppy Slow Feeder
My puppy was eating his food too fast, resulting in him vomiting it back up. Instead of buying a slow-feed bowl, I drilled holes into a 12 in. length of 2 in. PVC pipe and capped the ends. I fill the tube with puppy food, and he has to roll it around to get the food to fall out of the holes. My puppy gets all the food he needs without the mess that comes from eating too fast. Be sure the holes are large enough for the food to come out! – Charlie May
4. Identify Your Keys at a Glance
“It seems the older I get, the more keys I carry around. Between the car, house, shed and garage, I have a whole pocket full of keys. To make it easier to quickly find my most used keys, I paint both sides of the key head with brightly colored nail polish. I use a different color for each key. The nail polish is extremely durable and you’ll be surprised how much longer it lasts than spray paint.”
5. Pool Noodle Water Hose
If you need to fill up a bucket that won’t fit under your sink’s faucet, bust out a pool noodle. Set the bucket on the floor, slip the pool noodle over the faucet and run it down to the bucket.
6. Keep Seeds Fresh
If you don’t use up all of your seed packets, store them in an airtight container with silica packets to keep them fresh for next year. The silica packets prevent the seeds from germinating or getting moldy.
7. Fog-Free Mirrors
Prevent your bathroom mirror from fogging up after a hot shower with car wax. Apply a small amount of car wax to the mirror, let it dry, then buff with a soft, dry cloth.
8. Easy Way to Disinfect Legos
Children’s toys are a breeding ground for germs. A dishwasher makes quick work of disinfecting toys that are washable, like Legos. To quickly clean Legos:
- Drop the Legos in a laundry bag to keep them contained.
- Run your dishwasher as usual.
- But, remove the Legos before the drying cycle, letting them air dry completely on a towel.
This method also works well for other treasures like seashells, dish brushes, rags and sponges.
9. Renew Your Furniture in Minutes
My son plastered all of the furniture in his room with stickers from skate shops, arenas and gumball machines. Once he moved out, I wanted to use his furniture in the new guest room, without the stickers. I peeled off all the stickers using a putty knife in combination with hair dryer, to soften the adhesive. Some are harder to remove than others, but I had them all off in a couple hours. – Steve Winter
10. Tape Template
Take the guesswork out of hanging picture frames, shelves and other items with “keyhole” hangers. To begin:
- Stick a piece of masking tape over the keyholes, and then trace over the keyholes with a pencil, making a template.
- Making sure it’s level, stick the template on the wall where you want the shelf.
- Drill your anchor holes or screws into the template and remove it.
Even if you know your way around a tape measure, there’s sure to be some new tricks you haven’t seen