12 Cool Uses For Ice Cubes…

I love when you can find ways to use simple, everyday items you already have around the house, and use them in multiple ways. This can not only save you money but also space.

Ice is one of those items we all have on hand that can actually serve multiple purposes. It’s cheap, already has a storage area, and can solve household dilemmas pretty quickly.

Here are 12 alternative uses for ice cubes you might not have thought about…

Deodorize Your Garbage Disposal – Food particles can build up on garbage disposal blades, which can lead to a stinky odor. Tossing a handful of ice cubes down the disposal once a week can make it much fresher smelling. (The ice, with its sharp edges, can knock the gunk off the blades and down the drain.) I like to add a few lemon peels to the ice, which gives my kitchen a nice, citrus smell that’s not overwhelming.

Make Juicy Burgers – Lean ground beef, chicken, and turkey are great choices for healthier burgers but they tend to be on the dry side. Try molding each burger around an ice cube before grilling. This should keep your burger juicier because as the ice melts, it bastes the meat from the inside.

Keep Leftover Rice Moist – Leftover rice can become dry and crunchy when reheating it in the microwave. If you add an ice cube and loosely cover your container of rice it before nuking it, it will stay fluffy and moist.

Remove Splinters – Make removing splinters less painful by numbing the area with an ice cube first.

Reduce Eye Puffiness – Soothe and decrease eye swelling and puffiness by putting a few ice cubes in a soft cloth and then apply to eyes. Apply on and off for about 15 minutes.

Keep Cool Without an Air Conditioner – This is great for those hot days when even a fan can’t keep you cool. Put a bowl of ice cubes in front of a fan and then run the fan on a low speed. With the mist from the ice, combined with the breeze of the fan, you’ll get an “air conditioner” effect that will help keep you cool and lower the room’s temperature.

Decrease Bruising – If you quickly apply ice to a fresh bruise (while it’s still red and before discoloration begins,) you can decrease the pain and encourage fast fading. Wrap ice in a cloth and apply to area for 15 minutes to an hour.

Remove Candle Wax From Tablecloth – To remove wax drips from your tablecloth, rub an ice cube over the spot repeatedly until you can easily lift the wax with a butter knife. (Tossing the cloth in the freezer also works.)

Keep Your Pet Cool – Add ice to your pet’s water dish to keep the water cooler on hot days. I have a friend who rubbed her cats down with ice on a particularly hot day and they loved it.

Remove Chewing Gum – Chewing gum can be a real sticky situation to try to remove from fabric (or even hair.) If you have access to a freezer you can pop the garment in the freezer till the gum becomes hard and then simply scrape it off with the edge of a spoon. Or fill a plastic bag with ice, rub over the stuck gum until it hardens, and then remove with the edge of a spoon.

Clean Coffee Pots, Vases, & Bottles – This works great when cleaning stained coffee pots or glass containers with a narrow neck. Add ice and about 1/4 cup salt. Swish the vase or container vigorously and rinse. If your container has a greasy residue to it, add some lemon before swishing.

Keep Plants Hydrated – Keep hard-to-reach plants, like high hanging baskets, hydrated easier by tossing a few ice cubes on top of the dirt. Saves you from water spills when lifting a watering can high. This is also great for plants that have a tendency to overflow when watered since the ice melts slowly.

(Taking pics of ice and Kitten wanted to play with it…so I guess that could be another use!)