@GertrudeMcFuzz , white vinegar? Thanks.
I buy a bag of lemons, juice them and cut the lemon peel up , freeze it all in cube trays. Pop them out, put them in a bag in the freezer door and when we eat something smelly (fish, garlic, whatever) I run a cube or two through the disposal.
Melamine sponges. AKA magic erasers. If you poke around amazon you can find them for less than $0.10 each in bulk. The bulk ones are just about a 1 time use item, but if I can get something clean in 5 mins for $0.10, I’ll take that deal.
@FlyMeToTheMoon - Yes, white vinegar. Here’s a link with more explanation:
http://www.familysavvy.com/savvy-cleaning-tip-dawn-vinegar-for-sparkling-shower-doors/
I spray soapy water on plant leaves to get rid of the white mildew instead of buying chemical treatments.
I have a bins in my laundry room for donations, cleaning cloths, recyclables, and garbage so that as soon as something is outgrown, wears out, is emptied, or irreparably broken, torn, or stained it can be disposed of immediately.
I’ve reduced my basic cleaning supplies to baking soda, white vinegar, bleach, and liquid dish soap. I decided that if an item can’t be easily cleaned, it hasn’t earned space in my house. (Formal, dry-clean only clothes and beautiful dress shoes not included.)
I’ve begun to declutter (starting with the kitchen). It’s easier to clean when there are fewer things. We can get by without all the specialized cooking gadgets (goodbye, specialized egg thingy) and if it takes 3 full loads to wash all our everyday dishes, we have far too many dishes.
I clean my silver by placing it in an aluminum lined pan, covering it with boiling water, and a 1/3 cup of baking soda. I use a stock pot for the big pieces and just increase the amount of water and baking soda.
I keep a bottle of wipes on the bathroom counter so that the surfaces are easily cleaned.
“We rip all dryer sheets in half. Work just as well, lasts twice as long.” Not only that, but stops the buildup of the wax that uses. We tend to use dryer balls (they are wool) rather than sheets.
Some of mine:
1)We use vinegar in the dishwasher, instead of jet dry, we found it worked a lot better, and it certainly is cheaper.
2)An old one is to use cheap toothpaste to clean tarnish, it really works
3)A trick a jeweller showed me, if you want to clean rings (metal ones), drop them in a glass full of dishwashing soap and water, and use an old toothbrush to scrub, I did this with my wife’s engagement ring that had seen a lot of things over the years, and it came out gorgeous. Even better, if you have it, use distilled water.
4)If you want to help keep a drain clean, pour in a cup of hot vinegar, then put in about half a cup of baking soda.
We seem to have an issue in the late summer with flies getting in the house. They always hang around the windows. I have discovered that instead of using any pesticide products or that awful fly tape, a sprits of rubbing alcohol kills them fast , and cleans the windows too
Bathtub cleaning: fill bathtub (and enjoy a good soak). After your bath, add squirt of detergent and a half cup of bleach. Leave overnight. Drain and rinse in the morning.
Swiffer sheets: do not buy them. Use an old washcloth instead, then shake it off and put it in the laundry. (DH buys 60 white washcloths at a time from Amazon, for $10, once a year. They go from face to cleaning rag to bike cleaning rag to trash over the year.)
If you’re doing a load of towels in the laundry, don’t use detergent every time. In my experience, you only need a little detergent every third or fourth time.
Don’t buy paper towels. Buy cheap white shop towels (available in large quantities at Home Depot). You save a bundle and generate way less trash.
Drain bacon on brown paper bags instead of paper towels.
If you buy those cheap, thin dog waste bags on a roll, you should consider buying bags in quantity. I get mine from U-Line. (http://www.uline.com/BL_106/1-Mil-Poly-Bags?keywords=Uline+1+Mil+Poly+Bags) I buy the 10x14 bags, 2000 at a time, and they last me a few years. I’ve never had one spring a leak at an inopportune time.
Spray Windex on flies, wasps and other bugs it kills them or at the very least slows them down enough to squish. If you can’t find the Windex or the bug is flying around the room Febreze air fresher will do the same thing.
Windex always reminds me of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. I hope the new movie lives up to the original.
“…Febreze air fresher will do the same thing.”
Makes you wonder what it does to the humans… 
^^^ makes 'em smell better. 
To prevent Brillo pads from rusting, place them in the freezer in a ziplock type bag after each use. The water in them freezes and rust won’t occur. Just dampen them with a little warm water the next time you are ready to use them-- they defrost in seconds. Refreeze when done.
“Do you have a favorite “magic” trick to do something cheaper, faster, better etc.?” - A cleaning lady is the cheapest, fastest and best alternative for me.
Ok - i’m excited i just figured out this little hint for hair.
my bangs (lightly layered and to one side) need trimming way before the rest of my hair. i find myself not wanting to go in for just bangs - cutting on my own does not turn out – so i today i tried this: i used my disposable razor (new of course!) and lightly shaved the bottom of my bangs. It was just like the razor that the stylist uses to achieve that layered/framing effect. They turned out perfectly trimmed - about a half inch – and will hold me over till i get back in!
my DD thinks i’m crazy, but i’m excited!
Baking soda…I use it instead of any kind of cleanser. Works great!
I need a hack to clean muffin pans - there is no food residue, but residue from cooking spray that I can’t scrub off. Suggestions?
Baking soda! Put a teaspoon or more in each cup, add some water and bring to a boil on the stovetop. Let sit for about an hour and the residue should be gone.
We recently had our lovely old cast iron tubs refinished. There’s a long list of things we’re not supposed to use on them to keep the surface safe. One thing we can use are those Magic Erasers and they are great! Really good on soap scum. I keep one in the shower caddy in case anything needs mopping up.
This guy is great in giving info about avoiding poison ivy rashes! Yes, urushiol (the oil that causes the rash) can be present even if the poison ivy has been dead for months, so beware. He likens it to trying to wash off axle grease and finds that blue Dawn works best. One thing he didn’t touch on much is that if urushiol is all over your clothes, and you wash them in cold water, it will spread to other clothes in the wash and re-irritate your skin. This happened to friends of mine. She got poison ivy, and he got poison ivy from clothes in the shared wash. Use hot water! And wash your sneakers too.