By Emily Woodbury
Last week we asked you to tell us how you use Windex around your house or RV other than to clean glass. Now we’re asking you the same question, except this time with toothpaste. How else do you use toothpaste other than to brush your teeth? Here are a few great ideas:
1. “Toothpaste works well at cleaning chrome,” writes Dennis Gardiner. Apply a small amount to a cloth, rub it on in a thin, even layer and watch the chrome sparkle!
2. “I use toothpaste instead of Preparation H. Much cheaper, but do not apply with your toothbrush.” —Barry Townes. Yes, folks, please do not apply with your tooth-brushin’ toothbrush.
3. I heard years ago that using toothpaste to remove a scratch from the face of a watch works. I never tried it until recently, and it did work. It didn’t remove the scratch, but it made it far less visible. —Jay Bradley
3.5. *According to some quick Internet research, toothpaste also works great for scratched up CDs, DVDs or even your phone screen. Apply it in a thin layer to the disc or screen and rub it in. Wipe it clean, and just like Jay’s watch, the scratches should be much less visible.Â
4. I’ve been putting toothpaste on my itchy bug bites for years. It works as well as any other anti-itch lotion! —Lorie H.
And a few other ways to use toothpaste, according to our other friends on the World Wide Web:
5. Use it to get rid of water marks and rings on wood furniture.
6. It also helps to get rid of permanent marker on wood surfaces or furniture.
7. Toothpaste helps to get gum out of hair! Did the kiddo get gum stuck in their hair? Use toothpaste to get it out! Apply a hefty amount of toothpaste to the hair where the gum is. Massage it in until the toothpaste is thoroughly blended. Wait for it to fully dry, then slowly pull the gum out of the hair. The toothpaste should make it much easier!
8. It will polish your silverware! Rub a small amount of toothpaste onto each silver piece with a cloth and watch the tarnish disappear!
9. Zap away cold sores! The toothpaste with dry out the cold sore (it’s even better if your toothpaste has baking soda in it), and help it heal faster.
10. Use it to get crayon off your wall. Apply a generous amount of toothpaste to the crayon marks on your wall. Let it sit for a minute before wiping the toothpaste and wax off your walls.
11. Use it on your hands to get smelly odors such as fish or garlic off. Bet no one has ever told you to wash your hands with toothpaste before, have they? Well, we only suggest doing this if you’ve got a stinky smell lingering on your fingers, but it really works!
12. Toothpaste will remove tarnish from jewelry. Just like the silverware trick, use a little bit of toothpaste on your jewels, and the tarnish will rub right off.
13. Make your shoes look brand-new. Using an old toothbrush, apply a small amount of toothpaste to your white sneaker soles. Scrub for a few minutes, then wipe away. The soles of your shoes should be white again! Toothpaste also helps to remove scuff marks on leather or vinyl shoes.
14. Use it to remove soap scum in your bathtub and shower. Put a little bit of toothpaste on a damp cloth and rub it in. Rinse with a wet cloth and watch all that yucky scum fly down the drain!
15. Clean a curling iron or hair straightener. If you spend time curling or straightening your hair, you know your appliances can collect a lot of built-up hair products over time. Apply a little bit of toothpaste and strip it of all those products. It’ll be as good as new!
16. Forget buying a kit – use it to clean your headlights! Using a small amount of toothpaste on a sponge will not only get rid of grime and insects but, as we mentioned above, it will also rid of any small scratch marks.
If you didn’t get to share your ideas before, leave a comment if you know of any other ways to use toothpaste. Thanks!
Well, I tried it to clean the toilet since I needed an abrasive cleaner that wouldn’t kill the good bacteria colonized in the black tanks
Brightly colored rubber/plastic watch bands can get pretty filthy. I take an old used brush and attach it to my electric toothbrush along with some toothpaste and it cleans them up like new.
No wonder my teeth are falling out
I have used toothpaste for years when filling holes made to walls made of sheet rock. You just put a little bit on the hole smooth it out with a putty knife or taping edge, let dry and repaint. Saved a lot of rental security deposit until we purchased our homes. To this day when the bride commands when will you hang that family photo frame? As soon as I get the tooth past to fill the old hole!
With that she says what else will you do today? I say nothing and she replies you did that yesterday! I sweetly reply but I wasn’t finished yesterday! AND THST IS WHEN THE FIGHT STARTED now where did I put my motorhome keys , dog and my fly rod…and he drives away towards the setting sun…ha! ya just have to love RVTravel…ha!
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I am going to try to slip denture cleaning tablets in here. I have to have my coffee or tea going all the time. My cup gets stained from especially tea. Heat the water, drop a couple of those fizzy tablets in and let it soak and cool down and wipe out with a sponge and you have a clean cup. I keep some in my shop and have used to clean out other cups / bottles etc.
Dip your fingernails in denture cleaner and it will whiten them!
Also works to remove permanent marker from TV screen, very carefully rub with finger, rinse and dry with paper towel.
Mention using toothpaste to clean silver to a silversmith and you will get a horrified look. Silversmiths consider toothpaste as far too abrasive (they use jeweler’s rouge, which is finely ground rust).
I have used it to remove coffee & tea marks from our mugs
My refigerator has handles that have a rough surface, toothpaste on an old toothbrush are the only thing that cleans them.