Extraordinary Uses of Toothpaste and other Ordinary Things

By Alex in Home & Garden on Jan 21, 2009 at 2:52 pm

WomansDay has a really nifty post about extraordinary uses of 16 ordinary household items. It’s just what you need to release your inner MacGyver!

Here are some of the surprising things you can do with … toothpaste:

1. Remove crayon marks
Squirt a small dab on non-gel toothpaste on the wall where the mark is. Rub gently with a soft cloth, then rinse with warm water. Voilà!

2. Deodorize hands
Can’t get garlic or onion odor off your hands? Wash them with a blob of toothpaste.

3. Whiten sneakers
Clean rubber soles by rubbing scuff marks with an old toothbrush and non-gel toothpaste.

4. Buff a DVD
Get rid of light scratches by squeezing a little non-gel toothpaste onto a cotton ball. Wipe over the DVD from the center out to the edge. Rinse with water and dry with a non-abrasive, lint-free cloth – all gone.

5. Defog goggles
Coat the inside of swimming goggles with toothpaste, then wipe off – they’ll be crystal clear.

Find out more about what nail polish, dryer sheets, coffee filters, and chalk can do: Link – Thanks Annie Hammel!

Previously on Neatorama: All MacGyver Ever Needs …


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  1. Justin
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 3:10 pm

    Didn’t Mythbusters show that toothpaste does not in fact remove scratches on cds or DVDs? (how would that even work in the first place?)

  2. Bradley
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 3:28 pm

    It’s also great for polishing jewelry! My girlfriend and I were soaking in a natural hot-spring and we noticed a couple of silver rings I got her turning bronzey. I rubbed some toothpaste on them, and they turned back to silver, even more brilliant than before.

  3. Miss Cellania
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 3:33 pm

    The best thing for taking crayon off walls is WD-40.

  4. windowshoppist
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 3:55 pm

    I love lists like this, but when it comes time to actually use the substance (coffee filter, toothpaste, peanut butter) for the whatever (remove gum from hair, polish jewelry, diffuse light on camera flash), I’m 99% likely to misremember and use the wrong substance for the task.

    This can lead to awkward moments, when your spouse asks you “why are you putting peanut butter on that DVD?”

    …Not that this has ever happened to me. Um.

  5. Edward
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 4:02 pm

    Toothpaste is a mild abrasive. I can attest to the sneaker whitening and jewelry cleaning.

    As for crayons, if you have old paint or the wrong type, noting will work well. In fact, I have ruined a wall by trying to use WD-40. Always put glossy paint on the doors and baseboards and eggshell on the walls.

  6. redphone
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 4:03 pm

    toothpaste is a mild abrasive. As for the cd’s, perhaps it gives a coating that squeezes a little more life out of a scratched up cd.

  7. K!P
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 4:08 pm

    you want to remove a bit of the plastc of a cd, the data is in the silver part.

  8. Lore
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 4:46 pm

    My mom wold put toothpaste on any minor burn that we ever got.. it was like magic.

  9. sw
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 5:07 pm

    rubbing your hands on anything stainless steel (a spoon, the sink) will remove garlic odors quicker and less minty

  10. matthew bennett
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 5:54 pm

    Toothpaste is the BEST for itchy bug-bites.

  11. Max Power
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 6:11 pm

    Impressive!

  12. Sofar
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 7:39 pm

    I use toothpaste to polish the back of my iPod. (I’m too manly to carry around a compact, but an iPod is about the same size and just as shiny.)

  13. nix
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 8:51 pm

    White toothpaste makes great spackle, too! It’s especially handy for nail holes in walls.

  14. sw
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 10:20 pm

    heh, neatorama meets hints from heloise

  15. Zo
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 10:54 pm

    Toothpaste for burns works well, as Lore said.

    I also used to use it on pimples to dry them up!

  16. a.t.
    Jan 21st, 2009 at 11:49 pm

    Toothpaste will also remove condensation rings left on your wood furnature from a glass of your favorite cold beverage.

  17. J.B.
    Jan 22nd, 2009 at 1:12 am

    I have used toothpaste many times to get a scratched rental DVD to play, works like a charm everytime. Good to know about using it on white sneakers, I’ll try that next.

  18. Rocky Rook
    Jan 22nd, 2009 at 10:59 am

    Reminds me of the trick my sister-in-law taught us … if you have caked-on stuff in a dish pan or other cooking piece and dish soap isn’t getting it off, then put a dryer sheet in it for a few hours. The stuff just falls off.


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