Toothpaste life hacks is something everyone could benefit from as toothpaste is a common household item. Oral hygiene is something most humans highly prioritize. In fact, it is common practice for us to brush our teeth twice a day. However, little do most of us know that it could be used for more than just keeping our teeth squeaky clean!
1. Anti-fog Toothpaste Life Hack
If you need goggles for your sport like scuba diving, swimming or skiing, this is one of many toothpaste life hacks that will benefit you most. You probably know how annoying it gets when your goggles fog up as you’re enjoying your sport. Take your toothpaste, squeeze a pea sized amount and rub it on the surface of your goggles, leave it and rinse it right before you use it. This prevents it from fogging up and now you can enjoy yourself without blurring your vision.
To understand why this works, you should know what toothpaste is made of. Toothpaste usually contains 3 main ingredients: abrasives, detergents and fluoride. Abrasives mechanically remove plaque from our teeth. Detergent helps to detach and disintegrate non-water soluble food particles. Fluoride on the other hand, strengthens the enamel in your teeth.
Goggles usually come with a layer of film in the lenses that encourages water vapor to form, this condensation fogs up your goggles. The abrasives in the toothpaste help to remove this film which will help to prevent your goggles from fogging up!
2. Shoe Washing Toothpaste Life Hacks
White sneakers are gorgeous when you first buy them. Maintaining them on the other hand is not for the faint of heart. You’ll feel distraught as soon as the first spec of dirt appears on the shoes and it’ll go downhill from there. Fret not. You have toothpaste to the rescue! All you need to do is to wet the dirty part and add some toothpaste on the spot, then use a toothbrush to scrub it off.
You can also use toothpaste on leather shoes. For leather shoes, you’ll need to use a cloth to gently wipe the toothpaste onto the dirty spots instead of a brush. This will clean the dirt off at the same time give it a nice shine.
3. Kitchen Utensils Stain Removal Hack
If you’re a coffee or tea lover, you’ve probably noticed how your favorite cups turn brownish from your beloved drinks. If you’re bothered by the stains, try using a small amount of toothpaste and use a brush to scrub it all over the stains. Rinse it to see if it clears the stain up. Repeat these steps as many times as necessary.
4. Jewelry Shining Hack
Your dull jewelry could be one of the reasons why you get new ones. However, if you don’t like the idea of spending on new jewelry, toothpaste could be your solution. Try applying some toothpaste on the dry piece of metal, gently scrub it with a soft cloth. Leave it for a few minutes before washing it off. This will extend your jewelry’s lifetime and avoid burning a hole in your wallet.
5. Stench Removing Toothpaste Hack
Have you tried getting fishy stench off your fingers and nails? It’s usually very stubborn which is really inconvenient as it gets very uncomfortable to have a stench on you. If you’ve tried washing it with soap and find that it didn’t work, try spreading toothpaste on the affected areas. Repeatedly washing it with toothpaste will help to remove that nasty smell quicker.
6. Chewing Gum Removal Hack
If you have children, this is one of the more important toothpaste life hacks you’ll want under your belt. Chewing gum is sticky by nature and if you get it stuck on hair, it will be difficult to remove. The hack is: smear some toothpaste onto the gum and have it remain in the area for a while. The toothpaste will slowly loosen the gum and make it way easier to remove it from hair!
7. Clean Heating Tools with Toothpaste
If you’ve done ironing chores, you’ll notice that there will be gunk build-up on the iron. Beware of this, because if you heat it up enough, it may even melt and stain the clothes you iron.
This is also very common in hair curlers and straighteners where hair products may get stuck on the surfaces of your hair styling tools.
What you can do is take some toothpaste and rub it on the gunk. Take a damp cloth to wipe it off and it will remove the gunk! Repeat this process if some parts still stick to the heating tools.
8. Sink Cleaning Toothpaste Hack
If your detergent does not do its job to clean your sink, try cleaning it with toothpaste instead! Spread a generous amount on the sink and let it stay for a few minutes. Toothpaste can remove stains and dirt from the sink on top of your detergent. If the dirt is stubborn, you can check out this article on how you can deep clean it further.
9. White Shirt Stain Removal Hack
White fabric is very versatile and clothes in white look great when paired with many different clothing. It is a shame that it is very obvious if you stain it. There are many ways to clean a stain, some more effective than others. Toothpaste is a great cleaning agent to remove oil based stains like makeup, foundation or even crayon.
Use a small amount of toothpaste and place it on the stain. Take a toothbrush and scrub it gently then rinse with warm water. This trick can be enhanced with other methods of stain cleaning such as using baking powder.
10. Hair Dye Removal Toothpaste Hack
Anyone who has dyed their own hair knows that it may flow onto the skin around your hair. If you notice it later than you should, it will stain your skin. To remove it, you can use whitening toothpaste to get rid of the unwanted stains on your skin.
11. Toothpaste Life Hacks to Clean White or Transparent Surfaces
You probably have a few white surfaces at home. Be it white walls, white flooring or white cabinets, you may find these cleaning tips helpful. Bathroom floor stains or kitchen floor oil can be difficult to get rid of but as long as you have dirt or stains on it, toothpaste could be useful to clean them up. Depending on the surface, you could choose between using a cloth or a brush as your handy help. Smear toothpaste on the affected area, let it sit for a few minutes before you wipe it down with the damp brush or cloth.
12. Cleaning Baby Milk Bottles
Mothers listen up! If your baby milk bottles start to smell but no matter how many times you wash them with soap you still couldn’t get rid of the smell. It is time to try this underrated trick of using toothpaste!
First, squeeze some toothpaste on the bottle brush and scrub the insides of the bottle. Next, pour hot water into the bottle and let it soak for a few minutes. Pour the water out and rinse at least twice to ensure you get rid of all the toothpaste residue.
Transparent surfaces like glass or plastic could benefit from cleaning with toothpaste too! Similar to white surfaces, spread some toothpaste on the transparent surface and wipe it all over. For this category, you should use a gentle cloth as you wipe them down to prevent causing any visible scratches on the surface.
Final Word
If you have read up to this point, you’ve equipped yourself to use these toothpaste life hacks for any emergency uses. To improve the use of toothpaste, you can pair it with other substances like baking soda or hot water for better results. Such a useful life skill should not be kept to yourself. Go on and share this list of toothpaste life hacks to anyone who may need it!
