Awesome article on household dangers.. Nice that things are finally coming to light a little about how harmful so many things are to us. Maybe all the non-believers from before will finally start to realize the dangers that are being posed to us and our children and find alternative solutions.

10 Everyday Dangerous Things in Your Home

by Cristen Conger

Conger, Cristen.  “10 Everyday Dangerous Things in Your Home.”  10 June 2008.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://home.howstuffworks.com/dangerous-home-products.htm>  25 July 2008.

Inside this Article

1. Introduction to 10 Everyday Dangerous Things in Your Home
2. Household Item 10: Mothballs
3. Household Item 9: Pesticides

1. Household Item 8: Pressed Wood Products
2. Household Item 7: Carpet
3. Household Item 6: Laser Printers
4. See more »
   1. Household Item 5: Lead Paint
   2. Household Item 4: Air Fresheners and Cleaning Solutions
   3. Household Item 3: Baby Bottles
   4. Household Item 2: Flame Retardants
   5. Household Item 1: Cosmetics
   6. Lots More Information
   7. See all General Household Safety Tips articles

Either by accident or faulty manufacturing, household consumer products injure an estimated 33.1 million people in the United States every year [source: Consumer Product Safety Commission]. These incidents rack up an astonishing $800 billion in related expenses from death, injury or property damages [source: Consumer Product Safety Commission]. The Consumer Product Safety Commission that regulates and recalls products on the market emphasizes potential dangers to children in particular for hurting themselves with toys, furniture or other common items in the home. Read the rest of this entry »

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Homemade Cleaning Products are not only a fraction of the cost but much healthier for you, your children, pets and the environment. Mix 1 cup vinegar, 32 oz water and 20-30 drops of essential oil in a spray bottle for an all purpose cleaners you can use nearly everywhere. Kills bacteria and viruses.

Avoid snails in the garden by crushing up your eggshells after your breakfast and sprinkling them around your plants.

Keep the squirrels and cats out of the garden by sprinkling cayenne pepper around your plants.

Get rid of fruit fly’s - place a small glass filled halfway with apple cider, 2 drops of dishwashing liquid mixed well on your counter. The flies will be drawn to it instead.

Keep your dryer running by NOT using dryer sheets. It causes a film over your lint filter that you can’t see but if you put water on your filter you can see that it won’t go through. This can cause your dryer to go out and a house fire. If you have been using dryer sheets, scrub your filter well with hot water, soap and an old tooth brush. A safety pen placed inside the him of your clothes will usually get rid of static cling.

Get rid of ants by putting small piles of cornmeal were you see them. They eat it and take it home but can not digest it. It takes a week or so but works and won’t hurt your kids and pets.

Cut down on garden bugs and aphids by spraying your plants with a solution of vinegar and water, 1 cup vinegar to a gallon of water. Vinegar is a natural pesticide so you can get rid of many critters by using a solution mixed with water, for peskier pest use a stronger solution.

Avoid or weaken colds and viruses by drinking thyme tea. Mix about a teaspoon of thyme powder to 16oz cup of hot water sweetened with honey, if you prefer, and drink at least 3 times a day until you feel better or the people around you are no longer ill. Thyme is a natural anti-viral spice and helps to kill the virus without any side effects to you. I put thyme in my soups and recipes all winter and make sure my daughter gets a fair amount of it, it works great with kids also.

Weed killer - Straight vinegar poured or sprayed directly on weeds should kill them. If you pour or spray it in the cracks of your driveway or similar areas prior to weeds coming up it should prevent them from doing so.

Get rid of lime build up by socking a towel in vinegar and placing on op of the area that has the lime. Leave the towel set for a few hours and the lime should wash right off. This also works for corroded screws, fixtures and knobs. If possible you can soak the item directly in a bowl of vinegar.

Bleach alternative - A great bleach alternative is Borax powder. You can find this in nearly any stores in the cleaning products isle near the bottom. Borax can be used on whites and colors and helps get your wash cleaner without the chemicals, I find it to work great for us.

Spot remover - One of my favorite spot removers is a baking soda and the ‘all purpose cleaner’ from the above recipe. Sprinkle baking soda on the spot and then spray with the ‘all purpose cleaner’ from the above recipe. Let it sit for a few minutes to a few hours depending on the toughness of the stain. Wipe clean with a damp towel. I’ve found this to work on carpet, clothes, even dry cleaning.

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If you need your plants to bloom for a special event or just need then to perk up and grow already, this tonic should help do the trick. Epsom salt is high in magnesium sulfate that is readily dissolved in water and used by plants.  Most soils are low in magnesium and have a high alkalinity. Dumping a bucket of water with epsom salt dissolved in it will help restore the magnesium in the soil and help your plants grow, bloom and produce. You can’t over use it on your plants but here is the recommended dosage for your house plants, garden and lawn.

House Plants: 2 tablespoons per gallon of water, once a month.

Tomatoes and peppers: 1 tablespoon dry per foot of plant height, every two weeks.

Roses: 1 tablespoon dry per foot of plant height, every two weeks. Also scratch 1/2 cup in the soil per plant at the beginning of the bloom season. You can also use as a foliage spray of 1 teaspoon of epsom salt with water weekly to discourage pests.

Lawns: Apply 3 pounds per 1250 square feet, dry.

Epsom industry says that sage is the only plant that does not respond well to epsom salt.

The cheap stuff works great so no need to buy the expensive stuff marked ‘for the garden’, it should run around $2. for more info visit www.epsomsaltcouncil.org

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There are several alternatives to pesticides.. If your garden is lacking in life, like butterflies, bee’s and what not, try these ideas. I was able to get a once lifeless backyard to be filled with all kinds of pretty and harmless insects and noticed it really cut down on the bad ones that I didn’t want anyway..

Get rid of ants by putting small piles of cornmeal were you see them. They eat it and take it home but can not digest it. It takes a week or so but works and won’t hurt your kids and pets.

Cut down on garden bugs and aphids by spraying your plants with a solution of vinegar and water, 1 cup vinegar to a gallon of water. Vinegar is a natural pesticide so you can get rid of many critters by using a solution mixed with water, for peskier pest use a stronger solution.

Avoid snails in the garden by crushing up your eggshells after your breakfast and sprinkling them around your plants.

Keep the squirrels and cats out of the garden by sprinkling cayenne pepper around your plants.

Get rid of fruit fly’s - place a small glass filled halfway with apple cider, 2 drops of dish washing liquid mixed well on your counter. The flies will be drawn to it instead.

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