LITTLE ROCK — DEAR READERS: With the daily uses of the garage, the floors can get stained with fluids from vehicles. Here’s how to clean them up:
To remove fresh oil stains, pour 1 cup of baking soda over the spot and let sit for a while.
Scrub, scrub, scrub, then rinse and mop dry. Clay-type catlitter can be used to absorb large spills.
Pour it on the area and grind it in with your foot. Let it stay overnight, then sweep up andwash the area with detergent and water.
If the spills are old, try to scrape off all residue with a paint scraper. Then grind in sawdust to absorb any oil. Sweep up after allowing it to sit awhile so that all the liquid is absorbed, then wash stains with detergent and mop dry.
Try to clean the floors in your garage at least once a month to prevent serious staining that will be harder to get off later. You can cover the floor where the car will sit with rubber mats or large aluminum pans, if you know exactly where your vehicle leaks.
DEAR HELOISE: I use baking soda to clean my bathroom sinks and tub. I also occasionally use baking soda to brush my teeth.
A few months ago, I was reading the back of the box, which said you can add it to bathwater to soften it, and that a teaspoon added to shampoo will get your hair really clean.
- Denise Riebold, Magnolia, Texas
DEAR READER: You’re right - baking soda is fabulous and has a multitude of uses. Did you know that you can sprinkle some baking soda in the clothes hamper to keep odors away? You even can make a baking-soda sachet using a coffee filter filled with baking soda. Staple it shut and toss it in the hamper. Keep some baking soda in a clean grated-cheese container beside the sink and it will be right at hand.
Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or e-mail
MovieStyle, Pages 34 on 07/23/2010