Looking to save a little money, up the ante on your conservation agenda, and amaze family and friends with these product life lengtheners?! Extending the lives of common household, beauty, and office products may not be as challenging as you think. These ideas and tips can show you how!
7 Easy Ways To Make Things Last Longer
- Razor blades can be expensive today, with some costing as much as $25 for a set of eight. Thoroughly cleaning and drying the blade after each use is the simplest way to preserve it and prevent oxidation, which breaks down the metal’s molecular content and effectiveness. In many cases, this simple step doubles the blade’s lifespan from a couple of weeks to a whole month. Dousing with alcohol before toweling dry (which has a drying effect and can cut through residue) can help eliminate any remaining moisture too.Loofahs are little luxury products that help us to keep skin smooth, exfoliated, and consequently flake-free especially in cold, dry weather. Left in warm, moist places, however, they become Petri dishes for bacteria. It’s best to remove them from a shower stall or soap dish. For optimal cleaning and extended lifespans, after every few uses (or once a week) be sure to soak them for at least two hours in a mixture of half a cup white vinegar to a quart of water. Allow to air dry thoroughly.Laundry Detergent. It’s a well-kept secret in the large appliance trade that laundry detergent manufacturers recommend using twice the amount of soap necessary for a spanking clean wash. Try using just half for the same results.Make-Up – Who doesn’t love a good quality lipstick and mascara? Unfortunately, some can be expensive. For lipstick longevity, storing in a cool, dry, dark place — ideally, the refrigerator — to prevent melting will allow you to use only as much as you need. When you get to the bottom of the tube, use a cotton swab to ferret out the last vestiges of lipstick, which may actually last another week. Mascara is the product beauty experts claim garners the most complaints as it tends to dry out quickly. As a measure of prevention, don’t pump the wand in and out of the tube repeatedly when applying. This introduces air into the formula which will lead to drying. Additionally, limiting yourself to one or two tubes at a time (perhaps a warmer, lighter color for day and something more dramatic for evening) will also preclude the tendency for it to dry out as you are using it up faster than if you had four or five tubes lying around.
Inkjet Cartridges – Costly inkjet cartridges can be at the top of office expenses, especially for those who work at home. As a rule, by design these cartridges monitor usage, signaling your printer to flash the “low ink” symbol when in fact much — sometimes even half — remains in the cartridge. How many of us automatically toss away the cartridge at this point so as not to run out in the middle of printing a document? Resetting the cartridge is easy when you locate the cartridge’s tiny circuit board, located on the side, which contains a pinhole reset button (not all ink cartridges provide this option, so be sure to ask your office supplies store professional). Resetting, which can be done using a safety pin or sharp point of a paperclip, will then send a more accurate reading to your printer.
Vacuum Cleaners – While vacuum cleaners come in all shapes and sizes, and with varying capabilities, the following general rules of thumb apply to preserve and extend the life of your vacuum. First, before vacuuming, be sure to check the brush roll and remove any debris (carpet remnants; string; human and pet hair, etc.). These elements can slow the brush’s action, causing the belt or engine to work harder and wear out faster (it can also require you to vacuum longer, using more electricity). Every so often, refer to the instruction manual and remove the brush roll completely. This will reveal the bearings, which benefit from cleaning and lubrication (one expert recommends using plain olive oil). Monitor the belt for cracks, lumps, loosening, etc. Make sure it is properly affixed, as it can cause engine wear if not. Additionally, a worn belt results in an inefficient vacuum.
Batteries – With laptop — or lithium-ion — batteries costing in the vicinity of $85, keeping them in tip-top running order should be the order of the day. While there are a myriad of methods that claim to maximize battery life, some experts suggest starting simply by what most of us do: plugging into an AC outlet whenever and wherever possible. A fully-charged laptop battery will ensure you always have what you need. Technology pundits also debunk the modern myth that continuous charging (thought to overcharge) can shorten battery life, as they simply stop charging when they reach capacity. Also noted is that a laptop’s LCD display usurps a considerable amount of battery power, so keeping the backlight low can work to conserve it. The same applies to volume levels. If you don’t use Bluetooth, disabling it on your display will save power. Batteries will drain and die faster in extreme temperatures, so don’t leave a laptop in the car — especially in summer and winter. Most computers have power management settings found under power options in your control panel; “energy saver” may be one so be sure to select it.
Beth Herman is a freelance writer with interests in healthy living and food, family, animal welfare, architecture and design, religion, and yoga. She writes for a variety of national and regional publications, institutions, and websites.
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