15 Ways Rubbing Alcohol Can Be Used To Clean Your Home

barbcrawford/Flickr

We’ve all used rubbing alcohol to clean out cuts and scrapes before putting on a band-aid, but rubbing alcohol is great for disinfecting more than you think. So, if you’ve got it stored in the medicine cabinet, get it out because you’ve got some cleaning to do.

Rubbing alcohol can help you clean your bathroom, kitchen and so much more. Find out 15 ways you can start using it to clean your home in more ways than you ever thought possible.

1. Cleans Mirrors

If you want to get rid of water stains and leave your reflective surfaces streak-free, then rubbing alcohol can help you get the job done.

mirror
elsie/Flickr

2. Cleans Granite

Granite counters have never shined so bright as when they’ve been wiped down with a little rubbing alcohol.

granite-cleaner-9
One Good Thing

3. Cleans Blinds

Give your window treatments the cleaning you know they need. We can all be guilty of not cleaning blinds as often as we should, but rubbing alcohol will make the job easy and effective.

blinds
jasontrbovich/Flickr

4. Sanitize Makeup Brushes

Soaking your makeup brushes in rubbing alcohol can give them a deep cleaning and have them good as new in no time.

brush
38476143@N05/Flickr

5. Eliminates Fruit Flies

Having a spray bottle of rubbing alcohol handy can help you eliminate fruit flies. Simply spray them, wait for the alcohol to knock them out and sweep them up later to get rid of them.

fruit-fly
Shutterstock/Bob Vila

6. Removes Odors

Spritzing a little rubbing alcohol into the air can eliminate odors in every room in your home.

bottle
barbcrawford/Flickr

7. Removes Water Stains

Rubbing alcohol will leave glass shower doors shiny and streak-free because it’s great at finally getting rid of those pesky water stains.

shower
49057184@N08/Flickr

8. Cleans Hairspray

If you spray your hair with hairspray, then you know that it gets everywhere— on the mirror, the counter, you name it. Well, easily remove the sticky spray from each and every surface in your bathroom with a little bit of this liquid and a rag.

hairspray
luxenography/Flickr

9. Sanitizes Your Phone

When your phone screen starts to look all smudged and icky, a tiny bit of rubbing alcohol can get it clean again.

phone
thomweerd/Unsplash

10. Gets Rid Of Ink Stains

A pre-wash with some rubbing alcohol will ensure that those ink stains don’t stay in your clothes after they’ve already gone through the wash.

pen
helloquence/Unsplash

11. Removes Ice From Windshield

If you’re used to having to scrape the snow and ice from your car before you leave each morning, that job just got a whole lot easier. Spraying your windshield with rubbing alcohol will loosen the snow and ice so that when you wipe it, it’ll practically fall right off.

ice
thirteenofclubs/Flickr

12. Removes Fingernail Polish

No need to buy fingernail polish remover at the store anymore, because a little rubbing alcohol will do the trick, too.

polish
cliche/Flickr

13. Shines Windows

Since this is great for cleaning mirrors and shower doors, why not use it on all of the glass in your home, you know? Get those windows crystal clear with the help of rubbing alcohol.

window
ewastepkowska/Unsplash

14. Disintegrates Grease

Grease residue around the kitchen can be hard to clean. But, that built up grease and grime is not a problem that this cleaning method can’t solve.

kitchen
completeinteriordesign/Flickr

15. Disinfects Sponges & Cleaning Cloths

Sponges and cloths that we use to clean with aren’t always so clean themselves, but a quick soak in some rubbing alcohol can remove those hidden germs.

cloth
slightlyeverything/Flickr

I bet you didn’t know that rubbing alcohol was such a multipurpose cleaning agent. I certainly didn’t, but thank goodness I’ve got some on hand. I’ll be off to clean, now!

[h/t: One Good Thing]

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About the Author
Augusta Statz
I have a B.F.A. in Writing from the Savannah College of Art and Design. I’m an avid writer with a genuine sense of curiosity. I feel the best way to absorb the world around you is through fashion, art and food, so that’s what I spend most of my time writing about.

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