It's difficult sometimes to sand those nooks and crannies in fancy molding. Here's how the pros make a special block for the job.

Chimney flues are the tubes that carry smoke from a fireplace or furnace out of the building to the top of the chimney. They are typically lined, either with ceramic flue tiles or metal. Regular cleaning of a chimney flue is important, especially if it vents a wood fireplace. Burning wood releases c

Although dried lavender works to repel clothes moths, there is no scientific evidence that lavender oil kills fleas. Lavender essential oil is far too toxic to use directly on the body of a pet, especially cats , according to Dr. Arnold Plotnick, a veterinarian writing for the Cat Channel website.

Venetian blinds add elegance and style to a room while filtering out light and providing privacy. You can buy venetian blinds in an assortment of styles and materials, including vinyl, fabric, wood or faux wood, and with a few tools, they're easy to install.

Clean out your kitchen drain regularly..kitchen sink image by jedphoto from Fotolia.comThe best way to keep your kitchen drain pipe clear is to ensure food residue and grease are cleaned out every time you use the sink by using a sink strainer each time you wash. But when clogs do occur,...

Painting a room can be messy. Even professionals make mistakes and drip paint onto flooring, including the rug. So if you or a painter make a mess on your carpet, don't assume that you have to throw your rug in the trash, or take it to be cleaned professionally. There is a way to remove paint stains

There's a fine line between presenting a winning sales pitch to a customer, and overselling your product. When trying to make a sale, many salespeople will say anything they think the customer wants to hear in order to get her to purchase the service product. Using this strategy, the customer is lik

While baking and decorating a cake may be an enjoyable experience for many home bakers, washing the dirty cake pans created during the process is rarely fun. You can usually clean cake pans with a simple solution of hot, soapy water although if your cakes burn or become stuck to the pans you may nee

Microfiber cloths are typically made of polyamide and polyester. The combination of these materials make microfiber cloths excellent for absorbing water. Microfiber cloths are great for cleaning glass, appliances and most other surfaces around the home. It is important to properly wash microfiber cl

Long-lasting CorningWare is famed for its durability, going from the oven to the dinner table and changing hands from one generation to the next. Although the bakeware is dishwasher safe, burned-on food may not come off in spite of repeated washing cycles. Serious grime requires more aggressive clea

Perfume makes your skin smell fragrant, but spilling it on your carpet can inundate your home with a very strong and pungent odor. Some perfume also contains dyes that can stain your carpet. Thus, when cleaning perfume stains, use a solution that will remove the color and another solution that will

Touted by home cooks and professional chefs for holding a sharp edge, carbon steel is prone to rusting. Leaving a carbon steel-bladed knife wet, even for a few minutes, may cause the blade to rust. Typically thought of as a no-rust surface, stainless steel knives will rust, especially if you wash th

3M's double-sided tape is designed to stick two things together. Generally, the longer double-sided tape has been on a surface, such as furniture, the more difficult the tape will be to remove. In most cases, a little solvent will take care of the problem.

Tile-cleaning acids are often dangerous and require utmost caution when handling. Some are common household products while others are caustic cleaners. You should seriously consider the permanency of using acid to clean tile: Once you have used an acid product, you can't go back.

A nice alternative to carpet is hardwood floors. Hardwood floors make a spill cleanup easier, but over time, wear and tear can make hardwood floors very dirty and dull. Simple mopping of your floors will bring back some of the shine of original hardwood floors, but nothing like a buffer will. Buffer

Summer nights, medical conditions and several other factors can be responsible for the sweat smell in your mattress. Considering most people spend a third of their lives in bed; it is no surprise this odor is common in many bedrooms. This particular odor can increase in potency until the mattress is

Sweat and deodorant stains seem to be an inevitable part of wearing clothes. After trying different deodorants to find one that doesn't leave as much of a mess, or allow you to get sweaty, you may have reconciled to having stains in the armpits of your shirts. These embarrassing stains don't need to

Tired of spending too much time scrubbing your pots and pans? Discover easy, fast, and effective eco-friendly alternatives to harsh cleaning chemicals.

In the form of tiny little airborne spores, mold travels through the air undetected until it finds a damp area to rest and set up camp. When this process occurs in nature, it breaks down rotten leaves and dead organic matter and no one is too bothered by it. When it settles on your rug inside your h

Sewer smells in bathrooms can be a serious problem, not just because of the horrific smell, but also because such a smell is a good sign that there is a plumbing problem. This type of smell can be neutralized and will remain gone, but only if the precipitating problem is first repaired.