16 Utterly Surprising Ways to Use Table Salt

Salt is one of the most widely used and oldest forms of food seasoning. It’s not very expensive, and it has many great benefits you probably didn’t know about.

Bright Side invites you to take a look at some surprising ways you can use this kitchen essential.

Prevent mold on shower curtains

Wash your shower curtain with saltwater when you first buy it, and it will never grow mold.

Sources: huffingtonpost, homeguides

Relieve mosquito bites

To relieve the itching caused by mosquito bites, simply moisten the tip of your finger with water, dip it into salt, and then rub the mixture over the affected area.

Source: top10homeremedies

Make copper items shine again

Cleaning copper with salt works wonders. Just mix this seasoning with vinegar and flour, or add some lemon juice to it and rub the tarnished surface.

Source: thekitchn

Prevent oil from splattering

Sprinkle a little salt in the frying pan before adding meat or fish to fry. This will keep hot oil from splattering.

Source: simplehomemaking

Make your candles drip free

One way to make any molded candle dripless is to soak it in a concentrated salt solution for several hours. Let the candle dry before lighting it.

Source: oregonlive

Get rid of shoe odor

Eliminate bad odors from smelly shoes by putting cloth bags full of salt into them. Let these bags do their work, and your shoes will smell better in a couple of hours. You can also just sprinkle some salt inside your shoes, shake them, and vacuum up the salt.

Source: rd

Get rid of ants

To get rid of ants, combine salt and water in a 1:4 ratio in a bottle. Spray this solution where you see ants congregating, or just sprinkle some salt over those areas.

Source: healthyandnaturalworld

Prepare safe and cheap homemade paint for kids

Using simple ingredients, you can make your own homemade paint for your kids. In a bowl, blend 1 cup of flour with 1 cup of salt. Then add 1 cup of water and a few drops of food coloring.

Sources: tinkerlab, mommyknows, Nicko’s Kids DIY

Prevent sliced fruit and vegetables from turning brown

Keep fresh fruit and veggie slices from turning brown by putting them into a bowl filled with saltwater.

Sources: wikihow, epicurious

Remove onion smell from hands

The oils in garlic and onion leave a scent on your hands after cooking. However, the solution is quite simple: wet your hands, rub them all over with salt, then rinse.

Sources: wikihow, gluesticksgumdrops

Make your own all-natural air freshener

To make this you will need 1/2-1 cup of salt and 20-30 drops of any essential oil or rose petals. Simply arrange all of your ingredients in a bowl or jar, and get ready to enjoy your fresh-smelling home. You can also use the peel of half an orange as a natural bowl.

Source: buymeapie

Put out kitchen fires quickly

If the grease fire in your kitchen is getting out of control, pour salt on it. It will cut off the flow of oxygen and smother the flame. It’s always a good idea to keep a container of salt handy when cooking with grease.

Sources: HouseholdHacker, dummies

Clean the iron

To remove gunk spots, turn the iron to the highest temperature setting, sprinkle a little salt on a piece of brown paper, and run the hot iron over it.

Sources: Akkas World, popsugar

Keep windows free of frost

Rub the inside of windows with a sponge dipped in saltwater, and frost won’t collect. Another way to prevent the windows from frosting up in cold weather is to keep a small cloth bag of salt on your windowsill.

Sources: thesun, thriftyfun

Clean the sink

A paste made of lemon juice and salt can be used to clean stainless steel sinks and fixtures. In fact, it works even better than popular chemical cleaners.

Sources: brit, littlethings

Don’t let yourself be fooled at a restaurant

If you’ve received food at a restaurant that had a hair in it, ask the waiter for a replacement dish. But don’t forget to generously sprinkle your food with salt before showing it to your server or the manager. If you do so, you’ll be sure that your dish is actually replaced.