Most people know that vinegar has hundreds of uses.  But before this past week, I had no idea what household challenges it could solve.

First, I had a fruit fly infestation in my house.  I couldn’t figure out where all these fruit flies were coming from.  It ends up I had a bag of rotting potatoes in my laundry room (gross… I know).  

Anyway, I asked my father-in-law, who is a jack-of-all-trades, how I can get rid of them.  He instructed me to put his red wine vinegar out in a few bowls and the fruit flies would be attracted to the vinegar, crawl into the bowl and die.  He was right and within a day, my fruit fly issue was resolved.

Then I noticed that my trusty teapot had gotten a bit funky on the bottom from all the calcium and lime build up.  After using a scouring pad and getting nowhere, I determined a needed a new one.

I headed to a few department stores and could only find one hideous looking teapot that didn’t match my kitchen.  I complained to the 70-year-old associate that I couldn’t believe no one was selling teapots.  He looked me in the eye and said, “you are living in the past.”

I was speechless.  People still drink tea.  In fact at the 2010 International Home and Housewares show there were teapots and tea gadgets everywhere.

I told my boss about my issue and he recommended trying vinegar.  I had no expectation when I poured in the vinegar and let it set for about 24 hours.  I was so happy when I looked inside and all the calcium and lime build up was gone and no scrubbing needed.

Vinegar will certainly find its way onto my grocery list a bit more often!  Have a vinegar tip?  Share it with the rest of us in the comments section.