Monday, November 28, 2011

Bubble Magic

Now,,,,,I know there are countless homemakers out there (men & women) who know all kinds of tricks for home maintenance fix-it's....I don't happen to be one of them....well, maybe I know one (1) but it's not very impressive.

The other night I actually learned something of value while watching the television....I find most of what's on  the t.v. to be a waste of time....Man In Black has a television in every room...including the garage.
The man loves t.v.....but he'll never admit to it.

A plumber being interviewed by a news reporter passed along a maintenance tip he tells his customers for maintaining their kitchen sinks...

This trick may be of no surprise to you..... but I wasted no time in grabing a box of this



 and poured a generous amount of this into an oversized measuring glass



 and let the science experiment begin....

the plumber said to pour it in your kitchen drains from time to time to keep them clean

now I've heard of chopped lemons down the disposal for a fresh clean smelling sink...

but this reminded me of the time my son called me at work asking if we had any vinegar (said he was making something to mix in liter soda bottles) and I came home to discover he'd used all my good vinegars for salad dressings to make soda bombs (boys...if you've never raised a boy before you have no idea what you're missing)...this was around the same time he would climb the hallway walls - feet on one wall, arms on the other until he reached the ceiling. I regret I don't have a photo of that...no Son, you don't need to do this again when you come home for Christmas...let's wait to see if Zoe comes up with the same idea years from now. 

this concoction foams and bubbles....not sure what happens when you pour it down the sink but Man In Black suggested I take off my wedding ring and let it soak in the bubbling glass for several minutes......

time passed....I totally forgot about my ring....got comfortable on the sofa with the knitting needles and dog....

later......Man In Black reached his arm over the back of the couch and presented me with the most beautiful sparkling diamond ring....dazzling....(yes, I do have a dazzling wedding ring...do you want to know why?)

eighteen years into our marriage I took my ring to a jewelers to have a loose stone set.....you guessed it.

they lost my ring....they lost my wedding ring....I was crushed....they said they could never replace the original but would do whatever was needed to make it right.....I now have a dazzling ring....

the style is close to the original...only this time around, I can see the diamonds. 

We were poor way back when, what can I say....except that we are still poor. Some things do stay the same.

anyway....it don't know what this plumbers tip did to the inside of the sink but I sure love what it did to my ring....

have a great day...I have a hat and glove to post tomorrow along with the patterns...one glove...I'm still working it's partner. And there are buttons to sew on....10 buttons.... I'm still deciding on which lucky buttons will adorn the gloves that will most likely never be worn.

Why? because it was 84 degrees yesterday....the sunshine continues..on and on and on..

California livin'

5 comments:

Spare Parts and Pics said...

Hmmm, interesting. Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate (a weak base). Vinegar is acetic acid (a weak acid). When you mix an acid and a base, you get a reaction that gives off energy (exothermic) so you see bubbling. Just don't mix a STRONG acid and base, or the reaction could be violent!! See, all those chemistry classes paid off!!

Nancy said...

I've known about this trick for some time and it works very well. I usually put the baking soda down the drain first and let it sit for awhile, then poor in the vinegar. It's great if you have a septic system and can't use caustic drain cleaners. Thanks for sharing! :)

Sherri B. said...

I love this tip and have used it for years...it really does work! Had no idea about the jewelry cleaning bonus though! xo

Dutch Girl said...

The vinegar alone works well to disolve water deposits; I use it to clean the pet bowls. I clean ALL my diamonds by soaking them in hot water, then in Windex, and giving them a little scrub with a soft toothbrush. If that Spare Parts guy said soda and vinegar creates acid, it might be bad for your jewelry if you clean them that way regularly!!! IDK

TexWisGirl said...

i've used the baking soda in the drain before, but hadn't chased it with vinegar. thanks!

and thanks for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment! funny, the next blog i read after seeing your visit was spare parts and pics and found out you were her sis! :)