secret household cleaners (you already own)

Eliminate odors
Try coffee grounds to keep your refrigerator smelling nice and fresh, just as you do with an open box of baking soda. Place them, new or used, in a bowl and remember to replace them every month or two.

Wash the dishwasher
To clean the inside of your dishwasher, fill the detergent cups with whichever one of these four products you have on hand: ½ cup white vinegar or a few tablespoons of powdered laundry bleach, Tang or lemon-flavored Kool-Aid (lemon is the only flavor that works). Then run the empty machine through a complete cycle.

Chill out
Use ice to cleanse the blades in your garbage disposal and break up the grease that collects on the rotors. Every few weeks, toss in a handful of cubes, turn on the disposal and run cold water. Add some orange, lemon or lime peels to ward off odors.

Soften up grease
Get baked-on foods off pots and pans with a dryer sheet. Just place one in a pot, fill with water and let sit overnight, then sponge off the next morning. The antistatic agent weakens the bond between the stuck-on food and the surface of the pan, while the fabric softener works its loosening magic.

Absorb grime
Cover the bottom of your trash can with old newspapers. It's an easy way to keep clean and soaks up leaks and odors.

Wipe away scuffs
Make scuffs on vinyl flooring disappear by applying a little baking soda with a damp sponge.

Gather shards
Pick up tiny slivers of broken glass—the ones you don’t notice until you’ve stepped on them—by gently pressing a slice of bread or a piece of Play-Doh on the area. Be sure to wrap the glass up carefully before throwing it away—you don’t want an animal to eat it or a child to play with it.

Zap bacteria
To keep bacteria from taking up permanent residence in your kitchen sponges, rinse them with water at the end of each day, squeeze, then put in the microwave for three minutes. Let cool before touching. Do the same with your cutting boards, if they are microwaveable

Floss often
Remove debris from the cutting disc on your electric can opener with dental floss.