Monday

Coffee with Tommy Coffee Grounds Recycling

Many of us enjoy a cup of coffee everyday and all the health benefits it provides. However, tossing out the left over coffee grounds means that we miss the very beneficial aspects and uses of coffee grounds around the home.

You can use coffee as a:

Deodorizer: Allow your coffee grounds to dry and place them in the freezer overnight to remove any lingering odors. Simply rub grounds on your hands to remove food odors. Adding a couple drops of vanilla and placing the mix inside your closet will give clothes a unique freshness.

Fertilizer: Rosebushes, azaleas, rhododendrons, evergreen and camellias are all popular plants in Nevada and will benefit greatly from coffee grounds.

Insect Repellent: Ants hate coffee- if you sprinkle coffee around your home or on the anthills themselves they will pack up and move on. Give plants an extra boost at the start and prevent root parasites by mixing coffee grounds with radishes, carrots, potatoes, or any other root based fruit or vegetable and sprinkle it at the base.

Deterrent: Combine orange peels and coffee grounds and place in gardens and planters to detour cats from using those locations as a litter box. You can also rub down your dog with coffee grounds after a bath to soften their hair and detour fleas.

Cleaner/Cover-up: Steep the coffee grounds and use a Q-tip to collect the thick liquid to cover up furniture scratches. Coffee is also a light abrasive and very good for cleaning rough and slimy stain-resistant surfaces.

Cellulite Reducer: Many cellulite reduction products have coffee as a main ingredient. Take ¼ cup of coffee grounds and mix it with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Apply the mixture to the desired area, then wrap with plastic food wrap. Allow the wrap to stay on for several minutes then rinse with warm water. This method is most effective if done twice a week. You might want to put newspaper down on the floor to catch any coffee that may escape from the wrap.

Other Uses: Add some coffee grounds to your fishing worms to make them live longer. Coffee grounds also make an excellent dye for cloth or eggs. Sprinkling wet coffee grounds over your fireplace ashes will prevent the white dust from polluting your house while cleaning. And mixing coffee ground with your old medications will neutralize most of the harmful chemicals before dumping them down the drain.