Aluminum foil is found in nearly every kitchen, and it’s surprisingly useful - but not only for its traditional purpose. From the cookbooks of grandmothers and the journals of contemporary internet homemakers, here are 30 new uses for that most unassuming of all shiny flexible metals: aluminum foil.
You already know that aluminum foil is a kitchen must-have, but its pliable, metallic structure makes it super-useful all over the house. Here's why you should stock up:
1. Polish silverware.
With this nifty trick, a chemical reaction causes tarnish to transfer from your silver flatware to the aluminum foil. Line a plastic bin with the foil (shiny side up), and place the silver pieces inside. Pour in a 1/4 cup washing soda, and a gallon of boiling water. Stir and let soak for 10 to 15 minutes. Get more details about this method here.
2. Protect pie crust.
Worried about burning your famous apple pie? Cover the edges with a ring cut out of aluminum foil to keep the crust from getting too brown.
3. Conceal a credit card.
If you have a "swipeless" credit card with an RFID chip (not a traditional card with a magnetic strip), it's possible that con artists can scan it and collect certain account information through your wallet. The risk is very minimal these scans won't give thieves enough information to make a fraudulent purchase in your name. But if the thought still makes you uneasy, wrap your card in a piece of aluminum foil to deflect the scanner.
4. Scrub dishes.
Like steel wool, a ball of aluminum foil can help clean cookware you can give a good scrub, like glass casserole dishes or cast-iron skillets.
5. Scare away birds.
Chances are you love seeing brightly colored feathered friends around your garden, but if you have a fruit tree, you might not want birds feasting on your bounty. Like the reflective tape sold at garden stores, strips of aluminum foil hung in your tree can help keep them away.
6. Move heavy furniture.
Wrap the feet of your couch in a few layers of heavy duty foil to help scoot it across carpeting (but avoid using this trick on delicate surfaces or furniture that the foil could scratch).
7. Make a funnel.
In a pinch, create a makeshift funnel (which you can even bend to fit in tight spaces) out of a piece of foil fashioned into a cone.
8.Frosting a cake but you’ve run out of pastry bags?
Just grab a double thickness of aluminum foil and roll it into a cone shape, leaving a small opening at the point. Fill with frosting of spreading consistency. Twist the top to close the cone and use the device to make pretty frosting designs on your cake. Admittedly, this whole process is easier with a plastic zip-close bag with a corner snipped off, but when aluminum foil is all you’ve got it can be a lifesaver!
9.Sharpen your scissors.
In between professional sharpenings (or for those 99 cent pairs of scissors that you don’t want to pay to have sharpened), use aluminum foil to keep your scissors in top form. Cutting through 6-8 layers of aluminum foil will improve the cutting surface of most scissors.
10. Keep your oven clean.
Tired of scraping burned-on food out of the bottom of your oven? Line it with aluminum foil before making something particularly messy. Don’t leave it in there permanently, however, because it can lead to oven damage over time.Protect the heating element in your electric oven. For those times when you have to scrub burned-on crud out of your oven, cover the heating element with long strips of aluminum foil before spraying the inside of the oven with oven cleaner.
11.Make interesting cakes.
Novelty cake pans in odd shapes are expensive. Get the same effect by using a regular cake pan but making a shaped liner for the inside. Make sure the liner is at least as tall as the edges of the pan and several thicknesses so it will hold its shape. This makes it easy to make that snowman or heart-shaped cake without spending a lot of money on a new pan.
12.Make a sun box for seedlings.
If your plants are growing crooked or looking less than healthy, cut off the top and one side of a cardboard box, then line the bottom and remaining sides with aluminum foil. Place your plant inside and put the entire operation in the window with the open side facing the window. The sun will reflect off of the foil and cause your plant to grow up straight.
13.Make a portrait reflector.
Forget those super-expensive professional photography reflectors. Just cover a sturdy piece of cardboard with aluminum foil and you’ll have an excellent light reflector for portraits and still lifes.
14.Re-soften hard brown sugar.
Many people put hard brown sugar in the microwave to soften it up, but this can actually backfire and make the sugar harden even more. Instead, wrap the block of hardened sugar in some aluminum foil and bake in a 300° (Fahrenheit) oven for 5 minutes.
15.Protect your furniture.
Pets can’t stand the feeling or the sound of crinkling aluminum foil. If you want them to stay off of your furniture, cover the seats with clean aluminum foil whenever you’re not using the furniture. Your pets will learn within a couple of days to avoid sitting up there. You can also prevent them from scratching or biting furniture legs by covering them in aluminum foil.
16.Steam your silk or wool garments
by placing a piece of aluminum foil on top of the ironing board and under the garment. Pass the iron over the garment from a few inches above the fabric while holding down the steam button. The steam will remove wrinkles without harming the cloth with direct heat.
17.Reflect heat into your house.
Put a layer of aluminum foil behind your radiator when it is off and completely cool. When the radiator is turned on, more of the heat will be directed into the living area and less will be absorbed into the wall behind the radiator.
18.Use it as wrapping paper in a pinch.
You can glue or tape interesting cut-out pictures onto the aluminum foil to make it even more personal.
19.If your TV and DVD player are stacked one on top of the other,
you may find the picture is a bit fuzzy. This often happens when the electromagnetic fields from both devices interfere with each other. Place a sheet of aluminum foil between them to cut down on the interference.
20.Make a solar cooker.
You’ll cut down on energy costs and experience a traditional way of cooking.
Bonus Tip:
In many locations, aluminum foil can be recycled along with all of the other household recycling. When you’ve used it for cooking and all of the other interesting projects listed here, just throw it into the bin along with all of your other recyclable materials to keep it out of the waste stream.
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