8 Cool and Unusual Uses for Ice that Solve Simple Household Problems

Ice isn’t just good for cooling a drink or filling a cooler. Here are 8 cool uses for ice you may not have considered:

1. Remove gum. For those tricky moments when chewed gum winds up somewhere it shouldn’t be—ice cubes to the rescue! Need to remove gum from carpet or hair? Simply use an ice cube to freeze the area fully, then chip the gum away.
2. Clean grease from your garbage disposal. Want to make your garbage disposal cleaner and more efficient? Get rid of greasy gunk by putting ice cubes with a little bit of water down the garbage disposal. The friction will remove the grease. Easy-peasy.
3. Eliminate furniture dents from carpet. Have an unsightly carpet dent after moving furniture? Fill each dent with an ice cube, let it fully melt, then use a brush or fork to rub out the dent.
4. Easily water hard-to-reach plants. Have hanging plants? Or plants in hard-to-access places? If you have plants that are difficult to water with a pitcher or tend to overflow, drop a handful of ice cubes into the planter. Done and done!
5. Clean skinny vases or jars. Have odd-shaped vases or glassware that you can’t get a sponge inside? Put ice cubes, lemon, salt and ice into the hard-to-clean container and shake, shake, shake until it’s sparkly clean.
6. Reheat rice in the microwave. If you’re going to reheat a bowl of rice in microwave, place one ice cube on top; we find it’s the perfect amount of water for a serving.
7. Refresh your pet’s water outside. It’s pretty simple but often overlooked and super important…add ice to your pet’s water dishes so they get cool water on hot days.
8. Make outdoor air conditioning. Want to create outdoor air conditioning? Just put a large bowl of ice in front of a portable fan…and it will make the air cooler. Works indoors too!

Want to have the right amount of ice for all your needs—conventional or less conventional? We’re ready to help.