6
FIND MANNINGHAM | JANUARY 2022
www.findmanningham.com.au
COMMERCIAL COFFEE MACHINE
By Ivana Smith
If you’re a coffee lover and would like to care for the environment, coffee grounds are the perfect ‘green’ answer. Throw out your chemical cleaners and embrace versatile coffee grounds! There are probably as many uses for coffee around the home as your imagination can think of. Here are a few ideas to whet your creative appetite. Air freshener Food, pet odours, sweaty work and sports clothes, shoes – every home has obnoxious smells at some time. The good news is there’s no need to buy an air freshener. Coffee grounds soak up all the odours around them. This is why fresh coffee beans need to be tightly sealed after each use. Dried coffee grounds are another matter. Put used and dried coffee grounds in a bowl or open jar and place it in the offending room. For your shoes and wardrobes, hang an old stocking, sock or cheesecloth filled with dried grounds and tie up with an elastic band. The smells will disappear to be replaced with the fragrant aroma of coffee. Delicious! De-flea your pets Fleas are a common problem in household pets and treating them can be costly and time-consuming. Many of the flea-removal products on the market contain harsh chemicals and can produce unwanted side effects. Unlike Melburnians, fleas don’t seem to like coffee! Simply rub dried coffee grounds throughout your pet’s fur after shampooing, then rinse them off and allow your pet to dry as usual. (Be aware that coffee grounds can be toxic to dogs if consumed.) However, if this treatment does not work, take your pet to a vet. Deodoriser Food such as blue cheese, overripe vegetables and fish can leave unpleasant lingering smells. A small jar of dried coffee grounds on a shelf at the back of the fridge will absorb those unwanted odours. Neutralize smells in the microwave by combining 2 tbsp of grounds with 1/2 cup of water, then heat for less than a minute.
Handy household uses for coffee You can also insert a small open bag of coffee grounds in your rubbish bin to minimise garbage smells. Drain cleaner Is your drain smelling a bit whiffy? It’s easy to fix with the help of leftover coffee grounds. Toss a couple of tablespoons of coffee grounds down the drain, followed by two drops of soap and a kettle full of boiling water. This breaks down the grease, and cleans the pipe, thereby reducing the smell. Don’t do this more than a couple of times per month so you can avoid accidental clogging. Cleaner Say goodbye to harsh chemicals! Use coffee grounds to clean things around the kitchen such as pots and pans, dirty dishes, sinks, stove tops and cooking hobs when they are becoming grimy. Make sure whatever you’re cleaning won’t get stained by the coffee. Place a few teaspoons of coffee grounds on a cloth and scrub the surface with the grounds to scour grease and grime away. Rinse thoroughly once the grease and grime have been removed. Coffee is a mild abrasive so scrubbing your cookware with it won’t scratch it. Dark wood furniture stainer If you have furniture with scratches or scuffs, there’s an easy way to mask the damage. Most staining solutions use toxic materials. Coffee grounds are just as effective while being entirely natural.
Mix coffee grounds with warm water, dip a cotton swab into steeped coffee grounds and dab on scratches. Wait 5-10 minutes, buff the area with a soft rag and see how it looks. Repeat the process if necessary. It is best to first test on an inconspicuous area before applying to the visible parts of the furniture. Hand cleaner Who loves the smell of chopped onions or garlic on their hands? No one! Instead of reaching for the hand cream or soap, try rubbing your hands gently with dried coffee grounds. This will eliminate those smelly odours and exfoliate them at the same time, leaving them smooth and soft. For advice on coffee and how to supply it to office spaces, workplaces and clubs, contact Ivana at ivana.smith@ xpressodelight.com.au.
Ivana Smith Commercial Coffee Machine Xpresso Delight 0418 393 085 www.xdcoffee.com.au
