Don’t Put it Down Your Drain: Coffee grounds

A few stray coffee grounds here and there down the drain won’t cause much of a hassle, but a large amount of coffee grounds dumped down a drain at once can cause a clog.  Coffee grounds tend to attract grease, allowing small amounts of oils and grease to build up much more easily.

coffee2Instead of pouring coffee grounds down the drain, there are a number of other uses for this daily “garbage.”  If you have a compost pile, mix used coffee grounds in with the compost to release nutrients into the soil and make the soil more acidic- which helps plants get nutrients from the soil easier.  You can also spread coffee grounds mixed with orange peels around gardens to repel cats or other pets that use your garden as a litterbox: the exotic scent discourages them from hanging around the area.

Some say that ants are also repelled by the smell of coffee grounds, so using these as an ant repellent might prove to be an effective alternative to poison traps and sprays.  A small bowl of coffee grounds in a refrigerator can also act as a deodorizer for the fridge.