Home-Ec 101 Reader’s 71 Quick Q-tip Tips

Heather says:

Last week I posted a quick video suggesting that Q-tips could be used to clean a computer keyboard. I then asked for your Q-tip Tips. I thought it would be fun to share the tips that came from the Home-Ec 101 Audience -(Do you remember when we did this with uses for leftover coffee or used coffee grounds?)

Here are Home-Ec 101 Reader suggestions for using Q-tips around the house (some duplicates were omitted):

1. CouponSnob -I use Q tips to clean the tiny, thin edge on my TV screen!
2. Laura – Oddly enough, Q-tips are the only thing I have found that gets bread crumbs out of the corner of the toaster oven
3. Lgunnoe965 – I use Q-tips to spot bleach (pre-washing) white shirts that have appliques or printing and shouldn’t be bleached entirely.
4. Sweepmom – I like using Q-tips for my son to spread glue around when he is pasting things for school projects.
5. Debb55106 –  Use them to clean my grooves in my Tupperware covers!
6. Charlene K – I dip the ends of Q-Tips in olive oil and then run them along sticky zippers. The oil is an excellent lubricant that will make the zippers open and close easier.
7. MarciaF – I use Q-Tips to clean the crevices of my cook top. It works wonderfully to get out the greasy dirt. I also use Q-Tips for cleaning the window frames of the dirt that accumulates around the handles and locks.
8. Degood – I use Q-tips to apply lipstick after the tube gets too low to apply normally,
9. Sweetheart4171 – I use Q-tips to clean those hard to clean corners when cleaning the windows!
10. Patrice – I use Q-tips to clean the crevices of my hummingbird feeder
11. Gkaufmanss – I use Q-tips for tons of things, including in crafts to apply glue to small corners or delicate projects, to clean tight spaces like the peephole in our front door or the space between tiles in the kitchen and bathroom, and even as a to-go cologne applier (by spraying one end to take with you in case you need a little more by the end of the work day). Thanks!
12. Steve Berry – I use Q-tips to clean and remove heatsink compound on computer processors. the heatsink compound can be removed using a soft circular motion while soaked in a chemical that breaks down the thermal paste and heatsink compounds. once the paste turns milky, I simply use more Q-tips to soak up the mess and lightly polish the surface from impurities with rubbing alcohol in an open air enviroment to keep from becoming over fumed. It works like a charm, and if it wasn’t for Q-tips, I would have a lot of messy processors to remove and clean using other methods that simply don’t work as well.
13. RyanMinton – you can use q tips to clean game cartridges..:)
14. Sksweeps – I’ve learned that a fairly moist q-tip can be used to get things out of your eye, even when everything else has failed! Be gentle, but it works!
15. Vmkids3 – I use Q-tips to touch up knicks on walls with paint. Don’t have to dirty a brush that way.
16. Lisa Garner – I use Q Tips for cleaning up an little paint drips on the base board when painting!
17. Jalapenomama – I use Q Tips for those hard to get at spots on my coffee basket.
18. Kathy Eyre – I even use Q-Tips for the dog’s ears!
19. Ecodannelle –  I use Q-Tips for everything an old toothbrush won’t work on. They work great for cleaning that impossible-to-get-to spot between the edge of a pot or pan and where the handle hooks on.
20. Elizabeth – I use Q-tips to clean our mini blinds. I use a little pledge and just wipe clean.
21. Tmoyer6980 – I use them with peroxide to clean kids cuts and scrapes.
22. McKim – My husband uses them for cleaning his guns and scopes.
23. Katsrus – I use Q-Tips for cleaning my earrings. With some rubbing alcohol. It helps to get the gunk off and makes them nice and clean beofre you put them in your ears.
24. FictionOneForty – They are great for dusting my collectibles that have lots of delicate crevices!
25. Dwndrgn – They are great for cleaning remote controls – all the food and grime that gets all over these! I use rubbing alcohol on the tip to avoid water and it works very nicely.
26. AngelaCisco – I use q-tips to clean the corners of picture fames. The dust gets caught in the corners.
27. Yadgirl – I use Q-Tips to clean my printer nozzles
28. Donutsmamab – I use Q-tips for cleaning the little rim around my glasstop stove. It’s too small to wedge my finger into.
29. Piscesvirgo –  I  clean the camera lens on my phone with q-tips
30. KellyDelrossoSaver – I use Q-tips to clean small knick knacks, by first dipping them in warm soapy water.
31. Zippy573 – We use Q-tips at work to clean out the small vents on the oxygen concentrators. it holds the cleaner and is small enough to get in crevices!
32. Blake Powers – If you have ornate silver or brass items, a small bit of polish or jeweler’s rouge on the tip of a Q-tip makes a great way to get into those hard-to-reach areas. They can also be used for cleaning inside voids and such in decorative items that would otherwise be impossible to reach. They are very good for cleaning intricate mechanisms or items with very tight tolerances in the same way. Finally, if you need to lubricate mechanical items that have very tight tolerances but must not have any greasy/waxy build-up, a very small amount of Pro-Gold lubricant (or similar) can be applied with one end of the Q-tip, and then use the other to wipe so that only a film remains.
33. MiscRamblings –  I use it when I paint things on my windows (tempra paint) and I get it on the window pane. Keeps me from trying to do it with a rag and ruining the design.
34. CoupleDumb – I use q-tips to clean all of our gadgets.
35. Reneefishman – I use Q-Tips to clean out the dirt that gets into the crevices of my iPhone: the doc connection port, speakers, mics & the volume toggle. Also I clean around the rim of the iPhone with QTips – where the glass meets the antenna band. They are great for other small electronics as well.
36. Firemom – If you spill something really sticky in a hard to reach place, use some Q-tips and your favorite cleaning agent. I find this especially helpful when I spill drinks in the car. Cleans out the console quite well.
37. Carye – [. . .]  My favorite though? Bird toys! My parrotlets and Quaker loves them!!! Cheap and safe!
38. Anna Heath – I use them as a mini paintbrush to get in really small spaces.
39. Stephanie Templeman – I use Q-tips for all sorts of things. I think my favorite is to use them when I clean the small crevices in my hand carved wood items. They work great with a little Old English or Pledge oil.
40. Cjrthemamiblog – I use q-tips to clean our wooden rocking chair cus it has hard to reach spots!
41. Doodle741 – I use them to remove the mascara I accidentally get on my skin … I use them to let the kids paint with (they don’t smoosh like paint brushes) … they are SOOOO easy to use!
42. Simplystriving – I’ve noticed Q-tips are added to my shopping list more now that I’m a parent. We use them to paint. We use them to apply creams to our toddler. We use them to clean toys.
43. Lori S – I use them to shapre the white polish while doing french manicures on myself.
44. Taznjade – I use them to polish silver jewelry boxes that have intricate designs with crevices. Works great!
45. Sadie – Q tips are great for cleaning up playdoh molds.
46. Klsiegler – I use them while painting nails so I dont have polish on the edges of my fingers too
47. MelissaSelznickResnick – I used them to clean my car vent
48. WarpedWeaving – I use them to clean out my son’s belly button. He is not a fan  I also use them at work (I’m a special ed teacher) as glue brushes.
49. Misty – I use them to help remove make up AS WELL as to apply moisturizer around my eyes in a cleaner and more gentle way than my fingers can.
50. Milehimama – I use q-tips to apply Neosporin, athletes foot cream, or other medical creams. It keeps the tube from getting contaminated.Also, you can make dots with them when dying Easter eggs!
51. MeganRallNatherson – I use them to apply acne medicine to the inside of my teens ears, as well as taking off toe nail polish.
52. Caanan.Tully – I use Q-tips to clean bathroom faucets–that spot between the handle and the faucet that you can never get… unless you take the whole knob off, and there’s not always time for that.
53. Debbi.Chum – I use them to clean the straw part of my son’s thermos and get inside the spout of his sippy cups! Nothing gets into those small spots better.
54. Zwiker – cat toys!
55. Janlnye – Vents on the hair dryer. Calamine lotion to bug bites. Neosporin to booboos. Dipped in alcohol to remove price tag sticky goop from glass
56. Annabanana2800 – I use Q-tips when cleaning out the air vent over the microwave! They work great!
57. Briannelynn26 -i use them to clean the vents. Like the cold air return, and the fan in the bathrooms.
58. Mclanek – I use them to clean around the faucet (especially on the hard to reach side close to the wall).
59. SallyNusbaum – I use them to get the “goo” out of the shower door tracks.
60. CharlenetheBean – They’re great for cleaning the little places in silver holloware. We have some MARVELOUS and BEAUTIFUL George Jensen bowls – the Q-tips can get into the otherwise-inaccessible places!
61. Katherine – Use them for cleaning the ridges in the seal on the refrigerator door.
62. Bobbie Laughman – When my kids were little, I had them use Q-tips as the “paint brushes” with those “Paint With Water” coloring books – do they still make those?
63. They’re also great as disposable eye shadow brushes.
64. Sara Beth – I use Q-tips to clean the tracks of our windows.
65. Angie23 – Sorry, I know this is gross, but I use them to clean around the hinges of the toilet! (We all have toilets, I’m just glad you clean yours)
66. Nova – I use them to clean the drawer tracks in my fridge.
67. Amanda M – I used them to get into the crevices of my breast pump! Worked pretty well.
68. Tami – Dip them in rubbing alcohol and clean the tops of dusty candles.
69. Deneicer1 – I used them as little scrubby brushes to clean inside the spout of my daughter’s sippy-cups.
70. Andrea – We use them to apply ointment during diaper changes. No mess – I love it!
71. Phillip Guyton – I used them as a child with nail polish remover to remove the faces of lego men… does that count?  (Keep in mind this is the same guy that did the photography for this year’s Countdown to Turkey Day, we’ll cut him some slack)

This is a sponsored post.  Q-tips® product was  provided by Unilever, the makers of Q-tips®; my tips and usage suggestions are my own.