After weekend bashes, your home always looks a tad… disheveled. The morning after, you find yourself navigating through the land mines of empty food containers, random wrappers, and of course almost-empty bottles of stale beer. It’s kind of like a scavenger hunt, only you know, not fun. Lucky for you, there are plenty of ways to put that leftover beer to good use – excellent use, actually.
Part 1
1
Get rid of pests
Beer is like a superhero for your home and garden, guarding them against oodles of different pests:
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Distract bees and wasps from your weekend bash by placing bowls or jars of beer several feet away from the main area.
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At night, place dishes or jars of beer around your garden to prevent slugs and snails from messing with it.
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If cockroaches are an issue, put a piece of bread-soaked beer into a jar and put Vaseline around the lip of the jar. Once the roaches get in, they won’t be able to get back out. (Enter evil laugh here.)
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To combat fruit flies in your kitchen, pour beer into a jar and cover the top with plastic wrap, poking tiny holes in it to trap them.
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Mice also enjoy a good brew: Put an inch or so of beer into a pail, and use a piece of wood to create a ramp for mice to crawl up. Once they fall into the pail, they won’t be able to get back out, so you can take your hungover mice back outside.
2
Spruce up your lawn
If you’ve got brown spots on your lawn, pour half a cup or less on the problem areas. Word has it the fermented sugars kill any fungus and feed the grass so it can make a comeback.
3
Enrich soil
Yeast is beneficial to your plants, so pour a few tablespoons of flat beer into your garden to amp up the soil and keep your plants healthy.
4
Polish metal
Thanks to the carbonation and acidity in beer, you can use it to polish tarnished metal, such as copper pots and pans – even your taps and showerheads! Seriously: Fill a sandwich bag with flat beer and tie it around your dull taps. Later on, you’ll find they look brand new.
5
Loosen rusty bolts and screws
If you’ve got a screw that won’t come loose, pour beer onto the frozen hardware, wait a few seconds, then give it a turn. The carbonation helps in breaking down the rust.
6
Polish wooden furniture
If your wooden furniture is starting to look how you feel the morning after a shindig, dampen a microfiber cloth with flat beer and gently rub it into your furniture. It’ll give it a polish and revive the color.
7
Soothe sore feet
If your feet are giving you attitude, one of my favorite uses for beer is an at-home foot soak. The enzymes in beer help soften callused feet while the yeast softens your skin. Mix one part room-temperature beer and one part warm peppermint tea and hop in!
8
Condition your hair
Beer is loaded with nutrients that repair damaged hair to its former glory. You can also use beer as an all-natural way to highlight your hair. Makeovers anyone?
9
Brighten your skin
The hops in beer act as a natural astringent, while the yeast helps balance your skin’s pH levels. Give this beer facial a try, which may also improve your skin’s elasticity, clear pores and fade brown spots. (Don’t mention it.)
10
Clean your jewelry
You don’t need to spend a fortune on jewelry cleaner: Simply drop your silver and gold into a bowl of beer, then shine ‘em up using a microfiber cloth.
11
Water your plants
Now that you have a ton of uses for beer to try, don’t forget about repurposing those empties: If you’re planning on taking a trip, you can use empty beer bottles to water your plants while you’re away. Fill your empties with water and push a cork in the top. Carefully drill a hole into the cork and turn it upside down into your plant’s soil. They’ll still be nice and hydrated when you return!
