13 Situations You Didn't Know Stuff Lying Around Your House Could Get You out Of

Emergencies can happen at any time of day and can range from the life-threatening to the embarrassing. To try and get you through life's hiccups we have compiled a list of everyday objects that can help you out of 13 tricky situations.

Remember everything you need is likely to already be in your house. Use this guide and a little bit of imagination to escape these common and not-so-common tight spots.

1. DIY clean up

Use large soda bottles to make a broom. Check this YouTube video to learn how to turn your recycling into a cleaning utensil.

Bernard shows how to turn super common 2L soda bottles into a really efficient broom. Ok - so it isn’t an instantaneous broom, but this know-how could really save you under the right circumstances.

2. Busted seat fixed by belts

The material of chair seats is always going to wear out before the timber. But a busted seat doesn’t mean it’s time to throw the chair on the trash heap.

Head over to this blog to find out how to turn your old belt into a very beautiful base for your old chair.

3. Bee credit

If you have been stung by a bee, your first instinct may be to cover the sting site. But first, reach for the plastic. A credit card is a perfect tool for removing a bee sting. Getting the sting out as soon as possible is important to reduce the amount of venom that enters your body.

Never use tweezers for this job as the stinger may break off inside your skin and become impossible to remove. Grab your credit card and scrape it against the skin toward the stinger.

With this method, the stinger will catch on the edge of the credit card and will be lifted away out of the skin.

4. Need a light

If you need to start a fire, whether it's for a romantic mood setting, or to heat a house or maybe you need to destroy some incriminating evidence, getting it lit safely and quickly is important.

Use a cotton ball dabbed with a small amount of petroleum jelly to get the fire started. Cotton balls are always dry and provide an easy to light material that will get your fire going in seconds.

5. Emergency evening wear

If you have a big date but nothing to wear. Never fear, check out this video for a method of how to turn a men’s business shirt into a super cute dress that will be sure to impress.

6. Duct tape savior

Obviously, duct tape is one of the most useful things to have in your house, period. However, there is one thing, in particular, it can do really well - open the lid of really difficult jars.

Check this video to watch how the super grippy tape will help open even the tightest jars.

7. Extinguish fire with baking soda

Baking soda can actually help put out a kitchen grease fire. Never add water to this type of fire as it can cause the fire to spread.

Baking soda will stop the flames from rising and dampen the flames. Watch this video to see how to use this common household item in a life-saving situation.

8. Cashmere salad?

It might sound ridiculous, but if you’ve washed your professional wool sweater ready for that big interview tomorrow but really the sopping pile of wool is never going to dry before the morning - never fear. Give It a turn in your salad spinner.

The spinner will remove lots of water from the material gently and quickly. This useful household item will keep you eating healthy and looking good.

9. The secret recipe

We still don’t know exactly what is inside Coca-Cola, but we do know it's a super useful drink to have around the house. In fact, it’s so useful it deserves to take up at least three points on this list.

First up, use cola to clean. Cola is a brilliant cleaning product. If you need to get metal shiny and free from built-up gunk, leave it soaking in some cola overnight, and ta-da! The cola's aggressive properties will make everything like new.

10. Toilet cleaner

It is also a great way to clean stained toilets. Again, just pour a good amount of the black drink in the toilet, leave overnight if possible, then flush away the cola and say goodbye to the stains too.

11. Bug killer

Cola is also a really efficient bug killer. If you have a problem with ants or cockroaches, put cola in a spray bottle and go at them. The sticky drink will soon be their demise.

12. Hair Lightening

One very unexpected use for cola is fading hair color. If you have dyed your hair but feel the color is just a bit too dark, wash your hair with some Coca-Cola to lift away some of the layers of dye.

After learning about this useful cola life hacks - are you still going to drink some? 

13. Toothpaste

Another item found in almost every house is toothpaste. This tooth cleaning product has a wide range of uses that extend far beyond just cleaning your pearly whites.

Toothpaste is a great cleaning product, from bathroom tiles to white sneakers. The slightly gritty texture of toothpaste will help clean up stubborn stains as well as draw out impurities from cloth and grout. But use it sparingly until you've tested the effect on precious fabrics.

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Toothpaste is also a really useful skin care product. If you have painful, infected pimples or blemishes, dab a spot of toothpaste over the troubled area before bed. The toothpaste will reduce the swelling and infection overnight so you'll be fresh-faced to start the day. 

So there you have it, a list of ways to get yourself out of a tight spot by just using what is close at hand. After doing a few of these brilliant life-hacks you may be eligible for your MacGyver badge. Got some more tips using common household items? Let us know in the comments.