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From the Magazine

10 Uses for Aluminum Foil That Make Life So Much Easier

By Editorial Staff

Aluminum foil is one of those multi-use kitchen staples you never want to be without. But there are so many genius ways to use aluminum foil that extend outside the kitchen and even the home. Humble aluminum foil is an all-around superstar that simplify your life, whether you need help polishing silverware or keeping the garden pest-free. Chances are you even have clever aluminum foil hacks of your own that we’ve never even thought of! Keep scrolling for to discover all the surprising ways to use aluminum foil inside the house and out.

This article originally appeared in our print magazine. 

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  1. How To Keep Cats Off Countertops With Aluminum Foil

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    Keep Cats Off Counters Your sweet cat loves prowling around the house at night, and she’s always getting into mischief on your kitchen counters. A surefire way to keep her off: Place a few sheets of aluminum foil on your countertops before you go to bed. Cats dislike the feel of foil on their paws, so your furry friend will no longer be tempted to hop up on counters. Problem solved! 

  3. Uses Of Aluminium Foil In Kitchen

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    Make Pouring Sugar Easy   Pouring the bulk bag of sugar you picked up at the supermarket into an airtight storage container would be much easier if you had a funnel! To make one, stack two sheets of aluminum foil, then roll into a cone shape, snip off the end, hold over the tub and pour the sugar into the wider end. 

  5. Aluminium Foil Uses

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    Ensure Your Batteries Work You’ve replaced the batteries in your remote control, but it’s still not working. The likely reason? The springs inside have lost tension, causing the batteries to move around. The fix: Fold a small piece of aluminum foil into a square and place between the battery and the spring. This will fill in the gap, ensuring the battery sits (and connects) properly.

  6. How Polish Silverware With Aluminum Foil

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    Polish Silverware If your cutlery is looking a bit full, try this: Place utensils in a foil-lined pan and add four cups of boiling water and 1/4 cup of baking soda. Soak for five minutes, then rinse with warm water. When aluminum foil and baking soda mix, it creates a chemical reaction that breaks down the silver's tarnish, leaving each piece looking as good as new. 

  7. Uses Of Aluminum Foil Hair Dye On Glasses

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    Keep Hair Dye Off Glasses You like to catch up on your reading while you wait for your hair color to set, but you worry about the dye staining your glasses. The save: Wrap a piece of aluminum foil around the frames, then slip them on. The foil covers will catch any drips, ensuring your glasses stay clean.

  9. How To Make Bananas Last Longer With Aluminum Foil

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    Make Bananas Last Longer Bananas always end up spoiling before we get a chance to enjoy them! To keep them fresh longer, wrap the stem of the bunch in aluminum foil as soon as you bring them home. The foil keeps the ethylene gas (which promotes ripening) from reaching the rest of the fruit.

  10. Slow Internet How To Fix Aluminum Foil

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    Speed Up Slow Internet If you’re having trouble accessing the internet on your laptop or cellphone in your house, your Wi-Fi signal might be weak. What can help: aluminum foil! Simply tear off a one-foot sheet of foil and fold all four edges in about an inch. Stand the sheet up in a curved shape behind the router. (Glue the foil to a piece of cardboard and bend if needed.) The foil will reflect the wireless signal back into the room, resulting in a stronger connection.

  11. How To Soften Brown Sugar With Aluminum Foil

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    Soften Brown Sugar You have everything you need to whip up a cake, but when you pull the box of brown sugar out of the pantry, you discover that it’s hardened and dried out. To the rescue: aluminum foil! Wrap the entire lump of sugar in foil, then place in the oven for five minutes at 300 degrees Fahrenheit. The foil will trap the heat in the wrapped-up sugar, which will cause the granules to separate. (Just be sure to use the sugar right away before it hardens again.)

  13. Aluminum Foil Tape Uses

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    Shield Doorknobs From Paint Instead of fussing with unreliable painter’s tape to protect the doorknob when you paint your door, cover the fixture with aluminum foil and mold it to the shape of the doorknob. The foil will create a temporary protective coating to prevent drips. Easy!

  14. Aluminum Foil In Garden

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    Garden to Pest-Proof Plants Last year, slugs and other insects destroyed the plants in your garden. To keep them at bay this year, use aluminum foil for mulching. Simply lay a few sheets of new or used foil around the base of your plants, piling dirt or small stones on the corners to weigh it down. The pests get a slight, harmless shock when they touch metal, so they’ll steer clear. 

  15. Related Links

    More From FIRST How to Juice a Lemon in 30 Seconds Without Slicing It Julia Child's Secret for Perfectly Poached Eggs Only Takes 10 Seconds 13 Surprising Uses for Rice That Don’t Involve Cooking
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