Don’t throw away your teabags! We Brits go through approximately 61 billion tea bags per year – little did we all know that’s a lot of wasted opportunity. Yes, they make one of the best drinks on the planet (not up for negotiation!), but tea bags are also surprisingly useful around the home – they have properties that make them brilliant at cleaning, deodorising and so much more.
So, before you go chucking them away, you may want to give them a new lease of life. Make those cuppas all the more valuable by reusing old tea bags to freshen your home and make cleaning easier. Here are the clever ways you can use them.
Tackle mucky mirrors
Fingerprints and toothpaste splashes can quickly leave a bathroom mirror looking grubby, but your morning cuppa could be just the thing to banish those marks. To give this trick a try, re-brew a used black tea bag in a little hot water and leave it to cool. Dip in a soft cloth, wring it out well and wipe over the mirror, then buff with a clean, dry microfibre cloth. Tea contains tannins (and tannic acid), which act as natural, mild grease-cutters. However, tea can also stain, so keep it away from porous frames and surrounding surfaces, and test a small area first.
Make washing-up easier
Grease is found all over the home, so those tea tannins can be useful in more rooms than one. Got a greasy pan waiting by the sink? Pop a couple of used tea bags into the pan with warm water and leave it to soak before washing as normal with washing-up liquid. The soak may loosen stuck-on food and help the washing-up liquid glide through the grime much more easily.
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Freshen up smelly shoes
Popping old tea bags in your gym shoes may sound crazy, but you’ll just have to trust me on this one. Dried tea leaves are porous, meaning they can absorb some of the moisture left inside your shoes after a long day on your feet. Bacteria and fungi thrive in damp conditions, so helping your shoes dry out may make them less inviting to the microbes that cause unwanted smells.
Let used tea bags dry out completely – the emphasis being on completely – then place one inside each shoe overnight as a simple freshening trick. Remove them before wearing your shoes and don’t use them damp, as trapped moisture could make smells worse.
Give the compost bin a boost
Used tea leaves are a useful addition to your compost heap, where they break down alongside other kitchen and garden waste. Tea leaves are a nitrogen-rich ‘green’ ingredient. Mixing these with ‘brown’ materials, such as dry leaves and shredded cardboard, helps create a balanced compost heap. Over time, the contents break down into compost you can use to improve your garden soil.
Before tossing the whole tea bag in, though, check what it’s made from. Some bags contain plastic that won’t break down properly in a home compost heap. If you’re unsure, simply split the bag open, add the leaves to your compost and dispose of the bag separately.
Help deter pests
If you’re a peppermint tea drinker, you might have heard that your used tea bags can do more than make a soothing drink. Some people swear by placing them near doorways, windowsills and other potential entry points, in the hope that the strong scent will encourage unwanted visitors to head elsewhere.
The idea comes from the fact that certain concentrated plant oils have shown some repellent effects against pests such as mice or mosquitoes. But before you start lining your home with leftover tea bags, make sure they’re dry and placed on a paper towel to prevent staining any surfaces. Bear in mind that a brewed tea bag isn’t the same as a concentrated oil, though.
If pests are finding their way inside, focus instead on sealing entry points, clearing up crumbs and keeping food in sealed containers. And if the problem continues, it’s worth calling in a pest professional to help identify where they’re getting in.
Freshen up a stinky fridge
From forgotten leftovers to particularly pungent cheeses, it doesn’t take much for a fridge to develop a less-than-appetising smell. One trick is to give your used tea bags a second life as a fridge freshener.
Let the tea bags dry completely, then place them in a small open dish at the back of the fridge. The idea is that the dried leaves absorb some unwanted odours. Check them regularly and throw them away if they become damp or show signs of mould.
If the smell is sticking around, track down and discard any spoiled food, clean up spills and crumbs, and give bicarbonate of soda a go for another handy deodorising trick.
