59 Cool and Unusual Uses for Your Appliances

You can cook food in the dishwasher, freeze electronics, and make hash browns in a waffle iron. Who knew? It’s incredible how many different ways you can use your appliances, especially humble kitchen appliances. Even single use appliances like a popcorn maker can find new life with multiple uses. Read on to learn how even supposed kitchen unitaskers can master new uses:

1. 1. Freeze your jeans: Don’t want to wash and fade your jeans? Put them in a sealable bag, then leave them in the freezer for a week. It will clean them by killing bacteria and freshening the smell.
   2. Steam vegetables in a coffee maker: You can steam or boil vegetables in your coffee maker, or hard boil eggs, too.
   3. Mince herbs in a coffee grinder: Coffee grinders are great for grinding coffee, but just a few quick spins in a clean grinder can mince herbs in a snap.
   4. Chop herbs with a pizza wheel: Can’t use a coffee grinder for herbs? Use a pizza wheel instead, and it will be faster and more delicate than a regular knife.
   5. Remove stickers and price tags with a hair dryer: Heat up adhesives on tags and stickers to make them easy to remove from furniture and other items.
   6. Knead pizza dough in a food processor: Instead of kneading pizza dough by hand, throw it in your food processor.

1. 1. Cook food in the dishwasher: Poach salmon and cook vegetables using your dishwasher. Use an airtight container, and you can even do it while you’re washing dishes.
   2. Adjust your plastic frame glasses with a hair dryer: Heat up your glasses frames to make them more pliable and easy to mold to your own unique fit.
   3. Freeze electronics: Have a hard drive on the fritz? Put it in your freezer for a bit to revive it long enough to pull all of your data off.

1. 1. Microwave citrus for more juice: Before you squeeze a lime, lemon, or orange, pop them in the microwave for 10 seconds. It will help make it easier for the fruit to release juice.
   2. Shred meat in a mixer: Shred brisket, pulled pork, chicken, and more using a stand mixer instead of doing it by hand with a fork.
   3. Steam towels in your rice cooker: Want a spa experience at home? Keep towels warm and soothing in a rice cooker.
   4. Chill champagne in an ice cream bowl: Use your ice cream maker’s freezer bowl to keep champagne and other drinks cold.
   5. Store batteries in the freezer: Prolong the life of your NiMH and NiCad batteries by storing them in your freezer.

1. 1. Remove wax from anything with a hair dryer: Get candle wax off of your wood furniture or floors without scratching by simply heating it up and wiping it away.
   2. Toast nuts in a popcorn maker: Your popcorn maker is perfect for toasting nuts just right. Instead of toasting nuts in the oven and potentially burning them, just throw them in the popcorn maker for a minute or two.
   3. Roast coffee beans in a popcorn popper: Just like nuts, coffee beans can be toasted and even roasted using a popcorn maker.

1. 1. Make slushies in an ice cream maker: Mix frozen drink ingredients such as a margarita or slushie, then pour it into your ice cream maker for a frozen consistency.
   2. Whip cream in a French press: Do more than make coffee with a French press. Use the plunger to quickly whip cream.
   3. Rinse quinoa in a French press: Easily rinse quinoa in your French press without losing any grains.
   4. Cook hash browns in a waffle iron: Make your hash browns crispier with more crannies by cooking them in a waffle iron.
   5. Bake cookies in a snap on your waffle iron: Why wait on your oven? Use your waffle iron to bake single serve cookies in a snap.

1. 1. Cook everything in your waffle iron: Is there anything a waffle iron can’t cook? Brownies, grilled cheese sandwiches, bacon, cinnamon rolls, pretzels, eggs, and more can be cooked in a waffle iron.
   2. Remove stamps gently with a microwave: Want to save a special stamp from a letter? Add a drop of water and microwave it for 30 seconds, then peel it off.
   3. Make fire starters in your dehydrator: Large pieces of dried orange peel make great fire starters for camping or using in your fire place. Plus, they smell great. Simply dehydrate until they’re crispy.
   4. Freeze single serving portions: Ice cube trays make a great freezer tool with the perfect size for pesto, bite sized portions of desserts, saving herbs in olive oil, and even baby food.

1. 1. Make parmesan cheese bowls in the microwave: Microwave a layer of parmesan cheese on a plate, then place the sheet on an upside down bowl to make an edible cheese bowl.
   2. Create crayon art with a hair dryer: Melt the wax of crayons to create art on canvas and more.
   3. Slice soft foods with an egg slicer: An egg slicer can cut up more than an egg. It’s perfect for slicing soft foods like cheese, strawberries, and avocados.

1. 1. Dehydrate pet treats: Make pet treats for your dog in the dehydrator. Simply slice sweet potatoes or meat and place them in the dehydrator.
   2. Revive a struggling fire with a hair dryer: Point your hair dryer at hot coals or wood to spread sparks and keep your fire alive.
   3. Freeze huge ice cubes in a muffin tray: Hosting a party? Make huge ice cubes for your punch or pitcher in a muffin tray.
   4. Freeze out dust mites on non washable items: Kill dust mites on items you can’t wash by putting them in the freezer for 24 hours.
   5. Humidify in a dehumidifier: Your food dehydrator is designed to take moisture out of foods, but if you add water to the trays, the evaporating water will actually humidify your space.
   6. Dye yarn and fabric in a crock pot: Want to switch up colors? Use your crock pot to dye fabrics.

1. 1. Disinfect cutting boards in the microwave: Wash your cutting board, then heat it in the microwave for a minute.
   2. Make potpourri in your dehydrator: Place herbs, flowers, and other great smelling items in your dehydrator to make your own potpourri.
   3. Peel fruits with your microwave: Make it easy to peel fruits like tomatoes by microwaving them for 30 seconds first. This works on garlic, too.
   4. Warm plates in a toaster oven: Heat up your plates to a toasty 160-170 degrees in a toaster oven.
   5. Clean everything in your dishwasher: Your dishwasher has a knack for cleaning old food out of nooks and crannies. Why not let it show you what it can do on dirty items other than dishes? Put kids’ toys, garden tools, and other items that need cleaning into your dishwasher.

1. 1. Clean everything else with your steam cleaner: Designed for floors, a steam cleaner can be used on windows, curtains, upholstery, glass showers, BBQ grills, and more.
   2. Make paper with a blender and dehydrator: Make your own paper pulp from recycled junk mail, dried flowers, and water in a blender, then dry it out in sheets using a dehydrator.
   3. Iron your sandwiches: Heat up grilled cheese sandwiches, paninis, and more using an iron. Simply add a piece of parchment paper in between the iron and sandwich.
   4. Decrystallize honey in the microwave: Turn solidified honey liquid again by placing the uncovered jar in the microwave. Start by heating it up for 30 seconds, up to one minute.
   5. Make a hot compress in the microwave: Place a wet towel in the microwave to heat it up.
   6. Disinfect sponges in the microwave: Remove bacteria from your kitchen sponge by heating it up while wet in the microwave for up to two minutes.
   7. Remove wax from carpet with a hair dryer: Candle wax is tough to remove from carpet, but if you heat it up, you can pick it off a little bit at a time.
   8. Make candles with a crock pot: Heat wax for candle making in your crock pot.
   9. Remove paint from tools in a crock pot: Instead of scraping paint off of hardware, simply place it in your crock pot, cover it with water, and turn it on high to soften and remove the paint.
   10. Make oatmeal with a Keurig coffee machine: Keurig is more than a coffee maker, it’s a hot water machine. Use it for tea, oatmeal, ramen, or anything else you need hot water for.
   11. Make bread in the slow cooker: Think you don’t have a bread maker? If you have a slow cooker, you have a bread maker.
   12. Add scent to your home with a crock pot: Steam essential oils, potpourri, and more in your crock pot to add fragrance to your home.
   13. Wash more than clothes in your washing machine: Shoes, car mats, chair cushions, rubber backed rugs, and more can be washed in your washing machine.
   14. Remove crayon marks with a blow dryer: If your kids have created art on your walls, don’t despair. Just take a blow dryer to it and the blow dryer will make it easy to wipe the wax off of your walls.
   15. Grate curly flakes with a vegetable peeler: Your vegetable peeler works on more than carrots and cucumbers. Use it to grate curly flakes of cheese or chocolate.

1. Remove lumps from sugar in the microwave: Add a damp towel to your sugar and microwave the towel and sugar for 20 seconds to remove lumps.
2. Deep fry in your fondue pot: Your electric fondue pot can double as a deep fryer.
3. Toast a bagel on your coffee maker: Use the hot plate of your coffee maker to quickly toast up a bagel.
4. Make powder toppings with a coffee grinder: Turn anything into a fine topping with a coffee grinder. Cookies, chips, oatmeal, and more can be ground this way.

With dozens of new ideas for your appliances, go forth and hack their uses! Don’t forget to check out our other helpful appliance advice, such as common appliance abuses and repairs or most unique appliances you can buy today.