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Did you know there are over twenty ways you can use cat litter in your home? From cleaning, crafting, stain removal, gardening, and deodorizing, you will never look at cat litter the same again! Here are 21+ New Ways to use cat litter in your home.
If you have a little feline in your home as we do, you know how important it is to take care of the place where they do their business. It’s an area that can my kids fight over when it’s time to clean (and a chore I try to delegate myself!). But it must be done! And it’s essential to have the right cat litter to help keep things easy to clean and the smells at bay. But did you know that there are more ways to use kitty litter than for its normal use? I had no idea until we had a cat ourselves. And once you see this list, you’ll have new reasons to stock up on this cat owner essential.
Anyone who knows me, knows that I love my Target runs. And they happen to have the perfect cat litter-New Purina® TIDY CATS® Free & Clean™ Unscented Lightweight Clumping Litter . Tidy Cats® knows powerful odor control is at the top of your list of litter must-haves…but sometimes added fragrances and dyes just aren’t what you want. Free & Clean offers you the odor-absorbing power of activated charcoal plus TidyLock® Protection to lock away odors—giving you the clean you need free of the stuff you don’t.
What’s so great about this cat litter? First, it’s free of fragrances which is perfect for using with all the hacks I’m showing you today! Second, it’s free of dyes. And third, it uses the odor-absorbing power of activated charcoal to lock up odors. You can find it in both Traditional Clump and Lightweight.
So go out and grab yourself Tidy Cats® Free and Clean Unscented at Target. Stock up because with all these great ideas, you are going to need it. And not just for your favorite cat. You can find it in the cat aisle (along with my 8 year old who decided to take a cat nap!).
#1: Deodorize Your Shoes With Cat Litter
This is one that many of us can relate to, especially with summer on its way! If you find that you have a pair of shoes that need some freshening up, place a sock or satchel of cat litter into your shoes. I’ve tried this one and it works! This is the most used tip for cat litter in our house!
#2: Keep Your Flowers Happy
Did you know that cat litter can help keep flowers and gardens happy? It’s true! If you plant your flowers in a mixture of equal parts soil and cat litter, the soil will have an easier time staying evenly moist. You can also create a ring around your garden using cat litter that will keep out the slugs and snails.
#3: Remove Stains with Cat Litter
Most of us probably have stains right now in our driveway or garage floors. We have also had those times when grease or other hazardous material spills and don’t exactly know how to clean it up. Cat litter is great for absorbing those spills and making clean up much easier. You can also get rid of those ugly, stubborn stains by putting a layer of paint thinner over the top of them, covering that with cat litter, and then waiting several hours. You may need to do it again for the more stubborn, older stains but it does work!
#4: Deodorize Your Refrigerator
Along with our shoes, the refrigerator is another place that cat litter can save the day when it comes to getting rid of awful smells. Place a small container of cat litter inside the fridge and the smells will disappear.
#5: As A Filler For Craft Projects
If you are DIY crafter like me, you may have run into projects requiring fillers or something to add weight to a project. Instead of running to the craft store and buying a big bag of fillers for one small project, use cat litter! If you have a cat, kitty litter is already in your house and that extra trip won’t be needed. You can also add essential oils to the litter, like lavender, to create a weighted sensory sock or ball for your kiddos to play with!
#6: Use Cat Litter to Add Traction to Slippery Surfaces
This is a great tip for anyone dealing with icy walkways in the winter! While salt is great for melting ice, it doesn’t always help a slippery surface, especially if it’s only wet. Spread the cat litter over any surface and it will add traction and prevent a nasty fall.
#7: Cat Litter Can Help You Dry Flowers
I don’t always dry flowers but every now and again, I receive a bouquet that I want to hold on to. If you want to dry them out easily, place them in a container of cat litter for 7-10 days. Be sure the container is air tight! This is so much easier than hanging them upside down or placing them in a book (the ways I used to dry flowers!).
#8: Freshen Up the Nursery or Baby Room with Cat Litter
If you have a new baby, you can relate to how awful the garbage can smell when the diapers start stacking up. I remember we used to take the garbage out daily because I couldn’t handle it. But sometimes we are too sleep deprived or too focused on other things to deal with something menial like the garbage. So save yourself an extra trip outside every day and place sprinkle some cat litter on the bottom of your diaper pail to prevent the odors from taking over your precious baby time.
#9: Prevent Grease Fires On Your Outdoor Grill
For this tip, unscented kitty litter is helpful unless you want to add a perfume flavor to your food! To prevent grease fires on the BBQ, put a layer (an inch or so) of cat litter in the bottom of your BBQ. This will help absorb the grease runoff and prevent a fire.
#10: Use Cat Litter to Dispose Paint
Do you have extra paint you need to be rid of? While you can’t pour it down the drain, you can still easily get rid of it. To create a solid waste for easy disposal, add a couple of inches of cat litter to the can. After several hours, the paint should be absorbed the cat litter and become hardened. Then you can place it in your regular trash bin. Only do this if you don’t have a city that allows you to drop off hazardous waste.
#11: Deodorize Your Trash Can
Just like the diaper pail in the nursery, garbage cans around the house need help controlling smells. Simply add a layer of cat litter to the bottom of your trash cans for a simple solution to the smells we all have lurking.
#12: Use Cat Litter As Pest Control
Cats are the best at keeping unwanted pests away but they still sometimes slip by our felines. Moles, rats, and mice dislike the texture and scent of cat litter and will steer clear of it just like they try and avoid cats. If you pour cat litter into mouse holes or around the walls of your basement, it should keep these pests out and in an safe and environmentally friendly way.
#13: Cat Litter Can Save Your Wet Cell Phone!
My son once dropped my cell phone in the toilet when he was two. I remember the panic I felt while I grabbed my phone and frantically put it into a container of rice. Unfortunately, my cell phone never recovered. At that time, we didn’t own a cat and we had no cat litter on hand to save the day. Cat litter, by all accounts, generally works better than rice at saving small electronics from a water death. First place your phone or device into a sock or small bag to protect it from scratching. Then, place it in a container of cat litter for about 2 days until you no longer see moisture on the screen.
#14: Get Rid of Unwanted Algae in Your Garden Pond
If you have a little pond in your garden and tire of the algae that grows, eliminate it by adding 1 pound of cat litter for every 2,000 gallons of circulating water. If you have something smaller than that, use less accordingly. It will keep the water clear and the fish happy.
#15: Freshen Up Your Camping Gear With Cat Litter
Camping gear can easily get musty each year after being stored all winter. I know when we pull ours out, I sometimes can’t stand the musty smells that always cling to our stored away items. To prevent this, place a small sock of cat litter inside sleeping bags and packed away with camping gear.
#16: Remove Graffiti
This is a great tip if you had a little one decide to take permanent marker to your driveway or if you find your property was tagged with minor graffiti. Place cat litter over the area and grind it in using your shoe. This doesn’t work well for large scale problems but it does help with small areas.
#17: Create A Beauty Clay Mask with Cat Litter
This tip isn’t for everyone but if you like trying natural products, you may enjoy it. To create a clay mask, mix together 3 Tablespoons of 100 percent cat litter, with no scents or additives, with equal parts water. Grind it into a smooth wet paste and apply to your skin. Let it sit for 15-20 minutes and then wash it off when it’s time.
#18: Keep Cat Litter in Your Car for Emergencies in the Winter
You may never have thought to keep cat litter in your car for emergencies but it can really help you get out of a bind! This is especially useful if you live in a place that receives a lot of snow in the winter. If you find yourself stuck, put cat litter in front of and behind your tires to add some traction.
#19: Use Cat Litter To Prevent Your Winter Clothes from Smelling Musty
Winter clothes can get musty too when being packed away in the summer months. If you want to keep your gear free of musty smells, add a small sock of cat litter, tied closed, to your bins and bags of items being stored away.
#20: Freshen Up Old Musty Books
I love finding old books and vintage items in thrift stores but sometimes their old smells turn me away. If you find yourself wanting an item like this, or trying to sell one, try using cat litter to remove the smell. Place the times in an airtight storage container with cat litter and let it sit at least 24 hours before removing.
#21: Use Cat Litter for Leaks
Most of us know the panic we feel when faced with small leaks in the home. Pour some cat litter on the water from the leak and most of it, if not all, will be absorbed. Then you can move on to fixing the real problem and not panicking about possible mildew and mold from the water damage.
If you have a tip, please share! And don’t forget to snag your own TIDY CATS® Free & Clean™ Unscented Lightweight Clumping Litter at Target. The savings on not just the cat litter but everything I need for our sweet cat is well worth the trip there!
