DIY Life

With the swine flu in full swing and some sort of horrid cold roaming around my household, cleanliness is on the forefront of my mind this week. And after reading this article re: the transmission of bacteria on your shower head, I'd hope it's on the forefront of yours, as well. Luckily, our friends at ShelterPop have the scoop on how to get the cleanest showers in town.

A quick tip from the article? You can make a fantastic homemade shower cleaner with 1 cup of vinegar, 1/2 cup baking soda, 1 cup ammonia and 1.5 gallons of hot water. Be sure to use rubber gloves, scrub well (use an old toothbrush for those tough tiles!) and rinse with hot water. Wipe dry. Also, tackle your glass shower door with white vinegar to prevent streaks and mildew at the same time. Bonus!

After all, cleanliness is next to awesomeness, right?

When my contractor recently asked how I wanted my new tub finished off, my immediate reply was: "Subway tile. Plain. White." Don't get me wrong. I'm fairly adventurous with color in the home, but I figure going conservative for anything difficult and expensive to upgrade – like tile – will earn me good karma with my home's future owners.

Fact is, a white tiled bathroom can always be decorated around. Unusual colors, patterns and textures cannot. At least, they are hard to disguise once they begin looking dated -- as this week's DIY Disasters slideshow, "Terrible Tile: the Bad and the Ugly," demonstrates!

As the weather turns colder, our showers are turning hotter. Beat the morning mirror mist with this handy tip I learned from my aunt...

Buff a thin layer of shaving cream (not gel!) directly onto the mirror after a cleaning. Surprisingly, the mirror won't look any differently than before, but the steam from your super hot shower won't fog it up!

The effect should last about a week, and the trick is to use very little shaving cream and rub the cream into the mirror for over a minute. You'll be amazed at how much time this handy tip will save you in the morning -- and you'll never have to take an open-door shower again!

For more incredibly useful bathroom tips, check out a few of my favorite DIY Life bathroom reads:
-Daily DIY: Curtain Call
-$5 and 5 Minutes: Fix a Running Toilet
-Low Flush Toilet Hack

Four years of waiting (and saving) are finally over. My brand new bathtub was installed today. I'm overjoyed! At least, I will be when all the remaining work is done. I'm talking the tiling, painting, and those small yet oh-so crucial decorative touches.

Because my master bathroom is tiny and very narrow (58 in.), I expected my bathtub choices to be fairly limited. Wrong! There are tons of awesome, reasonably-priced tubs out there to choose from – including deep soaking tubs, which is what I'd had my heart set on.

Since my exhaustive search for the perfect tub is now behind me, I'd like to share what I've learned. Are you renovating a tiny BR? Today I'm going to run through a few shopping tips to help you make your selection. Next week, I'll expand on the theme with a list of quality, yet modestly priced, tubs ideal for small rooms.

Have you ever given a second thought to your shower curtain's height? I hadn't either, until I spotted this fantastic DIY from young home renovators John and Sherry.

Replace your average height shower curtain with a mega-sized version, which can be very hard to find, but worth it when you do. There are a few 95" fabric panels you can add your own liner to, or you can create your own over-sized shower curtain by adding to an existing one right here.

A few tips I'd suggest:
1. Lighten Up. By raising your curtain, you're decreasing quite a bit of natural light from inside the shower. Avoid heavy fabrics and dark colors to keep the space as bright as you can.
2. Suds It. Wash your shower curtain to account for any shrinkage before you display the new look. Simply throw it into a light cycle wash --- you may find you need a larger size.
3. Sew Over. For extra high ceilings, sew two 72" curtains together and BAM! -- instant drama.

Enjoy your newly enlarged space, and yes-- feel free to shower on your tiptoes to account for your new height [or lack thereof]. I sure did!

Do you have a toilet that won't stop running? Do you constantly have to jiggle the handle, or remind other people to do so? That constant running water is adding up to big bucks on your water bill, not to mention the many gallons or water that are being wasted. You would never let your sink run all day and night, most of us even turn off the water while we are brushing our teeth, so why let the toilet continually waste water?

A running toilet can waste two gallons of water per minute, while a silent leak in a toilet can waste up to 7,000 gallons of water per month.

If you are not sure if your toilet is running, turn off the tap behind your toilet. Check the water level in the tank. Leave it for a few hours and then recheck the tank. If the water level has dropped, you have a problem.

There are only so many things that can go wrong inside of your toilet. Fixing your toilet is inexpensive and easy. So easy, in fact, that it doesn't even require tools!

Admit it; you spend a lot of quality time in your bathroom! We all do. Accordingly, it needs to look nice. And like any other part of the castle, the decor looks a little tired and dated after a while. What to do? Give the bathroom a face lift on a budget!

So, in this edition of PRS, we're going to look at some ideas on how to bring this area up to snuff without breaking the bank. Let's look at the walls first.

Lose the boring old wallpaper

That old wallpaper that once looked so stylin' now looks like something the cat dragged in. Out of style, a few stray crayon marks from the toddler days, and the steam-soaked seams are curling up like your mother-in-law's lips when she sneers at you. (I hope she's not reading this!)

(This post has been edited since publication to fix some broken links.)

MizPee is a public toilet finder. If you're out, and need a bathroom, just search MizPee for the closest one. You'll be able to find reviews, and choose the cleanest one, depending on how urgently you need it.

The listings will also let you know if the venue requires you to make a purchase. This way you won't end up doing the pee-dance while standing in line for a coffee you don't even want, just so that you can use their bathroom. Alternatively, if you are craving that mocha, look in their deal section, because that same coffee shop just might have a discount.

As a fun little extra, check out their toilet trivia. So far, I've learned that the average person spends three years of their life on the toilet! The current trivia asks which stall is the cleanest choice. My vote goes with the one furthest from the door, but we'll see if I'm right come Monday when the answer is posted.

I haven't quite decided if this is kind of cool, or totally ridiculous. What's your verdict?

[via:Dumb Little Man]

Bring a bit of vintage style into your bathroom with Julie Reed's crocheted bath rug. The doily pattern that she used is from 1918: authentic and classic. The full tutorial will give you everything you need to recreate this bath mat in your own home.

Julie doesn't just list supplies and steps, but walks us through what works and what doesn't, as she chooses the right yarn and tries to minimize the ruffled edge.

I love her color choice. The juniper and charcoal heather compliment each other beautifully. This is the kind of inspired piece you could build your whole bathroom around. After the break, I'll discuss some DIY ways to finish off your vintage style bathroom.

There's no such thing as a good sewer odor, right? If there's a persistent, but unexplained, stink emanating from your bathroom the cause could be sewer gas. Sewer gas is supposed to stay down inside your municipal sewer system or private septic tank. Problems occur when it finds its way back up into the house via your toilet. Eeew.

Surprise, surprise. Plumbing experts say sewer gas is something you should take care of, and not just for the obvious reason that the stink is absolutely revolting. Did you know that sewer gas is toxic when breathed in repeatedly? It's also associated with a buildup of methane gas, which is explosive. Eeek! Now that's a potty problem!

According to trusty home repair extraordinaire, Tim "Ask the Builder" Carter, it's best to locate the root cause of the problem as soon as possible. Tim says the cause of the stink is usually a blockage or a crack in the plumbing drain line or vent pipe, with the latter being a lot harder to detect. Plumbers can find the leaks by forcing colored smoke from a smoke generating machine through the pipes. Cool!

Read more at AskTheBuilder.com.

I love IKEA: I can spend my days looking and drooling at all the wonderful products that I could have shipped to my home. My husband is incredibly thankful that I am not a big spender, because I really could have IKEA packages delivered to my door every day.

If I did go on a shopping spree for IKEA products, one of the items I would buy would be this awesome GRUNDTAL towel rail, primarily made for the bathroom. It is inexpensive and can be easily hacked into something else, namely a spice and condiment stand.

Instructables user Frootloose used the Grundtal towel rail, attached a piece of openwork steel to it, added a few hooks to hang necessary kitchen utensils, and affixed it to his kitchen wall. The towel rail happened to be just the right size, shape, and length for what he needed.

With my tiny kitchen, I am very appreciative of Frootloose's hack. I have one space on my wall that is just begging for this shelf, and it will free up some clutter in my cabinets. What do you think you could use the Grundtal towel rail for?

[via: Curbly]

Yesterday we talked about going green in the bathroom and the many ways that we can reduce our water consumption. It is suggested that we switch to low-flush toilets. This is probably the most recommended solution, and many cities even offer credits and rebates toward the purchase.

Ultimately, the goal is to go green, so can the same result be achieved with the old toilet while avoiding a new purchase -- and its inevitable end in the landfill? Yes, it can, thanks to this article teaching us how to convert any toilet into a low flush toilet.

The conversion is dead simple. All you do is fill a half gallon container part way with pebbles or other heavy material, then top it off with water. Put the jug in your toilet tank, where it will displace the water. You'll save a half gallon of water per flush. That's a significant savings in each household; just imagine if your neighbors got on board too! Have a read through the full instructions and the helpful tips, then pass it on to a friend.

[via: Lifehacker]

One of our four cats seems to love to play with the toilet paper. I've had this problem before but they usually grow out of it. I have been throwing away shredded toilet paper or re-rolling half of a roll more frequently lately so it was time to figure out a way to stop it.

I know that one solution is to not put the toilet paper on the dispenser. But that simply is not an option for me. I'm even compulsive about which way the roll is put on the spindle.

Just use a long rubber band and wrap it around the ends of the holder. A few weeks of that and most cats should lose interest and move on to play with other things that they shouldn't. (Perhaps you'll need a tip on keeping your cat out of houseplant dirt.)

How green is your bathroom? I thought I was doing pretty good, since I abandoned my chemical rich cleaners for baking soda and vinegar the way Anna recommends. This change is important, but only one small step towards an eco-friendly bathroom.

The video above explains how to go green in the bathroom by conserving water, minimizing energy usage, adding plants, and choosing natural products. Here's what you'll need:

1. Fluorescent light bulbs
2. Plants
3. Food coloring
4. Natural hair and body care products
5. Vinegar
6. Baking soda
7. Low flow shower-head
8. Low flow toilet

Replacing your light bulbs and bringing in a plant are cheap, quick, and effective changes. Making the change-over to a low-flow shower head and toilet can be a bit more costly. If you're contemplating a low-flow shower head, first consider Ryan's pros and cons list. He suggests an alternative to the costly purchase by opening the valve partially, allowing less water to pass through.

The low-flow toilet is another source of water conservation and financial savings. Some municipalities even offer partial rebates on their purchase. If you're not sure where to start looking for the right low-flow toilet, this article, The best low-flow toilets will point you in the right direction.

If you're still not convinced that you want to buy a new one, and this eco-friendly bathroom hasn't quite scratched your DIY itch, then Gary has a project for you. He points us to a toilet hack that allows you to pre-use the water that fills your toilet tank after flushing.

What changes have you made towards a greener bathroom?

Is it difficult to find enthusiasm about cleaning the bathroom? Are you living in a place that someone else rented or owned before you? If you said yes to both, try not to think about what may have happened in your bathroom before you moved in. Let's just get to making that place feel like you and your family or friends are the only contaminants.

Here are five inexpensive things you can do to make your bathroom truly feel like it is yours. Doing these will not make the room look new but it will make it feel much more new to you. You'll probably want to wear gloves for most of these. Absent from this list are the obvious cleaning chores that you should be doing regularly -- you know, things like scrubbing the toilet and washing the shower curtain every now and then.