Toothbrush Uses For Cleaning,
Laundry & Stain Removal

Everyone's got a toothbrush around somewhere, and here's a list of toothbrush uses you can employ them for around your home, for all types of cleaning tasks.

There are all types of things in your home that need something soft to scrub them to get them clean, remove soil, dirt or grime, or get deep into the fibers to loosen stains.

This is especially true for things with small crevices, or tight corners, that it is hard to fit your whole hand in to reach.

These are some of the perfect things that you can use a toothbrush to clean.

Think about it -- a toothbrush is designed to do these exact things for our delicate mouths, so why not for other things as well?

Should You Use Old Or New Brushes?

There is some debate amongst people about whether you should use a new or used toothbrush for some or all of these cleaning tasks.

My answer - I think it depends if it would gross you out to use an old one.

Obviously once you use this cleaning tool for removing a stain or cleaning something it is basically off limits for using on your teeth again.

However, there is nothing inherently wrong with recycling a toothbrush by using it for a new purpose after its served its purpose for brushing teeth already.

Did you know you're supposed to replace your toothbrushes regularly? When you do this, consider using some of these older toothbrushes for new purposes instead of just throwing them away!

Get more information about how often to replace them, as well as other toiletries and supplies on the sister site, Home Storage Solutions 101:

Things To Do If You Use An Old Toothbrush For Cleaning

To keep from spreading germs from your mouth everwhere, you may want to use this tip for cleaning your toothbrush before you switch from brushing your teeth with one, to other purposes in your home.

At some point though, whether you are cleaning with a new or used one, the bristles on the brush will get too smooshed and worn to effectively scrub anymore and then its time to throw it away in the trash. They won't last forever.

Ideas For Marking Your Old Toothbrushes So No One Uses Them For Teeth Brushing Again

If you do decide to use a new brush for cleaning purposes, make sure to label it as a cleaning brush somehow so no one accidentally later uses it for teeth brushing.

There are several ways to do this, but here are some ideas:

• Put a dot or other mark on them with a permanent marker
• Mark them with a brush or two of nail polish

You Don't Have To Buy The Best Quality Brushes For Cleaning

Finally, make sure to buy cheap brushes, such as those you can find in packs in bulk or at the dollar store for cleaning and removing stains, and not the really expensive fancy ones that you should at least use in your mouth first before putting them to a new purpose!

15 Uses For Toothbrushes Around Your Home

1. Remove corn silks from your corn on the cob. Gently run the toothbrush (here's a time I suggest using a brand new toothbrush, not a used one, since you're using it on food) down the cob and it will pick up the silks. That way you don't have to pick them out of your teeth later!

2. Clean shoes. You can remove stuck on mud or dirt, including in the crevices on the soles of shoes, as well as cleaning between the seam of shoes where the upper part meets the sole.

3. Clean vents, such as air intake and outtake vents in your home, as well as those in your car.

4. Clean the small spaces around appliances, such as between the knobs and buttons, and around stove burners.

5. Remove tough stains from clothing. Sometimes stains penetrate deep into the fibers, and gently scrubbing with a toothbrush can loosen the stain deep down, and help push the stain remover deep into the fabric as well, to more easily remove the spot.

You can learn about this, and the other top stain removal techniques here.

6. Clean your waffle iron. Get in all those little nooks and grooves of your waffle iron where tiny bits of waffle remain more easily with this tool.

7. Clean a cheese grater. When I learned this use for a toothbrush I thought it was absolutely brilliant. It's the easiest way to get all those little bits of cheese out of the grater without shredding your sponge, your dish cloth or your hand!

8. Clean can opener blades. Similarly, can opener blades can get food residue on them, but they're sharp, so using a toothbrush gets them clean without you accidentally hurting yourself.

9. Clean the rubber flap around the bottom of the sink where you've got your garbage disposal. This flap accumulates a lot of gunk, and it is one of the main reasons you might have a funky smelling garbage disposal. Removing the debris often gets rid of the odor.

You can get more tips for cleaning and removing odor from your garbage disposal here.

10. Clean around your faucets and fixtures. It is difficult to get your hand or even a cleaning cloth or sponge in that tight space sometimes, but we all know how it gets dirty, so a toothbrush is the perfect cleaning tool for the task.

11. Clean shower tracks. Again, you're seeing the theme that toothbrushes are great for getting into hard to reach areas, and this is yet another of them.

12. Clean combs and hair brushes. Not only can this tool get into the small spaces between the bristles of the comb or brush, but in addition the toothbrush bristles can help grab hair to remove it from the hairbrush.

13. Clean tile grout. Sometimes you've got to gently scrub your grout with your chosen grout cleaner, and this tool is great for getting into that small space.

Here are some homemade grout cleaner recipes you can use.

14. Gently scrub jewelry. Many pieces of jewelry, especially rings, get grungy with dirt and debris accumulating in those small tight spaces, and just like with your teeth a toothbrush can get into those spaces too and make your jewelry squeaky clean again.

15. Clean dust from artificial flowers and plants. Use a toothbrush to gently remove stubborn dust from these surfaces, including in the nooks and crannies of the flowers and leaves, without smashing or changing the shape of your artificial arrangements.

If you've got tip for using this product for cleaning something in your home please skip down to share it now and I'll add it to the site.

Further, if you enjoy learning more uses for your toothbrushes, you can also use toothpaste in alternative ways. Check out the ideas here:

Round Up Of More Ideas On The Site For Toothbrush Uses

With a need to save money and also for environmental reasons, more and more people are reusing things in their home, and finding new ways to make them useful.

I've rounded up quite a few ways to use either new or old toothbrushes around your home below, based on ideas found here on the site. This can give you ideas of how to use these products for yourself in the future.

Please note that for many things the toothbrush provides the scrubbing action, but there often is another cleaning agent involved as well.

Here are the uses submitted so far:

Share Your Uses & Tips Here

Remove Crayon From Wall {Also Using Toothpaste}

Remove Chocolate Stain {Also Using Cream}

Remove Gum Particles From Delicate Clothing & Fibers

Clean Shower Head Of Mineral Buildup {Along With Vinegar}

Clean Crevices In Washing Machine Dispensers

Remove Ballpoint Ink From Clothing {Also Using Hairspray}

Clean Shower Grout {Also Using Soft Scrub}

Remove Oil Based Paint From Carpet {Also Using Acetone}

Remove Mildew In Bathroom

Remove Bike Grease Stains From Clothes {Also Using Lestoil}

Scrubbing Kids Sports Uniforms {Also Using Oxiclean}

Remove Grease From Carpet {Also Using Shaving Cream}

Remove Mud Splatters On Clothes {Also Using Shout Pretreater}

Polish Silver In Tight Crevices {While Wrapped In Cloth}

Remove Margarine Spot From Clothes {Also Using Dish Soap}

Remove Crayon On Concrete Or Brick {Also Using WD-40 Or Goo Gone}

Removing Gasoline Stain From Clothing {Also Using Dish Soap}

Remove Vaseline Stain From Clothes {Also Using Dish Soap}

Cleaning Jewelry {Also With Blitz Jewelry Cleaner}

Remove Cooking Oil & Food Grease From Clothes {Also Using Dish Soap}

Scrubbing Coffee & Tea Rings From Mugs & Cups

Remove Chapstick Stains On Clothing {Also Using Laundry Pretreater}

Dusting & Cleaning Crevices, Moulding & Other Tight Spaces

Clean Tight Spaces In Aquarium & Decorations {Using Baking Soda}

Remove Stains From Baby Clothes {Also Using Paste Of Oxiclean Baby}

Remove Grass Stains On Shoes

Third photo courtesy of meddygarnet

Related Pages You May Enjoy

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CAUTION: This website is provided for informational purposes only. It is provided as is, without warranties or guarantees. Some stains and messes just won't come out, and are permanent. Further, some cleaning methods can harm your item, so if what you want to clean or launder is sentimental or expensive call a professional. See disclaimer of liability for more information.