Household uses of fruits and vegetable peels

When having fruits and vegetables, we normally just eat up the pulp and throw away the peels. “Good News” shows us that peels of fruits and veggies can be recycled to serve useful purposes around the house.

Next time you eat avocados, apples, bananas and oranges, save the peels and try the following.

Instant and natural dye, avocado-style

The skin of an avocado contains pigment that you can use as a natural coloring. Avocado peels excrete a beige pigment perfect for white cloths.

Instructions:
1. Slice two avocado fruits vertically and take out the pulp.
2. Boil the skin of the avocado for 20 minutes.
3. Put a white cloth in the boiling concoction and leave it there for an hour or an hour and a half so the peels can fully release the beige pigment.

Shiny shoes care of bananas

Banana peels contain a certain oil that can help preserve the shine in leather materials. If you need to shine leather shoes, no need to buy expensive shoe shines!

Instructions:
1. Slowly rub the banana peel onto the leather shoes until shiny.
2. Clean off leftover pulps, if any, from the shoes using a clean cloth.

Shiny wares thanks to calamansi

Calamansi has citric acid that can help remove the rust from your silverwares. If you want shiny spoons and forks, just get the top sliced part of the calamansi!

Instructions:
1. Using the top sliced part of the calamansi, rub this portion on your silverwares.
2. Wipe the excess juice from your silverwares using a clean cloth.

Cucumbers as insect repellant

Cucumbers contain alkaloids, a bitter substance that humans can’t smell but insects find repelling.

Instructions:
1. Rub the cucumber peel onto the part of your house where insects normally live. For example, if your bedroom wall has a lot of ants, rub the cucumber peel onto the wall and see that the ants will avoid this portion.

Tomatoes and apple peels as instant water filters

You need not buy an expensive water filtering system if you have tomatoes and apples lying about. Toxins in tap water will stick to the peels of tomatoes and apples as these are highly absorbent.

Instructions:
1. Soak the tomato and apple peels in alcohol for one day to remove the microorganisms.
2. After soaking, let the peels dry.
3. Soak the dried peels in a bowl of tap water for one hour then remove the peels.

Sugars and oranges

Your jar of sugar turning into one huge block? Worry not if you have a supply of oranges. Orange peels are very moist which can help keep sugar soft.

Instructions:
1. Put the blocks of sugar in a bowl or plastic container.
2. Place the orange peels on top of the sugar and leave it there for an hour until the sugar granules soften.

 –Bernice Sibucao/CM, GMA News