What Else Can Your Toothpaste Do?

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Must say this is a cleverly pictured humorous advertisement! Well, what can this guy need toothpaste for? Read on to know what ALL your toothpaste can do other than cleaning your teeth.

Disclaimer: This article is NOT an advertisement for any particular brand of toothpaste or toothpowder. The pictures included are for illustration purpose only. The brand suggested is merely the author’s choice from firsthand experience.

You’ll need:

A basic non-gel white toothpaste (I prefer Colgate, you can use a similar non-gel toothpaste of any brand you desire.) In some cases, you may want to use white toothpowder (no red or herbal ones please!). Again, from experience, I suggest using Colgate toothpowder.

Toothpaste on shoes?

Squeeze out a bit of toothpaste on your index finger and apply on the scuff marks on your leather shoes. Now rub in the toothpaste with a soft muslin rag. Once satisfied that you have rubbed the mark properly, wipe the excess toothpaste with a damp cloth. Wola! Your leather shoes are as good as new.

For cleaning your sport shoes, you could either use a toothpaste or toothpowder. Both work to make the rubber part of the shoe shiny clean! Take a little toothpaste onto an old toothbrush or sprinkle the toothpowder onto the shoe directly and give the dirty shoe a good scrub. Wipe away with a clean damp cloth.   

Toothpaste for your Walls?

No need to fret when your little one takes creativity to another level – basically, starts drawing on the walls. We all have done it, so why restrict our budding artists? When you need to clean the crayon art off the wall, just use toothpaste. Apply some toothpaste on an old toothbrush and scrub it over the artwork. You may need some water and a damp cloth too, depending on the size of the artwork. So scrub, rub some more and wipe clean with a wet cloth.

Use toothpaste to fill in nail holes in walls. Just squeeze out a little bit of toothpaste onto your index finger, and go about filling in the nail holes on the wall. Once its dry, it’s non-noticeable on white walls. For coloured walls, let the toothpaste dry and then just paint over it. 

Oh, and you can avoid drilling in nails into the wall for putting up posters. Just stick them with toothpaste! Wacky, but it works. Apply a thin coat of toothpaste along the edges of the poster and quickly press it onto the wall. When you remove the poster, just wipe off the wall with a damp cloth to remove the toothpaste mark.

Toothpaste for Iron?

Steam irons often get watermarks and calcium deposits from the grooves making them look unclean. Your toothpaste can easily take the marks off and what’s more, it even cleans the iron plate off the burnt or scorched marks too!  Rub a generous amount of toothpaste onto a non-plugged cool iron plate. Scrub with a damp Turkish napkin or a piece of wet sponge. Rinse the iron plate, careful of getting any water inside the iron, and wipe dry. Happy ironing!

Toothpaste for your Keyboards?

This works on all keyboards, be it your laptop computer keyboard or the keys on your cell phone or a traditional land phone keys. Also works for piano keys. Cover your index finger with a soft muslin rag and squeeze out a little toothpaste onto it. Rub the keys of your cell phone/computer/piano with the toothpaste. Wipe clean with a damp cloth.

Toothpaste for your switchboards?

The light switches come in contact with all sorts of hands – after food, before a shower, after play, back from work, you name it. Hands that have been all over the place reach out for the light switches, which ultimately get gunk onto them and if not cleaned often, they start looking dull and dirty.

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So again, stick out your finger (index, not the other one!), get some toothpaste onto it, and rub onto the light switch. Scrub with a soft muslin. Once done, wipe clean with a damp cloth. Caution: The cloth must be just about damp, water and light switches is not such a good idea. Also, don’t forget to wear rubber slippers while cleaning the switchboard. Better safe than sorry!

Toothpaste for Clothes?

Works on most stains on most fabrics. Take a patch test in an inconspicuous area though. Squeeze out some toothpaste directly onto the stain. Rub the fabric together or with a brush. Rinse with water. If it seems like it’s working on your strain, repeat till it’s completely disappeared.

Toothpaste for Carpets too?

Why not!? Stains on the carpet can be removed in the same way as for your clothes. Even if it does not remove the stain completely (depending on what kind of stain you are dealing with), it’ll clean the carpet considerably. The only problem with this is, then the rest of your carpet will still be dirty and you’ll have a ‘clean spot’ on the carpet where you cleaned! To clean or not to clean is the question? You take a call.

Toothpowder for tables?

Hate the ugly watermarks on your favourite wooden table? Our good ‘ol toothpowder is here for rescue. Sprinkle some toothpowder on the  watermark and rub a soft muslin cloth. Wipe clean with a dry cloth. If you choose to use a toothpaste instead, then wipe off with a damp cloth. Let the area dry and follow up with some wood polish.

Toothpowder on metals?

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I suggest using toothpowder, but if you don’t have any at home, then the non-gel white toothpaste works fine too.

Toothpowder for silverware?

Sprinkle some toothpowder onto your dull silverware – be it your silver jewellery or silver utensils or other silver artefacts. Now scrub with a soft muslin rag. You’ll see the white powder turning black as it takes away all the oxidised dirt, making your silver shine like new. Wipe with a clean dry cloth. Here are my before and after pictures for your speculation.

Images by Rookie Expert

Toothpowder on Taps and Chrome Fixtures?

Again, sprinkle some toothpowder onto your fixture and scrub with a soft muslin rag. This polishes the chrome making it shine bright. Wipe with a clean dry cloth.

Toothpaste/Toothpowder for Sink?

It shines and takes the stink out of your sink. Squeeze out some toothpaste or sprinkle about ½ teaspoon of toothpowder onto the sink. Grab a piece of sponge and go scrubbing around the sink. Flush with water. You’ll have a shiny and minty-fresh smelling sink. Use this tip especially when you happen to drop toothpaste or toothpowder into the sink while brushing. Best from waste!

Toothpaste / Toothpowder for Bottles and Jars?

Best use – for baby’s milk bottles. It’s hard to get rid of odours in bottles and jars since they are closed most of the time. These tend to get the odour of the contents onto them very easily. Well, no worries, just use some toothpaste or toothpowder while cleaning the bottles or jars. Rinse well with water.

Toothpaste for problem-free Skin:

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Toothpaste for Pimples?

Use it on pimples. Just apply a dot on the site of an oncoming one, or a full grown one. You know, the ones filled with pus. It will soak all the oil and dry it out. Apply twice or thrice a day, let it sit for 15-20 mins or till it dries. Wash with plain cold water. Even better, apply it at night and leave it overnight. Wash off in the morning.

Toothpaste for Bee Stings and Bug Bites?

Ouch! You get a bug bite on your camping trip and you forgot to pack in an ointment for it. Trust the humdrum non-gel toothpaste to soothe down the itch and pain. Apply a dot of  toothpaste on the bite or bee sting. Better huh?

Toothpaste for Cold Sores?

It reduces the itchiness and swelling of a cold sore. Just apply a dot on the site of an oncoming one, or a full grown one.  Apply twice or thrice a day, let it sit for 15-20 mins or till it dries. Wash with plain cold water. You can leave it overnight too. For more cold sores remedies check “Home remedies for cold sores”

Toothpaste on Burns?

I love experimenting in the kitchen with fancy recipes, and this hobby of mine often lands me with awful burns. Since I know and trust my toothpaste to work better than commercial burn ointments, I have been able to continue with my experiments. Wash the burn under cold running water for about a minute. Dab dry with a clean napkin. Now apply a thin coat of toothpaste on the burn. It has a soothing effect.

Toothpaste for clean strong nails?

Since your teeth and nails have a similar composition, your toothpaste is capable of cleaning and whitening your nails too. What’s more, it hardens the nails, so you can say god-bye to the fancy nail hardeners. Get some toothpaste onto an old toothbrush, and brush your nails as you would brush your teeth. Wash with water.

Another advantage is your hands will be left smelling minty fresh. A toothpaste wash for the hands also helps when you end up with smelly hands after cooking or working in the garden.

Toothpaste for scuba divers?

 Scuba divers know how frustrating it is to have your goggles fogged up. A cheap alternative to commercial defogger gels is a non-gel toothpaste. Just squeeze out a drop of toothpaste on the goggle lens. Now simply spread the toothpaste on both sides of each lens. Rinse well with water.

Toothpaste for Scratched CD’s and DVD’s?

Squeeze out some toothpaste onto the CD or DVD you are working with. Spread all over with your fingers. Rub in nicely, so that you have got the scratches covered. Wipe away the excess with a wet cloth, let dry. Now try playing the DVD.

Since the article talks at length about toothpaste and toothpowder, I thought I might as well throw in a bonus “making your own toothpaste/toothpowder” section:

Making your own toothpaste:

Makes: a week’s supply for one person

Time: 2 Min’s

Mix 2 tablespoons Baking Soda with equal quantity of Hydrogen Peroxide paste. Add 2-3 few drops of peppermint extract  to give it flavour and a nice minty smell. Blend it well and transfer to an air-tight jar.

Making your own toothpowder:

Makes: a week’s supply for one person

Time: 2 Min’s

Mix 2 tablespoons Baking Soda with one tablespoon common salt and 1 teaspoon *turmeric powder (optional). Transfer to an air-tight jar.

*Turmeric is known for its anti-septic properties. So it works like magic for swollen gums. I mixed it with my commercial toothpowder. The only problem is that it leaves your teeth a bit yellow! So not exactly a whitening toothpowder once you add turmeric to it.

Further Readings: