Blow-dry cure effective on household nuisances
I think I’ve hit upon something big. On one of our recent wintry morns, when the gray sky villains had deposited an inch or two of that furry white stuff on my car, I puzzled for a moment or two to decide how best to clean it off so I could safely see where I was going.
Finding an easier way to do something is always a fillip.
Usually, I keep an old straw broom handy in the garage and employ its stiff bristles to eject the noxious substance from the car surface. Problem is some of the straw breaks off and lodges in the windshield wiper or door handle or other spot, making the conveyance look like something out of the Beverly Hillbillies.
I have one of those small scraper//brush devices you pick up in hardware, automotive or department store this time of year. But the sweeping part of it is so short it takes too long to clean the whole car.
So, looking at the snow piled on the vehicle, I was struck that what I really needed was a device or mechanism that didn’t come in contact with – but would still remove – the January residue.
My eyes fell upon a green device tucked away in one corner of the garage. It’s something I use in another season – my electric leaf blower.
My mind began working – something that can be very dangerous to myself and any who are within close proximity – wondering if it would work.
I plugged an extension cord into an outlet and attached the other end to the blower. It has plenty of power to push leaves out of corners of the yard and driveway so I guessed (well, actually, I hoped) it could also move snow.
It did.
Firing it up, I aimed the nozzle at the car. The supercharged air began peeling away strips of the stuff, kicking it into the atmosphere in a great white cloud. I worked at it for a minute or two and completely cleared the car of snow.
I even aimed the nozzle at the driveway and blew out a path so I wouldn’t have to walk in the stuff.
Effective. For once I seemed to have had a good idea. (Although I’m sure I am not the first to think of this) Especially one that worked. Not all do. In fact, most miss the mark by a mile or two.
I related this concept to a coworker who informed me she uses a hair dryer to blow the dust away from the clutter on her bottle-crowded vanity.
Hmmmmm, I thought.
My mind began working again – and, as usual, I think I have come up with another idea.
What if, when spring comes, we open all the doors and windows in the house, remove all the light weight objects, papers, etc., and use the leaf blower to project the dust that has collected in every nook and cranny to the great outdoors?
Think it would work?
I think in theory it will. All I have to do is convince my lovely wife to let me try.
Just picture the ease with which one could fire the dust and dirt straight out the door and window. Do you have dust bunnies (or wooly mammoths) under your bed, chairs and couch? Stick the blower nozzle under them for a moment or two and watch those creatures run.
What about cobwebs and corners? Nothing could stand up to the artificial jet stream.
Just keep working the dust and grime into piles and blow the piles closer to the open door. If you haven’t cleaned for a very long time, blow the stuff onto a tarp and drag it outside.
I figure you could clean the whole house in about an hour. And you wouldn’t end up with vacuum-itis (that pain in your back and shoulder from pushing the sweeper for an indeterminable time).
Now I’m wondering what else I might have in the garage that could serve a multiple purpose.
There’s the shop vac, the electric saw, hedge trimmer, lawnmower, sabre saw, assorted hammers, handsaws, wrenches, etc.
We don’t have an electric carving knife. I wonder if the next time we have guests I could use the sabre saw to carve the turkey or the roast?
What do you think? Want to come to my house for dinner?
Have a good day.
Jim Pletcher is the Herald-Standard’s business editor. E-mail: jpletcher@heraldstandard.com.