How much "Housekeeping&q uot; clutter is too much?

For some strange reason my late DH ordered one of those trays for soaking oven racks in many years ago. He used it once and it was then demoted to the cupboard under the stairs.

I've just taken it to the tip along with a lot of other 'impulse buys', most of them mine!

Anybody want a soup maker? I don't even like soup.....ll

I now use the oven rack soaking tray under my rabbit's hutch to catch all the bits of sawdust and hay.

Ah yes the thing for soaking oven shelves. Looked fot it the other day. It's storing last years dahlia tubers. You can tell I'm not a frequent oven cleaner.

I sent for one of those magic wand weed killer things, convinced my life would improve as I blasted weeds sprouting between paving stones. Useless
Like half the country, we have a redundant bread maker taking no up space.
As for the steam cleaner, another supposedly life changing thing - it was really useful in defrosting my daughters fridge. It wouldn't have been necessary if she'd defrosted the ...,,, thing earlier

Redundant bread maker here too but I do have plans to use it now I'm retired and have more time ( but don't want to put on weight!)

I bought a special dishwasher cleaner from Sainburys - and it did leave the dishwasher smelling lovely - but my neighbour said it was a waste of money and she put hers on a hot wash with a cup of bicarb and half a lemon once a month!

Have any of you tried that?

Redundant bread maker here too. And a waffle maker. And a "potato ricer", both unwanted gifts. Never did find out why anyone would want potatoes to look like rice.

My husband uses the potato ricer frequently for smooth lump free mash. I hate having to wash it up its so awkward.

Best ever gadget - a little metal strawberry huller, saves sore thumbnails, cheap as chips, I love it!

Desdemona DD often puts half a lemon in her dishwasher.

I am going to use the breadmaker again. And the potato ricer when I start eating potatoes again.

I need a good garlic crusher - any recommendations? We had one from Ikea years ago which disintegrated, but don't have an IKea around here. We've bought others and they have all been useless.

A juicer anyone? DD used to use it a lot but it was always a pain to wash up.

Jalima, I love my OXO Good Grips garlic press. Have had mine for years and have bought more as presents for family. It even copes with unpeeled garlic cloves if I'm being lazy, and is really easy to clean afterwards.

Jalima a Zyliss garlic press is the very best. I have had one for years and use it most days. Directly I've finished with it, it goes to soak in the sink, don't let the garlic bits get hard, devil of a jog to rake them out the holes then.

We have a Panasonic bread maker and my husband uses it all the time. We have a cut loaf in the freezer for emergencies but all our bread other than that is home made.

My other best gadget as I have mentioned on here before is my Dyson cordless vacuum. Fantastic...never use the normal type again. So quick easy and light and in my view, works as good as my old Dyson pull along without all the fuss

Until it recently fell apart quite literally , I had a electric slicer/grater. I think it was a Moulinex. It had 3 slicer/grater barrels and was brilliant for prepping vegetables for soups and stir fries or grating cheese in larger quantities. Dead easy to clean to. But then it died and I've been searching everywhere for a replacement, to no avail. Anyone any ideas? Lakeland has several mandolin or Oxo Goodgrip graters but not an electric one that does both.

I had a soupmaker. Gave up on it, as it only made small amounts and I need large portions. I took it to school and ended up making jam in it for my "nurture " pupils. The smell permeated the whole school. My colleagues thought they were hallucinating when the smelled the jam cooking. My daughter now has it, as she lives on her own.

I love my breadmaker. I can load it up in 5 mins, leave it breadmaking overnight and we have fresh bread in the morning ☺.

Ilovecheese I have one of those strawberry hullers too - brilliant gadget. Also a thing that looks a bit like a stapler but is fantastic at de-stoning cherries and olives.

Usually mix equal parts white vinigar bicarbonate & washing powder for dishwasher

I'd be lost now without my slow cooker. Great to just throw stuff in and have my food ready about 6 to 8 hours later when I have had another sleep etc.

The thing that has me baffled is vaccuum cleaners. I have two small ones, one cordless and have just bought an older fashioned Hoover bagged with a long hose for the stairs etc. The trouble is, the smaller ones, the filters get clogged up quickly and the Hoover is heavier and I can't push it around really so the vaccuuming hasn't been done.

Now, can any of you please suggest something that will pick up well, do it first scoot over and is light and doesn't need the filter cleaning every time but just emptying? Or, should I really just book another cleaner to come?

It really is the most annoying thing when my body doesn't work like I want it to and how my mind wants it to too.

I'm not very good at people being in for any length of time. The cleaners I've had in the past have been chatty and while this is good at the time, it exhausts me after they have gone and takes me a day or two to get over it. Do professional cleaners chat as much or just come in and get the job done? Has anyone ever had a male cleaner? I just don't think I would hear the same gossip with a man like women tend to do. Or be gossiped about.

Hi Ruby ! keep out of the way of the cleaners when they come or they will chat . Get a Dyson ball , it is light and easy to empty , has a very long hose so you can do the stairs fairly easily . I struggle with carrying any vac up stairs but the Dyson ball is lighter than most . I think GNetters are all of an age/ health etc which makes housework more difficult - my head is willing but my body can`t keep up . x

I use white vinegar to clean the dishwasher - a cereal bowl full and a long hot wash. I also use it as rinse aid.

My best kitchen gadget is my halogen oven - digital and with a hinged lid. The main oven only gets used for plate warming and Christmas nowadays.

Thankyou for the recommendations re garlic press Parsleywin and overthehill I will look on Amazon and may even get to JL this week!

I don't use any fad gadgets at all. I even use cut up cotton clothes for cleaning etc. We live in such a disposable society! The one thing I swear by however, is my cordless Dyson...makes life so easy and does the whole house. It actually does what its supposed to do. I work in a charity shop and we constantly come across Nappy buckets that you slot the nappy into! Most have barely been touched, (what's wrong with an ordinary bucket?). Nobody buys them!