We love a good excuse to drink more Coffee , and by using the waste properly, you can do so much more with your brew after drinking it!
We all know you can make a coffee scrub. Every blog on the internet has a recipe for a coffee scrub, and this is not that type of post. We’re looking for ways to use your grinds in ways that only use your grinds. No added ingredients, no recipes, just you and your spent coffee!
Here are five things you can do to reduce your coffee waste, using only your coffee at home!
Pest Repellent
The caffeine is excellent. We love caffeine as a species because it invigorates us and gives us a much needed boost! Insects hate caffeine! This is why the coffee tree produces it. The more caffeine a tree contains, the less chance there is of insects eating the seeds and leaves, and once roasted and ground, the aromas and little fumes given off from ground coffee are the perfect natural pest repellent. !
Leaving the ground in the open air will keep flies and wasps away! Sprinkle it around high traffic areas and the ants will never come near it. Even better, you can light the grinds on fire and smolder them like incense. This will keep mozzies, gnats and all other annoying creatures away. Unfortunately, burning incense works best on unused grinds (so it’s best to burn old grinds that you won’t be using anymore); however, a little lighter fluid will make the worn grind easier.
Sprinkle spent grinds over your vegetables or passion fruit, and critters like opossums, cats, and other midnight bandits will stay away from your tough crops.
Compost Invigorator
Flies, mozzies and wasps might hate the idea of coffee, but worms love coffee just as much as we do. The microorganisms that break down your compost will scavenger leftover caffeine from your spent coffee and supercharge themselves to break it down twice as fast!
Now you have to pay attention to the amount of coffee that goes in; balance it with lots of other organic matter, so you don’t add too much nitrogen and other harmful chemicals into the mix. A balance is what we always seek.
Hair Scrub
As a good body scrub, coffee can be used as an excellent exfoliant for your hair. This is done before you add shampoo, and it catches and removes oils and grit from your hair and prepares it for shampoo. The beauty of using the used grind is that the oils from the coffee are all gone, so it will soak up all the oils in your hair and rub it clean.
Blondes need to be careful, as coffee naturally darkens lighter hair, adding a coffee-colored shine to your locks.
Furniture Stain
Speaking of stains, you can stain your furniture with your leftover coffee! However, you wouldn’t make your entire dining table with it. Ground coffee is ideal for touching up scratches or chips in wooden furniture. All you have to do is rub a little wet grind on the spot, which will color this mark and make it disappear.
It’s important to make sure you get the right amount and semi-color match before staining your white birch wood chairs. However, as a general, natural answer to a quick and easy fix, ground coffee is a go-to polish remover for your wood furniture.
Dry Meat Rub
Coffee goes very well with meat. They are a heavenly marriage, not for the flavors but for what the coffee does at the molecular level. The acidity of the coffee tenderizes the meat as you rub it, creating a beautifully soft and tender texture, whether searing in a pan, grilling on the barbecue or sautéing in the smoker for a few hours.
The coffee won’t impart any flavor to the meat itself, as it will mostly burn to create a nice crust on the outside.
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