Awesome Uses for Aluminum Foil

Partly in fun, and because it's a bit of useful information, I have decided to show some weird ways to use aluminum foil. I don't know why, but I tend to retain odd information such as this.

While weird, it doesn't mean that these different ways to use aluminum foil aren't helpful, too. I even bet that at least one of these aluminum foil tips will prove useful to you.

So, here we go- weird and wacky uses for aluminum foil:

I think that everyone knows one of the classic ways to use aluminum foil, but just in case: When you bake a pie, if the edges of the crust start getting too brown before the pie is done, just add a strip of aluminum foil along the edges to stop it from burning. Works like a charm. No sense spending dollars on those pie crust covers just for that purpose.

I use aluminum foil in the lowest rack of my oven often. Yes, I have a self-cleaning oven. But I don't want to use it often, especially in the summer. And you still have to scrub your oven a bit. So, I just place a piece of aluminum foil lightly on the bottom rack of my oven, shiny side up, whenever I bake something that I know has the potential to drip or otherwise make a mess in my oven. I find that the shiny surface sometimes helps to cook foods faster, too, so keep that in mind.

Again in the kitchen, use aluminum foil to cover the burner drip pans on your stove. I hate spending literal hours trying to clean burner pans. This saves me tons of work hours. It just takes about five minutes to use aluminum foil to cover the drip pans. Then when they start looking gnarly, I simply replace the aluminum foil.

If I can't find the lid to a pot or pan, I make a quick homemade lid out of aluminum foil. Works great, and I can adjust it to be either loose or tight fitting. I also use this when I lose a lid or need a lid for anything else- paint cans, leftovers, etc.

Cooking a chicken in the slow cooker? Add a few 'aluminum foil balls' wadded up a bit larger than golf balls to the bottom. This will keep the chicken from soaking in grease. Amazingly, the result is tender, moist chicken very similar to rotisserie chicken.

If you're baking bread or a cake that you fear may stick or be difficult to remove from the pan, add a layer of foil to the pan first. Use this to help lift the food out of the pan easily with no sticking.

I also use aluminum foil to line the bottom of my grill. It seems to help produce more heat and it keeps my grill clean. I don't have to scrape the bottom of it every month. Did I mention that I hate to clean?

Make homemade Panini sandwiches! Just wrap a brick or heavy stone with aluminum foil. Place it on top of your Panini sandwich on the grill. Grill each side, turning after about five minutes. The brick will be hot, so use a mitt to remove it!

See aluminum foil uses for your car below too, for more ways aluminum foil is handy around the grill.

If you don't have a scissors sharpener around, aluminum foil will work very well. Just fold up a piece of aluminum foil a few times. Then cut through it with your dull scissors until they feel sharp. This usually only takes about five or six cuts.

Strips of aluminum foil wrapped around the sides of furniture will help keep cats from scratching furniture. Click on the link to find out other ways to keep cats off of your furniture.

To prevent sterling silver from tarnishing, just put a strip of aluminum foil in your jewelry box or cutlery drawer.

Aluminum foil becomes a handy funnel in a pinch!

If I'm painting and want to take a break without rinsing out my paintbrush, I tightly wrap the brushes in aluminum foil after I've squeezed out as much paint as I can. Or plastic wrap works, too. This little aluminum foil tip also works for covering paint rollers that you want to use again.

And another aluminum foil painting tip: If you need a drop cloth and don't have one handy, use a layer of aluminum foil.

We have an old house with high ceilings and lots of drafty windows. It tends to get very cold in the winter. We have gas heat using old radiators. If you have heat using radiators, do what we do to save money and get more heat circulating. We put a large piece of cardboard covered with aluminum foil behind each radiator, shiny side out. It effectively reflects the heat into the house and also blocks the heat from escaping to the outer walls.

Use the above technique to spare your car from the summer heat as well. Wrap cardboard long enough to fit in your windshield with aluminum foil. Place it in your windshield on hot summer days to keep your car cooler. And if you don't mind the appearance, covering windows that let in the hot summer sun with aluminum foil will greatly reduce the need for air conditioning.

Did you know that aluminum foil is great for polishing chrome? Yep, my stepdad used to keep his 67 Camaro shining brightly with a crumpled up aluminum foil ball. Well, usually I had to shine it, but it was his ingenious idea to use aluminum foil. It even can remove rust from chrome if it's not rusted too badly.

Aluminum foil also works great for scrubbing other things, like the grill. (But lining it with foil first is so much easier!) Just be sure not to use it on anything that foil may scratch or damage.

If you like to camp or hike, use aluminum foil for cooking instead of bringing heavy pots and pans. This is a lifesaver on long hikes to primitive camp sites. Plus, pots or pans made with aluminum foil don't need to be washed and are easily disposable. I plan on using this idea when I finally hike the Appalachian Trail. And of course, making food on the grill using aluminum foil packets is one of the easiest ways to cook.

You can also use aluminum foil and a large box when camping, (or even at home), to make a homemade solar cooker. Save money and energy at the same time!

Another handy use for aluminum foil for campers is to place a layer of aluminum foil under your sleeping bag. This will help to reflect body heat and keep you warmer. Plus, it keeps your sleeping bag dry.

Clean your sterling silver jewelry using aluminum foil and a few other common household items.

Just add hot water, a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid, and two tablespoons of salt and baking soda to a plastic pan that has aluminum foil layered on the bottom. Let the jewelry soak in the water for about fifteen minutes. Rinse it off and dry.

It should be shiny with no more tarnish! If not, leave it overnight. Of course, this also works for other sterling silver items.

To make these uses for aluminum foil even cooler, is the fact that aluminum foil is recyclable!

First, use it several times before getting rid of it if you can. Of course, don't reuse aluminum foil that has been in contact with dangerous chemicals or raw food, etc, but you know what I mean.

Second, aluminum foil is a very eco-friendly product. See if there is a recycling program for aluminum foil in your area.