Site Title Graphic

Grandma's Remedies And Grandpa's Formulas

Below you will find formulas or recipes to use in your automobile, as insect repellants, for cleaning, for health and beauty, for lawn and garden, and more!

AUTOMOBILE

Gasoline Anti-Knock!
A little spray of carbonated water into intake manifold of an internal combustion engine will dampen the "ping" nearly as well as tetra-ethyl lead ("ethyl").
Non-Rust Anti-Freeze!
Old motor oil thinned with kerosene.
Burn Out Carbon in a Motor!
Disconnect windshield wiper tube from intake manifold. Substitute another tube leading to a container of hydrogen peroxide. Allow this to be drawn into idling motor. Excess oxygen will burn out the carbon deposits.
Deodorize Gasoline!
Add about 20 drops of sassafras oil to a gallon of gasoline or solvent.
Hydraulic Brake Fluid!
Mix equal parts castor oil and denatured alcohol.
Auto Radiator Cleaner!
Sodium bisulphate. Pour 12 ounces in radiator and run car for two hours. Drain and flush well.
Renew Auto Batteries!
Dissolve 1 ounce Epsom salts in warm water for each cell.
Spark Plug Cleaner!
Use household ammonia.
Motor Oil Reclaimed!
Boil 4 gallons used oil, add 1 pint silicate of soda and stir 10 to 15 minutes. Let settle 5 to 7 days.
Auto Dry Cleaning Spray!
Mix 1 pint paraffin oil and 1 quart cleaner's naphtha.

INSECT REPELLANTS

Plant to Keep Mosquitos Away!
The castor bean plant. Seeds available from any nursery. Plant in pots within the house; replant outdoors. Decorative and they grow like weeds!
Mosquitos Won't Bite:
Four parts glycerin, 4 parts alcohol, 1 part eucalyptus oil. Or make a solution of equal parts of isopropyl alcohol and methyl phthalate.
Mosquito Remedy!
Mix oil of citronella in a common Vaseline and apply to exposed areas.
Mosquito Repellent!
Ethyl hexanediol sprinkled around breeding areas.
Cockroach Killer!
Mix equal parts Plaster of Paris and oatmeal. Sprinkle on roach trails.
Insect and Roach Exterminator!
Mix the following: Borax, one pound; powdered sugar, 60 oz.; add one oz. cocoa powder and two oz. sodium fluoride. Mix well and sprinkle around places pests are known to frequent. Keep out of reach of children!
Keeps Fleas Off Dogs!
A little sage. Obtainable in any grocery store in "Seasonings" department.
Fly Killer!
Dissolve 1-1/2 ounces formalin, 6 ounces sugar, and 100 ounces water.
Moth Paper!
Melt together 4 parts naphthalene and 8 parts paraffin wax. Paint on paper while still warm.
Bed Bug Killer!
Mix equal parts wood alcohol and creosote.

CLEANING

Remove Coffee and Tea Stains!
Glycerin. OR ethylene Glycol ("Prestone") OR Diethylene Glycol.
Remove Rust Stains from Fabrics!
Equal parts alum and tartaric acid, or 10% solution hydrofluoric acid. Rinse!
Remove Chewing Gum from Rugs and Clothing!
Turpentine is most effective. Next, Benzene or other hydrocarbon solvents.
Remove Water Marks from Table Tops!
Dissolve paraffin shavings in olive or cooking oil. Rub one way only.
All Purpose Cleaner!
Simply mix one ounce Trisodium Phosphate with one gallon of water; makes the whitest washings, an excellent cleaner for all surfaces; also car radiators, etc.
Super Cleaning Cloth!
Ounce of oxalic acid in gallon of water. Wring and dry the cloths.
Make Glass Sparkle!
Carbon Tetrachloride, retailed in drug stores as "Carbona".
Open Most Sinks and Drains!
Pour in a little kerosene. Let stand overnight. Results not immediate.
Eyeglass Cleaner!
Mix together 8 oz. ammonia and 32 oz. denatured alcohol.
Drain Pipe Cleaner!
Sodium hydroxide.
Liquid Hand Soap!
Dissolve any good powdered soap in boiling water, add one part alcohol to each 4 parts solution. Odor may be added when cool.
Powdered Hand Soap!
Put ordinary tri-sodium phosphate in sifter can or mix 7 oz. of same with 3 oz. of fine powdered soap.
Fabrics and Labels Adhere to Metal!
Add a little glycerin or "Prestone" to the glue or moistening water.
All Purpose Cleaner!
Mix 1 ounce TSP with one gallon of water. For cleaning rugs, woodwork, linoleum, porcelain, painted surfaces, glass, etc.
Wood Furniture Restorer!
Mix 3 parts linseed oil with one part turpentine. Rub on furniture with woolen cloth, let dry, rub with a dry woolen cloth.
Pine Oil Disinfectant!
Mix 1 part rosoap and 6 parts pine oil.
Felt and Suede Cleaner!
Carbon tetrachloride.
Aluminum Cleaner and Polish!
Two ounces borax in 1 pint water.
Toilet Bowl Cleaner!
Potassium acid sulphate.
Concrete Cleaner!
Dissolve 3 pounds metasilicate in 1 gallon hot water. Use with broom.
Type Cleaner!
Mix half pint naphtha in 1 quart of carbon tetrachloride.
Air Freshener!
Mix 4 parts water soluble perfume oil in 124 parts plain water.

HEALTH AND BEAUTY

Tooth Powder!
Equal parts table salt, borax and baking soda. Ask your dentist.
A Drinker Will Dislike the Taste of Alcohol!
A few drops of tincture of ipecac (a word which is sometimes known as ipecacuanha). Consult your pharmacist.
Stagnant Water Made Safe to Drink!
To a quart of water add about 10 drops tincture of iodine. Let stand.
Beauty Clay from Two Ingredients!
Five tsp. Fuller's Earth and 3 tsp. lemon juice. Or Bentonite (clay) and water.
Falling Hair!
Mix one part of oil of lemon to 10 parts water. Apply daily.
Treatment for Pyorrhea!
Chlorine laundry bleach, daily applied with toothpick and cotton "swab".
Hydrocotyle Asiatic Teas Are a Brain Food!
Energizes and preserves the brain and body indefinitely. Noted for making geniuses.
Alopecia:
Mullein Solutions Will Grow Hair on Bald Heads! Massage the head by taking two fingers of each hand, put on each side of the spinal cord above the hair line. Now rub up and down for two minutes. (This treatment alone has often given excellent results.) Afterwards apply the mullein and leave on. Garlic oil is also very effective to grow hair.
Dandruff:
Coconut oil is most effective for stubborn cases.
Superfluous Hair:
Use 20 vol. peroxide. This is not the ordinary peroxide but twice as strong. This will in time discourage hair growth.
Gray Hair!
Massage sulphur well into the scalp once a week for a few weeks, and partake of sulphur foods whenever possible.
Liquor Cravings!
Gold Thread mixed with Golden Seal in teas creates a violent distaste for alcoholic drinks. A few grains of epicae added to liquids nullifies all desire for liquors.
Cigarette Habit:
Before breakfast take 1/2 teaspoon each rochelle salts and cream of tartar; also chew ginseng root and swallow the juice.
Athletes!
Use honey in copious amounts, and drink teas of Alfalfa for flexibility, strength and swiftness.
Arthritis!
Take 2 tbsp. orange juice thoroughly mixed with 1 tbsp. cod-liver oil on an empty stomach just before bedtime at night after several hours have elapsed after the evening meal. Eat no food or drink, no liquid of any kind, for a number of hours after taking the oil. This lapse of time allows the stomach to empty and bile flow to subside. Then when the whole digestive system is resting, the oiled orange juice will pass into the bloodstream and is readily absorbed by the bone structure which comprise the malady. Many folks have tried this and have had no occurrence of arthritis since the after years of being partially crippled.
Poison Ivy Remedy!
Two ounces potassium permanganate with 40 ounces water.
Bath Oil!
Mix 98 parts sulfonated olive oil with 2 parts perfume oil.
Influenza!
Yarrow herb known as milfoil has been used with good results to stop hemorrhaging of the lungs. If the tea is taken freely at the beginning of a cold, mixed with elderberry blossoms and peppermint, and the patient remains in bed, it will break up a cold and flu within 24 hours. For a bad cold, take a teaspoonful of Arm & Hammer soda in a glass of cold water. If taken 15 minutes or so before a meal for 5 meals, it will banish a cold. If the stomach is empty, the soda passes on through it into the intestines and kills the acid forming there. The soda stops acid formation, which during a cold forms in the intestines, is absorbed into the blood and filters out through the membranes of the nose, throat, eyes and lungs. Cayenne and eyebright teas will dry up a cold quickly. Cream of tartar in a glass of water, one teaspoonful, will quickly banish fevers.
Corns!
Cut a small piece of lemon rind with a little of the pulp and bind to corn. Deep-seated corns will no doubt take longer.
Facial!
Scrub face and neck with soap in warm water, dry, spread milk of magnesia over face and neck. Relax until it dries thoroughly. Spread another layer of magnesia to dissolve the first layer, remove with a damp towel. Now heat some olive oil and apply; let this remain for five minutes; use ice cold witch hazel, which removes the excess oil, leaving skin fresh. This magically erases frown lines, re-awakens and preserves face and neck indefinitely. Use twice a week; after a few treatments you will be amazed at the transformation.
Food Drink!
Place one heaping tablespoon of malt (not chocolate) in a cup. Add 1/4 cup of milk. Mix until smooth, then add 1-1/2 cups of milk, 2 fresh eggs and 3 spoonfuls of honey. Now place in a quart jar and shake. Drink at once after mixing as the vitamins will escape within a few minutes after being mixed. Drink four times a day. This is equal to a full meal but one will gain or lose weight. Do not add sweetening of any kind.
Eye Lotion!
Dissolve 6 ounces sodium tetraborate into one gallon of water.
Cuticle Remover!
Thirty ounces potassium hydroxide, 5 gallons water, 100 ounces glycerin.
Soapless Oil Shampoo!
Mix 100 parts sulfonated castor oil and 1 part perfume oil.
Sweet Pea Toilet Water!
Dissolve 72 ounces of oil of sweet pea into 27 gallons of alcohol and add 11 gallons of water.
Face Powder!
One part powdered French chalk and 3 parts talcum powder.
Astringent!
Mix 2 ounces aquaresin G.M.C. in 1 gallon of water. Let stand overnight.
French Bubble Bath!
Mix 4 parts snowflake crystals with 1 part virifoam-A. Add perfume oil to scent.
Wave Set!
Soak 2 pounds gum jauri in 20 gallons of water overnight, dissolve, add perfume and color to suit.
Perfume Extract!
Dissolve 1 part perfume oil in 10 parts alcohol. Allow to stand several days in tightly corked bottle, then filter.
Nail Polish Remover!
Mix 6 parts acetone with 4 parts ethyl acetate.
Silk Hosiery Saver!
Mix 1 ounce powdered alum into a quart of water. Soak hosiery in solution 15 minutes and dry. Rinse in water several times and dry.
Itch Ointment!
Mix thoroughly one part ointment of nitrate of mercury and 4 parts of balm oil.

GARDEN AND LAWN

Keep Grass from Growing Near Walks!
Saturate the strip with used motor oil. Not new oil.
Flowers Preserved Indefinitely!
Collodion, thinned with ether. Or keep stems in vase of powdered silica gel.
Green Lawn All Winter!
In the autumn, scatter Italian rye (or equivalent) grass on the lawn.
Doubled Crops!
To double your crops, lervuilinic acid dusted on or soaking seeds with acid increases the yield of oats, corn, beets, soybeans and cotton as much as 100%. Costs only $3.00 per acre.
Fruits and Flowers Grow Larger!
A little iron sulfate (green copperas) in watering fluid. Use infrequently.

MISCELLANEOUS

Break a Dog from Chasing Cars!
Attach a stick to the dog's collar to strike at his knees when he runs.
Develop Fingerprints!
Place a small wad of cotton, saturated with tincture of iodine, in a glass tube; blow against suspected fingerprints, and they will appear.
Make Steel and Iron Tools Rust-Proof!
Boil in a solution of ferric phosphate or (better) benzoate of soda.
Nickel Plate Metal!
Equal parts of double nickel salts and sal ammoniac dissolved in water. Heat to near boiling and immerse the metal to be nickeled, with a scrap of aluminum or aluminum foil touching it. Rinse well in clear water.
Make Mimeograph Ink!
Thin common printer's ink with kerosene to desired consistency.
Liquid Fire, Red, Green, etc.!
Methanol (denatured alcohol) costs less than 65 cents a gallon. To make a "dip" or spray for fireplace logs, add about 1/4 teaspoonful strontium nitrate for RED fire, barium nitrate for brilliant GREEN flames, common table salt for YELLOW, copper sulfate (blue vitriol) for BLUE flames, and copper sulfide for PURPLE flames.
Candles Burn Twice as Long!
Dip candles in liquid shellac. The candle wax will burn... not drip.
Camp Stove - Carry in Your Pocket!
Fill a can with sand and saturate with gasoline, kerosene, alcohol, etc.
Common Substance to Ink Makes It Waterproof!
Add ink to a bit of common glue and allow to dissolve completely.
Transparent Paint for Glass!
Mix water colors with sodium silicate solution (waterglass).
Magical Fish Bait Gets the Big Ones!
Use oil of Rhodium, 1 ounce, mixed with 1/2 ounce of oil of anise. Put on bait.
Never Fail to Get Your Deer!
Take along a bottle of oil of anise and dab some of it on your cap, face, hands and coat collars. Do this at intervals throughout the day. Ones who do this never fail to get their deer every year. The anise kills the human scent. This is an odor that deer like and will attract them. When in thick growth simply give a loud shrill whistle. A good percentage of the time the deer's curiosity will get the best of his judgment, he stops, and you've got your deer.
Deodorant and Moth Blocks!
Mix together 3 parts colorome and 100 parts paradichlorbenzine. Melt and pour into molds.
Silvering Compound!
Mix together one part nitrate of silver with 3 parts cyanide of potassium; add water to make thick paste. Rub on copper, brass, etc., with cloth.
Valve Grinding Compound!
Mix fine powdered pumice with petroleum jelly.
Brilliantine!
Mix 99 parts light white mineral oil and 1 part perfume oil. Let stand 48 hours, then filter.
Varnish for Maps!
Add 2 ounces castor oil to 2 quarts collodion.
Fluid for Writing on Blueprints!
Mix 12 ounces TSP in 1 gallon of water.
Almond Flavor!
Mix 1 part oil of bitter almond to 49 parts sherry wine.
Banana Flavor!
Mix 8 ounces banana flavor with 1 gallon of edible corn oil.
Ribbon and Pad Ink!
Mix glycerine and small amount of aniline black. Apply one drop on each inch of ribbon, rewind and let set for several days.
Meat Tenderizer!
Mix 17 ounces papaya juice into 1 gallon of water. Sprinkle on meat, pound lightly, let stand 30 minutes.
Liquid Cement!
Mix 1 gallon of waterglass with 2 quarts of water. Heat and gradually add 1 pound of shellac, stirring until completely dissolved. Use on cardboard, wood, crockery, glass, etc.
Writing Ink!
Pulverize and mix 16 ounces nut gals with 7 ounces of gum arabic. Mix into 6 quarts of warm water. Keep in airtight bottles.
Plastic Wood!
Mix powdered wood flour with enough acetone to make a stiff paste.
Gun Oil!
Clear mineral oil.

NOTE: It should be remembered that any chemical can be very dangerous when used or handled improperly. For this reason, the seller of these formulas IS NOT responsible for any mishaps associated with these formulas. THEY ARE SOLD AS INFORMATION ONLY!

Return to Do It Yourself Home