5 Surprising Household Uses for Club Soda

Club soda isn't just something that goes well with vodka and a twist of lime. This seemingly ordinary pantry ingredient (and its cousins, sparkling mineral water and seltzer water) is a home remedy that works outside of the wet bar, too. Keep a bottle of fizzy water on hand for these surprising household uses:

#1 Use club soda to water your houseplants. Club soda contains a slew of macronutrients essential to plant growth: carbon, oxygen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur, and sodium. To perk up your houseplants, water them with club soda once a week, or spritz them with a club soda foliar spray. It's like giving them an indulgent mineral bath!

#2 Use club soda to remove wine stains. To remove a dreaded red wine stain from a white shirt, generously douse the fresh stain with club soda and gently blot (don't rub) at the stain with a clean cloth until it disappears. Club soda is slightly acidic, so be sure to flush the fabric with water once the stain is gone.

#3 Use club soda to loosen rusted nuts and bolts. If you have some stubborn nuts and bolts that have rusted on and no WD-40 on hand, pour some club soda over them and soak for a few hours. For items you can't soak, wrap a soda-dampened towel around the nuts and bolts and let it sit. The carbonation helps to bubble the rust away, loosening the bolts without requiring a lot of elbow grease on your part.

#4 Use club soda to clean up pet urine. If your pet had an accident on the carpet, blot up as much of the urine (or vomit) as possible with a clean cloth. Saturate the area with club soda, let it fizz until the bubbles subside, and blot again. Repeat until the stain is removed, and let the carpet air dry. If you still notice a smell, pour another liberal amount of club soda over the offending spot and let it dry; super strong odors may require a few applications.

#5 Use club soda to polish your gemstones. Give your diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires extra glimmer by soaking them overnight in club soda. The bubbles will loosen any tiny dirt particles and restore their shine. (But keep precious porous stones like opals, pearls, and turquoise away, which could get eaten away by the carbonation.)