Have you stopped to think about the coffee grounds you may be wasting? After brewing your coffee, it’s likely the leftover grounds will go out with the trash. But, they don’t have to! If you’re interested in using coffee grounds instead of tossing them, you’ve come to the right place.
Here are five simple uses for used coffee grounds!
1. Fertilizer for Your Garden
Instead of throwing coffee grounds into the trash, why not use them in your garden? Or, you can put them in your flower pots! Coffee grounds make excellent fertilizer since they have essential minerals. A few minerals they add are nitrogen, magnesium, and phosphorus. All these minerals can help your plants grow stronger.
In addition, coffee beans clean the soil in your pot or garden. They clean the soil by removing heavy metals that would otherwise seep into the food chain.
Additionally, the grounds attract worms. And having worms is excellent for composting and enriching the soil in your pots and garden.
You may want to produce more organic manure batches for composting. If that’s the case, you can always combine coffee grounds with other trash as well.
2. Insect and Pest Repellant
If you have trouble with pests, bugs, and flying insects at your home, coffee grounds may be the solution.
Try putting some coffee grounds in a few bowls around the house. Believe it or not, their scent deters insects from sticking around in your home.
The grounds absorb foul odors from food and other sources in your kitchen and house. And in turn, this keeps insects and pests away.
When you spread them in your garden, they also keep pests away. One whiff of coffee grounds and snails, slugs, and other small animals go the other way!
3. Natural Cleaning Scrub
Your pots and kitchen surfaces attract and hold dirt. The leftover coffee grounds are a simple, inexpensive, and organic cleaning solution. It turns out they work perfectly at scrubbing away the grime!
The grounds have antibacterial properties that help keep the surfaces and dishes clean.
To clean your pots and pans, sprinkle the grounds directly onto them. Then, using a sponge, scrub away! This natural cleaning solution is fantastic for removing caked-on food. Just remember to rinse off whatever surfaces you washed with the grounds afterward.
After using the coffee ground scrub, your kitchen will be as good as new. However, it would help to be careful when washing porous materials with coffee grounds. The grounds can leave brown stains on the surfaces. So, if you want to leave porous materials intact, it’s best to avoid them.
4. Exfoliating the Body
Did you know that you can use coffee grounds for grooming? Believe it or not, you can use it for your beauty treatments. And, it’s effective for pets’ skin issues as well!
Your Skin
Coffee grounds have antioxidant and sunscreen properties. So naturally, they have excellent properties that benefit your skin.
The fine particles in coarse grounds are excellent at removing dirt and dead skin. When you mix it with some oil or honey, you can use it to clean your face, lips, and the rest of the body.
Your Pet’s Skin
You may also want to try adding it to your pet’s shampoo. The natural treatment will keep your pet’s skin smooth and shiny.
Plus, grounds can aid in removing and keeping away fleas. And we all know how annoying fleas are when you have a pet!
However, you should consult a vet before using it on your dog or cat. It’s best to get their thoughts and ensure your pet won’t have an allergic reaction.
5. Meat Tenderizer and Food Additive
Did you know that coffee grounds have natural enzymes and acids that soften your meat?
Try rubbing coffee grounds on the meat about an hour before cooking. Then, when the meat goes into your oven or barbecue, the grounds and their matter seeps in. The result is that the cooked meat is tender and crispy.
If you prefer, you can rub your meat the day before. Just stick it in the refrigerator the day before. It’s likely your meat will taste even better after being marinated overnight!
Bonus: How to Keep Coffee Grounds Fresh
Even though there are a lot of uses for used coffee grounds, you should still take care to preserve your new grounds. Make your coffee grounds last for fresh-tasting coffee!
To keep them fresh, keep the grounds out of direct sunlight. Instead, store it in a dark and dry area and use it within one week. Otherwise, your coffee may not taste as good as newly bought coffee beans.
If you have used coffee grounds, you can keep them fresh to use later for one of the projects above. The best way to keep your coffee grounds “new” is by drying the leftover grounds. You can let the sun dry them out or put them in the oven on low heat. Once they are dry, keep them in a well-aerated non-woven bag so you can use them again later.
Conclusion
There are many more uses than you can find for coffee grounds in, around, and out of your house. So while you may have been used to discarding them, now, you have a reason to think again.
The nutrients and matter are an excellent resource in your kitchen, home, and garden. So, be sure to use used coffee grounds to your advantage!
