If you could invent something to solve a household issue what would it be?

abssorb

sevenhills said:

Something that would solve damp/black mold. I am thinking about getting a fan in my bathroom, just a matter of what would trigger the fan to switch on.

A motion detection device perhaps.

Landlord answer re bathroom extraction and mould......

Kilrock mould remover
The only product we found that was spray and come back a few hours later and it's gone, or at least 90% gone.

Re extraction, the only solidly reliable answer to ensuring the fan will switch on is something on the flow pipe to the shower.  Tried those that come on with the bathroom light + timer, don't work in daylight, plus noise middle of the night means people switch them off.
Tried humidity-sensing fans, they start activating when it's raining, and soon break. Longest any one of them lasted was 18 months, and, it didn't solve the mould problem.

Kicking the fan on when the shower water is actually hot is the best we found.  
For a power shower with hot and cold feed, we use these, clamped to the hot pipe:
Danfoss SPAUKAA4506 Thermostat
Or similar from Screwfix:

DRAYTON PTS1 PIPE THERMOSTAT (2395R)

For an electric shower it's more tricky as the flow is cold.

MarriedtoFinn

RE:  OPENING TOUGH  JARS  AND  BOTTLES:
You can buy sheets of non-slip matting for trays, worktops etc., really cheaply.  A sheet of this, about the size of a dish cloth, over your hand and it gives you a terrifically non-slip, tough grip which I've found works every time.  A problem I find also comes with small/weak hands, is that some hard-to-budge lids really dig in to your flesh, and this non-slip layer also protects you from that, meaning you can persevere that tiny bit longer, if necessary.
It's also great for under mixing bowls to stop them sliding across the work tops, and under chopping boards.
Versatile stuff.

Rosa_Damascena

I would like an aerobic exercise machine that generates energy. Back when Coventry had City of Culture status they had a (static) bike in place at the station, people were encouraged to use it to charge up their phones. Not too sure what happened to it? Am guessing it may have been on loan from somewhere.

A domestic version would be nice. 

Dataless

sammyjammy said:

Maybe someone already has a fix for it!

Mine would be for someone to invent something to REALLY clean an iron plate after something got burnt, I have tried so many things and nothing  helps.

I had something like this happen in 2013, I cleaned with cif and a scourer, also used that blue limescale liquid from LIDL that is a clone of viacal, it is less potent now because they removed the tiny amount of acid it had.  I also use this for baking trays and old pans, but you need to heat them up.

Dataless

itsthelittlethings said:

Kitchen sink and bath blocking up.

The thing to remember is they only get blocked with what you put down them.

If you do not put fat down the kitchen sink and instead put it in a 2l milk carton you will solve half the problem, the other half is stuff leaving tissues in your pockets, these not only clog up your washing machine filters but they cling to other food waste.  The other things to avoid in kitchen sink is coffee grounds, put them in the bin.  If you have a Nespresso then they recycle those pods and will send you a bag.

For the bath it is hair, hair, long hair and soap solid, you can fish out the worst of the hair with a fork.

There is a liquid you can put down the sink or bath overnight but these are not that effective.

Instead get a small bag less cylinder vacuum cleaner that has hepa filter from Freecycle, remove the u bend pipe from under the sink and use the vacuum to suck out the blockage from the drain, I may take several goes and you will have to empty the contents of water (down the toilet) and keep repeating until it is just air coming up.  When you have finished put the pipes back together and make sure no leaks.

 

I had one blocked kitchen sink callout 7 years ago, nothing since following the above.  BTW tissues that are recovered look like dishwasher tablets but different shapes and sizes.

Dataless

Brie said:

Something to tidy up after someone that doesn't tidy up after themselves......(of course dear, I'm not looking at you!  and don't worry I'll pick up all the flour, crumbs, onion skin that has fallen on the kitchen floor.....)

Yeh 3 year olds are tough!

Dataless

sevenhills said:

Something that would solve damp/black mold. I am thinking about getting a fan in my bathroom, just a matter of what would trigger the fan to switch on.

A motion detection device perhaps.

Sort of already invented, but first let's start with the prevention in the first place, open your window for 2 hours after a bath or shower.

Wipe any existing mould with thin bleach and paint affected area with anti-mould paint.

I have a window and a fan, the fan stays on for a time after I leave, but to have total control I replaced the fan and the light switch with ones that can be controlled by Alexa.  I have routines to turn these off at set times because I forget and I can turn them on if I feel it is necessary.

For most of my property window ventilation strips mean I do not get mould, I even dry my clothes indoors, I open french doors sometimes but probably only in the summer, still no mould.

Dataless

Rosa_Damascena said:

Something to eliminate cooking smells whilst you are cooking.

Air fryer is very good for this

Dataless

richardw said:

A toilet bowl surface that nothing will stick to it.

I lost my sensitivity to this in the military cleaning toilets for 60 to 100, keeping nails really short helps and a good antibacterial cleaner.

Not all toilets in our homes are suitable at what we might call a good dropping zone, you can affect this with your posture and maybe sitting a bit further forward.

I clean toilet bowl after every use, just use loo paper and then when all flushed away I spray with thin bleach on seat and bowl and flush button, then wipe with cloth. It takes 30 seconds, things sticking are only an issue if not cleaned immediately.

Dataless

basketcase said:

Brie said:

Something to tidy up after someone that doesn't tidy up after themselves......(of course dear, I'm not looking at you!  and don't worry I'll pick up all the flour, crumbs, onion skin that has fallen on the kitchen floor.....)

Hi @Brie

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I may have given this some thought over the years...

Not bitter at all!