Incorporating and reusing everyday items can bring about multifaceted benefits in terms of functionality and environmental conservation, such as halving a plastic bottle and positioning it in the kitchen sink. With this simple trick, a common problem in the kitchen sink is solved “in the blink of an eye”.
What is the purpose of cutting a plastic bottle in half and placing it in the kitchen sink?
To reuse a plastic bottle for the kitchen sink, you will need to use a knife or scissors to cut the plastic bottle in half.
Take a sharp nail and heat it over a flame until it melts. Use this nail to pierce 5-6 drainage holes in the bottom of the bottle. Then, make another 2 holes on the top to thread the string. If you don’t have a nail, you can use a piece of wire instead.
Next, thread a string through the two holes you made in the sides of the bottle and tie the two ends of the string together to create a handle; stick a hook in the corner of the kitchen sink and hang the plastic bottle from it.
By cutting a plastic bottle in half and placing it in the kitchen sink, you will reap several benefits, such as:
This is one of the benefits of cutting a plastic bottle in half and placing it in the kitchen sink. (Photo: Cleverly.me)
Making a basket for food waste
One of the handy tricks with plastic bottles is to use them as baskets to collect food waste while you wash the dishes.
There’s always a little leftover food after every meal, which many people conveniently dump into the kitchen sink. However, the strainer basket in the kitchen sink is usually quite small, which means it fills up quickly when there’s a lot of waste, slowing down the draining process and increasing the risk of clogging.
To address this problem, you can take the plastic bottle you’ve cut in half and insert it into the kitchen sink. When washing the dishes, simply sweep the food waste into the plastic bottle. The water from the food will drain out through the holes you’ve made in the bottom of the bottle. The wide diameter of the plastic bottle makes it easy to pour the food in and it can hold a larger amount of waste.
Once you’ve collected enough food waste, simply lift the plastic bottle out and empty it into the trash; rinse the plastic bottle and hang it back in its original place.
Holder for dishwashing items
After cutting a plastic bottle in half for the kitchen sink, you can turn it into a container to hold your sponge and steel wool. The water from the dishwashing tools will drain out through the small holes, keeping them dry and preventing bacteria from growing. This way, you can save space and keep your kitchen tidy.
You can cut off the top of the bottle and set it aside, then cut out a section in the middle of the bottle and discard it. Invert the top of the bottle and attach it to the bottom of the bottle. Now you can keep your kitchen sponge clean without having it touch dirty surfaces or drip all over the place.
Storing dish soap solution
You can use the half of the plastic bottle without holes to store dish soap solution. Just mix a small amount of dish soap solution with water in each plastic bottle for use, in order to save money. This not only helps to reduce expenses but also protects the environment by reducing the amount of chemicals disposed of.
Ways to reuse plastic bottles
Plastic bottles can be reused not only in the kitchen sink but also have many other applications in everyday life such as:
Growing plants
You can cut a plastic bottle in half and use the bottom as a plant pot. This not only helps reduce plastic emissions but also creates handy mini pots for growing small plants indoors or outdoors.
Cleverly turning empty plastic bottles into useful and beautiful items like flower pots (Photo: Cleverly.me)
Food storage
Plastic bottles can be used to store food items such as sugar, salt, rice, or other spices. They help preserve the food and protect it from external factors like moisture and insects.
Storing kitchen utensils
Plastic bottles can be used to organize kitchen utensils like chopsticks, spoons, knives, or any other small items. This way, you can keep your kitchen tidy and easily access the utensils you need.
Storing oil and liquids
Plastic bottles can be used to store oil, soap, or other liquids around the house. They make it easy to store and use liquids without having to buy new containers.
Storing school supplies
You can use plastic bottles as tools for studying or teaching, such as making pencil holders, card holders or other tools in the classroom or in the workspace.
Clearly, besides cutting a plastic bottle in half and placing it in the kitchen sink, you have many other ways to reuse it, keeping it in service to humanity instead of becoming trash and a burden to the environment.