Uses For Coffee Grounds

uses-for-coffee-grounds

Here are some practical uses for leftover used coffee grounds.

Finding multiple uses for things is a good habit to get into and benefits a lifestyle of frugal living and better self-sufficiency…


 
Deodorize your fridge. Place a bowl of dry grounds in your refrigerator or freezer to neutralize odors.

Clean dishes. As they’re slightly abrasive, place a few teaspoons of grounds on a thin cleaning rag and use to scour away grease and grime.

Repel ants. Mound grounds into a ring to create a protective border around plants that will ward off ants and slugs.

Fortify plants. Give seedlings a nitrogen boost by stirring grounds into soil or a watering can.

Compost bin. Coffee grounds add nutrients to your compost bin.

Kitty repellent. To keep kitty from using the garden as her personal powder room, sprinkle grounds mixed with orange peels around your plants.

Deepen flavors. Add a tablespoon of fresh grounds to meat marinades, it works as a tenderizer and adds mild smokiness. Just a little hint of coffee can put a unique flavor into foods like chili and chocolate cake.

Fisherman’s friend. If you like fishing and have a worm-bed at home, add coffee grounds! You’ll grow some nice fat ones for fishing.

Dog fleas. After bathing your dog, rub 1 to 2 cups of old coffee grounds into his fur and rinse well. It will apparently repel/kill fleas.

Frozen coffee slush. Stretch the money you spent on coffee. Steep the grounds again and add some sugar and salt, then freeze to make a frozen coffee drink.

 
If you know of additional uses, leave a comment for the rest of us…

11 Comments

    1. You could even use the coffee grounds to make additional coffee, albeit much weaker the second time around. For example, Mrs. MSB likes to homemade iced tea… so after the tea has steeped to her liking, she saves the teabags for a second go around – brewed much longer – but still makes pallet-able tea… money saved!

  1. Used coffee grounds (or used tea bags) will cover a scratch on wood furniture. The tannins darken the scratched part without darkening the unscratched part. Just dampen the grounds and rub along the scratch with your fingers, then wipe off with a damp cloth.
    I’ve used coffee grounds in my garden beds for many years, but I found out that bees really like coffee. I have a beehive in the back wall of my house (wild honeybees moved in) and whenever I spread out coffee grounds, the bees cluster all over it and within a couple days the coffee is gone. I mention this for those that may have an allergy to bee stings, since the coffee seems to attract them. I’ve never been stung by a honeybee, even though there are hundreds all over my yard at any given time, and I work next to them a lot.

    1. That is interesting regarding the honeybee attractant. I too have never been stung by a honeybee. They are ‘good’ bees ;)

    2. interesting re the honeybees….

      so…wondering if the honey smells/tastes like coffee?…grin

      1. Oh I hope so! But the bees spend a lot of time in my herb garden too so maybe it will be herbal honey? We’ll find out after it gets too cold for them to fly this winter, when we plan to seal their hole and remove the honey next Spring.

        1. Tammy,
          I found this so interesting that I googled Honeybees Coffee Grounds…..Wow…it appears Honeybees (maybe bees in general) love coffee grounds, and spend large amounts of time picking them out of compost piles, if no other source exists..

          further to that, someone (cnt recall who) had done an analysis of various sourced honey, and found measureable amounts of caffeine in said honey. That researcher had put it all down to thinking there must be some amount of caffeine in certain flowers, etc… Now, I am thinking it is due to the rascals scooping up Coffee Grounds.

          I found one site, which the fellow did his own test on which type of coffee grounds the rascals preferred…put similar amounts on saucers and lined up the saucers to see which they took most of.
          Dry Unused Grounds/Dry Used Grounds/Unused Grounds Wetted down/Used Grounds Dry/Used Grounds Wet.

          Apparently (if I recall correct), they preferred Used Grounds Still Wet…more or less to the exclusion of the rest…

          all interesting..

        2. Wow. I never thought to google the subject (which is surprising since my hubby calls me google queen, lol). It was just something I had noticed from spending time sitting in my garden. I regularly stop by Starbucks to get a big bag of their used grounds, and I thought maybe the bees just liked the flavorings in that coffee, but it seems to be the coffee itself they like.

          Something else I’ve heard about used grounds, but not sure if it’s true; a friend told me that it can be used to naturally cover gray hair. Or at least darken it somewhat. I like my gray hair, so I doubt I’ll try it.

        3. pretty cool…

          and re the grey hair…have a few, might give it a try..

  2. I was also taught that coffee grounds can be used to freshen up drains in the house,and so used help keep the drains clear – due to the abrasive nature of the grounds.

  3. Throw away and buy another can of Hills brothers ( $5.99) and quit being cheapskates–( LOL)

Comments are closed.