14 Home Remedies with Petroleum Jelly

Keeping a jar of petroleum jelly in your home might be the best idea you ever had – it will not only help your feet feel smooth but will help you with car battery and squeaking wardrobe doors! Here are 13 incredible uses for petroleum jelly that you probably never thought of before.

Cracked heels and dry feet

Petroleum jelly soothes cracked lips but not only – it works miraculously on dry feet and cracked heels. If you don’t have time for a pedicure, just smooth a layer of petroleum jelly onto your feet and then slip them into a pair of thin socks overnight (to ensure the jelly stays put). By morning, your feet will be softer than ever.

Watermark aid

If you own a couple of wood tables and your friends consistently put their drinks on them without using coasters, you might have a collection of watermarks to get rid of. Just apply some petroleum jelly to the area and leave it for 8-10 hours. When you wipe the jelly away, the watermark should go with it.

Lasting scent

Most perfumes smell amazing for an hour or two after application but the scent will disappear by the time you get to the meeting. Try putting some petroleum jelly onto your pulse points (insides of wrists, behind the ears) before you spray your perfume and you will quickly see that the scent lasts much longer.

Remove lipstick stains

Your favourite bright pink lipstick ended up on a fancy cloth napkin after one of the parties? Don’t worry – in most cases you will be able to get rid of your lipstick mark by simply just putting some petroleum jelly directly onto the stain before laundering.

Heal the wounds

Minor cuts and wounds have been shown to heal much quicker after application of petroleum jelly. It also reduces the urge to scratch dry patches and minimizes the potential for unsightly scarring.

Get rid of the ants

Ants are highly attracted to pets’ food; so if you own a dog or cat you probably also own dozens of ants. Put a ring of petroleum jelly around the food bowl and ants will not want to come close anymore. Putting peppermint oil near the entrances to your home is another way to discourage ants from coming inside, as they can’t stand the smell.

Clean candleholders

If you are struggling with messy candleholders, try greasing their insides with petroleum jelly before you add the candles. It will make the wax easy to remove right after use and you will avoid all the messiness with wax drippings.

Remove stuck chewing gum

If you find some chewing gum stuck underneath your furniture by your children or you have just dropped on your wooden floor yourself, don’t panic. Try squeezing some petroleum jelly onto the gum and rub gently – you will notice that it will disintegrate the sticky substance which can be then easily removed.

Save your car battery

Car batteries can really struggle on freezing cold days. This is because engine oil thickens in lower temperatures, and electrical resistance increases—both factors that force your battery to work harder. If your battery is corroded, it might stop working altogether. If you clean the terminals and smear them with some petroleum jelly in the late fall, corrosion and battery failure will be less likely in the winter.

Avoid tears

Some shampoos are advertised as containing “no tear” formulas that make them suitable for babies. If you don’t have one of these products to hand and really need to wash your child’s hair, apply a slick layer of petroleum jelly to the eyebrow area. This will stop shampoo droplets from running down towards the eyes and will save some tears!

Save for handles while painting

Paint doesn’t stick to the petroleum jelly so before starting to paint your room rub some of it onto the doorknobs and handles. It will save you some time and nerves, because getting rid of the stuck paint is not an easy task!

Help with tight ring

We all faced this problem – we put a few rings in the morning but the heat causes our fingers to swell and makes it it almost impossible to remove the rings after coming home. Grease the surface of your skin with a little bit of petroleum jelly, which will help the ring to slide off without pain or fuss.

Get brand new bags

You can make your bags look brand new – just polish the surface with a small amount of jelly and you will see an immediate difference. You can treat your heels in the same way to have them get the shiniest look.

Get rid of the squeak

Squeaking wardrobe door and kitchen cabinets when you are up early and don’t want to wake up the whole family? Putting a little petroleum jelly on the hinge pins will sort this problem right away.