We all know a couple of the benefits of salt. It adds flavor to some of our favorite food dishes and it melts ice off of sidewalks and roadways in the winter. This helpful little mineral can do more than that though. Check out these uses for salt, and you may just want to start keeping more of it around your house.

When it comes to using salt in the kitchen it has several uses. While it’s easy to tell when some foods are past their prime, eggs are much harder to tell if they’ve gone bad. To find out if your eggs are old, simply add two teaspoons of salt to one cup of water and mix thoroughly. Place the egg in the mixture and if the egg floats, toss it in the trash. To extend the life of cheese, soak a paper towel in salt water and wrap the cheese inside. It will keep mold from forming on the tasty treat.

To keep fruits and veggies from browning after slicing them, let them soak for a few minutes in water with just a touch of salt mixed in. It will keep them fresh looking without tasting salty. If your hands are smelling bad after peeling onions or other smelly foods, rub salt over them then wash as usual. The smell will disappear.

If you’ve got an extra greasy pan that needs cleaned, rub salt around the inside of the pan and it will soak the grease right up making the mess easier to clean. Pouring a large amount of salt on a fire will extinguish it quickly too. If ants like to hang out in your kitchen or other places around your house, sprinkle some salt in those areas. The little pests don’t like it. You can also mix salt with water and spray the mixture to deter them from areas you don’t want them in.

When washing dishes, if the bubbles are keeping you from seeing what’s in your water, sprinkle a pinch of salt in the water and the bubbles will disappear almost instantly. To unclog a drain, mix 1/4 cup of baking soda and 1/4 cup of salt and pour it down the drain. Next, pour 1/2 cup of vinegar down the drain and let is sit for at least 30 minutes. Rinse with hot water and the clog will likely rinse away.

Salt is pretty handy to have around the bathroom too. To clean stubborn soap scum mix salt with a little bit of vinegar and grapefruit or lemon juice. It makes cleaning much easier. To keep mold from growing on your shower curtain, wash it in salt water right after buying it and you’ll never have to worry about mildew or mold appearing on your curtain.

If your shoes are getting smelly, sprinkle some salt and baking soda inside your shoes and let them sit overnight. The smell will be gone by morning. Salt works wonders on carpet that has been saturated with wine too. Blot up as much liquid as possible, then pour a large amount of salt onto the stain. Let it sit at least 12 hours then vacuum up. It will absorb the wine and get rid of the stain.

While you might not want to do this one everyday, salt makes a great stand in for toothpaste. Just mix a bit of salt with a bit of baking soda and brush away. The salt will help remove tartar and stains. Mix salt with a little bit of cornstarch and water to make a paste and you can fill small holes in your walls. Just smear the paste over the hole, let dry, and paint over the top. Your wall will be like new.