The "This Might Be A Stupid Question, But...." Thread

[Luci45]

Tell me, why do people put bananas in plastic bags at the supermarket, they come with packaging and held together. No one eats the skin, so why do they need another layer of plastic?

I do it because I'm going to need more than one bunch. And it's less hassle to weigh-and-pay if they're all in one container.
My DS goes through 2-3 bananas a day, which adds up to 3-4 bunches a week .

That's fair enough, but I saw a man at the supermarket yesterday who bought 1 banana in a plastic bag, which was then put into another bag with the rest of his groceries. I nearly asked him why? 

Some bananas are really sappy at the stem or bloom end. If they are, I put them in a bag to not have to deal with the sticky stuff on my other stuff.

I think the man with the 2 plastic bags may have been a little obsessive about that. I wouldn't ask or worry about it more. If my personal idea of why he did it is off, I'm still satisfied with it so wouldn't fret.

[Betelnut]

Tell me, why do people put bananas in plastic bags at the supermarket, they come with packaging and held together. No one eats the skin, so why do they need another layer of plastic?

I do it because I'm going to need more than one bunch. And it's less hassle to weigh-and-pay if they're all in one container.
My DS goes through 2-3 bananas a day, which adds up to 3-4 bunches a week .

That's fair enough, but I saw a man at the supermarket yesterday who bought 1 banana in a plastic bag, which was then put into another bag with the rest of his groceries. I nearly asked him why? 

Some bananas are really sappy at the stem or bloom end. If they are, I put them in a bag to not have to deal with the sticky stuff on my other stuff.

I think the man with the 2 plastic bags may have been a little obsessive about that. I wouldn't ask or worry about it more. If my personal idea of why he did it is off, I'm still satisfied with it so wouldn't fret.

I always put my bananas in a bag.  Why?  Well, one reason is that I like to use the bags for cat litter disposal.  The second is that it is just seems neater--the bananas can and do get separated.  It is also easier to transport the bananas, move them around the cart, etc.  No big mystery.

[zyrs]

I put the bananas into a bag as well.  I notice that touching the outside of the peel causes a skin reaction, so I separate them form the rest of my purchases and wash them at home..

[Dazi]

 A few months ago I accidentally ran my stainless steel skillet through the dishwasher and greatly discolored it.  I have tried a lot of different things to get it back to normal to no avail.

Until tonight.

I fried turkey kielbasa in it and then tossed in a bad of drained sauerkraut.  When I poured the sauerkraut into a dish I realised  there was no more discoloration. 

It looks brand new...any ideas why/how?  I don't have a clue.

[catgal]

My DH bought new pants for work, but didn't check the label, which says Dry Clean only.  My DH hates the smell of clothes that have been dry cleaned.  My work clothes say Dry Clean only, but I just chuck them into the front loader washing machine on the delicate cycle and they come out fine.  His pants were reasonably $$, any recommendations on how to wash them at home?  Handwash maybe?

[Pinky830]

A few months ago I accidentally ran my stainless steel skillet through the dishwasher and greatly discolored it.  I have tried a lot of different things to get it back to normal to no avail.

Until tonight.

I fried turkey kielbasa in it and then tossed in a bad of drained sauerkraut.  When I poured the sauerkraut into a dish I realised  there was no more discoloration. 

It looks brand new...any ideas why/how?  I don't have a clue.

Very acidic food will take the black stuff right out of a stainless steel pan. I watched in amazement as a hibachi chef cleaned every bit of the grunge off the grill with a lemon, and I took a cue from that. If I have a really blackened pan, I squeeze a lemon into the pan and heat it up, then scrape it all off. I bet the sauerkraut was acidic enough to do the same thing.

[Dazi]

^^^lemon was the first thing I tried and it didn't put a dent in it...even heated.

[KenveeB]

My DH bought new pants for work, but didn't check the label, which says Dry Clean only.  My DH hates the smell of clothes that have been dry cleaned.  My work clothes say Dry Clean only, but I just chuck them into the front loader washing machine on the delicate cycle and they come out fine.  His pants were reasonably $$, any recommendations on how to wash them at home?  Handwash maybe?

They sell something for machine-washing dry clean only stuff.  Dryelle, I think it's called. You pop the clothes in a certain bag, add in a sheet of something, and put it in the dryer.  It doesn't work quite as well as dry cleaning, but I use it to stretch out the time between having to take my suits in to clean.

[demarco]

My DH bought new pants for work, but didn't check the label, which says Dry Clean only.  My DH hates the smell of clothes that have been dry cleaned.  My work clothes say Dry Clean only, but I just chuck them into the front loader washing machine on the delicate cycle and they come out fine.  His pants were reasonably $$, any recommendations on how to wash them at home?  Handwash maybe?

They sell something for machine-washing dry clean only stuff.  Dryelle, I think it's called. You pop the clothes in a certain bag, add in a sheet of something, and put it in the dryer.  It doesn't work quite as well as dry cleaning, but I use it to stretch out the time between having to take my suits in to clean.

Woolite makes something similar.  I think they call it Dry Cleaner's Secret.  With  this, you just pop the clothes in with the cleaner sheet.  You don't even need a bag.  If you have a stain, you can pretreat it by rubbing the sheet on the stain before you put it in the dryer.  There is a mild odor but it fades quickly if you hang the clothes out in the open for a little while before you put them away.  I use it for all kinds of dry cleanables and it works beautifully for everything except very light colored clothes like white or ivory. 

[Pinky830]

^^^lemon was the first thing I tried and it didn't put a dent in it...even heated.

Oh. Well...shoot. 

[White Dragon]

A few months ago I accidentally ran my stainless steel skillet through the dishwasher and greatly discolored it.  I have tried a lot of different things to get it back to normal to no avail.

Until tonight.

I fried turkey kielbasa in it and then tossed in a bad of drained sauerkraut.  When I poured the sauerkraut into a dish I realised  there was no more discoloration. 

It looks brand new...any ideas why/how?  I don't have a clue.

Theory #1 is salt. Saurkraut is made by pickling cabbage with salt.

Theory #2 is acid. Some saurkraut is made with wine, which maybe becomes vinegar when it pckles the cabbage.

Aside from that, I got nothin'.

[lady_disdain]

I think it is the combination of salt and vinegar. I use this combination to remove oxides and flux from silver and copper after soldering, instead of the traditional acids.

[Elfmama]

My DH bought new pants for work, but didn't check the label, which says Dry Clean only.  My DH hates the smell of clothes that have been dry cleaned.  My work clothes say Dry Clean only, but I just chuck them into the front loader washing machine on the delicate cycle and they come out fine.  His pants were reasonably $$, any recommendations on how to wash them at home?  Handwash maybe?

What is the fabric?  US federal regulations say that garments have to include some information about cleaning, but they don't have to include ALL the methods by which something can be cleaned.  Unless the fabric is sequinned silk velvet or something else really out of line with normal garments, it's entirely possible that the pants can be put in the washing machine with your work clothes.  Or even with a regular load of washables.

[camlan]

My DH bought new pants for work, but didn't check the label, which says Dry Clean only.  My DH hates the smell of clothes that have been dry cleaned.  My work clothes say Dry Clean only, but I just chuck them into the front loader washing machine on the delicate cycle and they come out fine.  His pants were reasonably $$, any recommendations on how to wash them at home?  Handwash maybe?

What are the pants made of? Wool? Cotton? A blend? It really depends on the fiber content whether or not you can wash them safely. But the dryer dry cleaning kits are worth a try.

Also, there are different kinds of dry cleaning fluids that dry cleaners use. I forget what it's called, but there is one that is much less smelly than the others. You could call around and ask local dry cleaners what they use.

[lady_disdain]

I would be very careful if it is wool (I destroyed a pair of designer, 100% light weight wool pants soon after I got my apartment- it had been a huge splurge for me...).