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How to Clean a Hanukkah Menorah

December 5 by

Hanukkah Menorah | Flat Rate Carpet BlogThe site of a beautifully lit Hanukkah menorah in the window brings back memories of family, childhood and joyous holiday celebrations. However many menorahs wind up covered in dripped candle wax that’s impossible to scrape off without ruining the menorah. Cleaning candle wax off a Hanukkah menorah is very easy, and will help keep preserve the beauty of your menorah for generations to come.

For a quick clean up of large amounts of wax, simply place your menorah in the freezer for a few hours. The wax freezes and breaks off the menorah quickly. This freezing method is fast and easy, but will still leave small amounts of wax on the menorah. Freezing works best for ceramic menorahs.

For a more thorough clean up use boiling hot water to loosen up the wax. Boil water in a tea kettle, and then slowly pour the water over the menorah. Go one branch at a time, and peel the soft wax off slowly. Make sure you hold the menorah with a towel as it can get very hot. Before the menorah has a chance to cool down, polish it with soft cloth to remove leftover wax and prevent water stains.

Hanukkah menorahs make valuable heirlooms, and brighten up the home during the holidays. Keeping your menorah clean will extend it’s life and it’s beauty.

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How to Remove Candle Wax From Carpets

December 2 by

Candle Wax | Flat Rate Carpet BlogHannukah is right around the corner, and it’s time to break out the beautiful menorah’s and little candles that will light up the home for eight fun filled nights. Don’t let a few drips of candle wax on the carpet ruin your holiday this year. With this easy way to remove candle wax from carpets you’ll never worry about getting candle wax on your carpets again.

Taking care of any stain right away increases your chance of getting the wax out completely, but make sure not to rub the stain in any further.

For wax stains on carpets, put some ice in a waterproof bag. Place the ice over the wax, allowing the wax to freeze. Getting water on the wax will make it harder to get out, so make sure no ice is dripping into the carpet.

Once the wax is frozen, gently scrape it off the carpet with a knife. Don’t worry about getting out everything, just get out as much as you can without ruining the carpet.

Next, spread a clean cloth or paper bag over the remaining wax stain. Use and iron to go over the area, drawing the remaining wax into the cloth or bag. Continue this last step until all the wax is gone.

This Hanukkah spend your time opening presents and eating latkes, instead of stressing over a few drips of candle wax.

Happy Hanukkah!

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How to Clean Christmas Ornaments

November 25 by

Christmas Ornaments | Flat Rate Carpet BlogThanksgiving is over and it’s time to get the tree up and decorated. Of course we all want our tree to be bright and beautiful, and that’s why we put so much effort into decorating. Cleaning your Christmas ornaments before hanging them on the tree is an important step in keeping your tree beautiful and making sure that your ornaments stay beautiful for years to come.

Start by making sure that you have the right equipment for Christmas ornament cleaning.

  • Glass Cleaner (windex is fine)
  • Feather Duster
  • A soft, cotton cloth for cleaning
  • Gloves (not large dishwasher gloves, latex is best)

Next, separate all your ornaments and divide them for easier cleaning. Each type of ornament is cleaned differently.

  • Glass, acrylic or perspex Christmas ornaments are cleaned by spraying a bit of glass cleaner on a clean cloth and gently wiping the surface.
  • Glittered ornaments can be cleaned with a gentle dusting of a feather duster. If too much glitter is coming off, then gently blow on the ornament and forget about any dust that won’t go away.
  • Crystal and porcelain ornaments are best cleaned with either a feather duster, or a gentle cleaning with a soft, cotton cloth.
  • Hand painted ornaments must always be cleaned while wearing gloves, so that the oils from your skin don’t damage the paint. Clean hand painted ornaments with a feather duster, and never use any cleaning products as they can easily damage the paint.
  • Wood and Resin ornaments are best cleaned by gently rubbing them with a soft cotton cloth.
  • Gold and silver ornaments are cleaned with jewelry cleaner and a soft cotton cloth.

Keeping your ornaments clean will not only make your tree sparkle, but it will also extend the lifetime of your ornaments so that you can pass them down for generations. Merry Christmas.

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Eat Lean on Thanksgiving

November 20 by

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Holiday time means food, family, and fun—with an extra emphasis on the food. No matter your diet and eating habits, choosing wisely during your Thanksgiving feast can help you shed pounds this season.

Follow this list of healthier food choices to save calories when that turkey hits the table. And, like all most things in life, remember to enjoy your Thanksgiving goodies in moderation.

The Main Event: When it comes to the main course, choose white meat. The lean turkey breast offers delicious flavors and tenderness and 215 less calories than dark meat.

On the Side: In place of stuffing, choose roasted potatoes. They give you a hearty fill with 235 less calories than stuffing. For your veggies, opt for something like succotash instead of creamed corn and roasted butternut squash instead of candied yams and you save 440 calories alone.

Sweet Finish: When desert hits the table, avoid the pecan pie and head straight to the pumpkin pie with a whipped cream. Trading out gluey pecan pie for pumpkin saves you 339 calories per slice, even with the whipped cream.

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The History of the Thanksgiving Presidential Turkey Pardon

November 19 by

Turkey Pardon | Flat Rate Carpet BlogEvery year, right before Thanksgiving, the President of the United States participates in a ceremony in which he gives one lucky turkey a presidential pardon. This lucky turkey gets to live another year, but where did this tradition come from?

Ever since 1947, the National Turkey Federation and the Poultry and Egg National Board have given a Thanksgiving gift of a turkey to the President of the United States. Other than President Kennedy, every President before 1989 ate the turkey at their Thanksgiving feast.

Although the first President in modern history to pardon a Thanksgiving turkey was President H.W. Bush, there are rumors of presidential turkey pardons that go all the way back to Abraham Lincoln pardoning his son’s pet turkey.

Pardoned turkeys do more than live another year. These famous turkeys go on to live on farms or at parks. In both 2005 and 2006 the pardoned turkeys got to go to Disneyland in California to be the honorary grand marshals in the Disneyland Thanksgiving Parade. Since 2010 all pardoned turkeys have been sent to Virginia, to live out their lives at George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate.

This Wednesday, President Barak Obama will be pardoning one lucky bird, in a tradition that’s fast become one of America’s favorite Thanksgiving traditions.

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