7 Strange Uses for Coffee Grounds

Are you one of the millions of Americans who drinks coffee every day? If you make your coffee at home, you use a lot of coffee grounds. What do you do with those leftover grounds? If you’re like most people, you throw them in the trash without a second thought.


You do this because you don’t realize there are many other things you can use old coffee grounds for, but you’re about to be shocked when you discover the power of these old grounds. Here are just some of the top alternate uses for coffee grounds.



Feed your plants—Do you have a garden? Old coffee grounds make a great fertilizer, and all sorts of plants can gain valuable nutrients from them. Just dump out your old grounds in the soil, and you could enjoy a stronger, more beautiful garden.

Clean it up—For those really tough cleaning jobs, coffee grounds can help you knock out the stains and gunk. You should always remember, however, that coffee grounds are very coarse and acidic, so if you’re cleaning sensitive materials, you should use something else. Use coffee grounds as a cleaner only on durable surfaces that won’t scratch or stain easily. Just mix the grounds with a little bit of water, and scrub away with a cleaning brush.

Get rid of that stench—Coffee grounds can knock out a wide range of scents. That’s why they’re used at perfume sampling counters, to help you get rid of other smells before testing a new sample. You can also use coffee grounds to clean out kitchen drains and garbage disposals (mix with really hot water), and you can place dried out grounds in a container in the fridge or freezer to keep odors out. There are some people who even use dry coffee grounds in their shoes to eliminate the stinkiness!

Exfoliate the skin—Yeah, I know, it sounds crazy to scrub your skin with coffee, but hear me out. Coffee grounds can be massaged into the skin to get rid of dead skin cells and to keep your skin looking bright and healthy. Just rub the grounds throughout your skin, and rinse away. Did you know coffee products are even used in some cellulite-reducer products? Coffee grounds can help reduce the appearance of cellulite! They can also be used to wash your hair to keep it healthy and beautiful. Talk about a cheap, effective beauty product that gets results.

Keep the pests away from your plants—Remember earlier when I mentioned how coffee grounds can be used as a fertilizer? The other good thing is they can keep pests out of that same garden. Ants really hate coffee grounds, so you won’t have to worry about them anymore. Coffee also acts as a deterrent for cats, meaning your garden will no longer be used as a giant litter box.

Flea treatment?—Now that you’ve gotten used to the idea of cleaning yourself with coffee grounds, the idea of using them on your pets doesn’t seem so crazy, right? The truth is coffee grounds, when used in conjunction with your dog’s normal shampoo, can help keep your pup’s coat healthy and shiny. But that’s not all. Some experts even believe coffee grounds can act as a flea repellant. So, feel free to give it a shot and see what happens.

Coloring with coffee—Coffee grounds can be used to dye a wide range of objects, including papers, fabrics, and even eggs. To use coffee grounds as a dye, soak the grounds in a couple of cups of hot water for about 10 minutes. After that, your dye should be ready to go. It’s a fun way to create unique art, and there are some people who even use this dye to touch up blemishes on furniture and other upholstery.



What are some of your favorite uses for old coffee grounds? Leave a comment with your best tips!



John manages the nursing scrubs website NursingUniforms.net
a one stop online shop for branded lab coats for women, scrub tops and all kinds of medical uniforms.