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10 Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Better Summer

Jul 25, 2013 11:30 PM
Jul 26, 2013 12:12 AM
A close-up of a burger with lettuce and tomato, accompanied by the text "10 Life Hacks for Summer."

Are you a messy burger eater? Ants and fruit flies invading your home? Hate drinking warm drinks? Find out the quick and easy DIY solutions to these problems with these 10 amazing tips and tricks for the summer.

I had seen pictures of some of these useful ideas on the internet, but no videos, so I made this in hopes that all of you would enjoy my favorite summer life hacks just as much as I do. Some of these ideas were inspired from posts on sites like Lifehacker, Pinterest, and Google, but the mango and fruit fly projects were inspired by my wife, from a trick she learned while visiting Argentina.

WARNING

These projects and results are depictions of my own personal experiences. Your results may vary depending on your location and modifications. There may be risks associated with some of these projects that require adult supervision, and possibly others that I'm not aware of. Use of this content is at your own risk.

10 Summer Life Hacks

Summer Life Hack #1: Icy Drinks in an Instant

When you need a drink to cool down, hot water can taste disgusting. Try filling your water bottles a quarter of the way, so that when their on their sides, the water settles just below the bottle neck. Now stick your bottles in the freezer and go on with your day. When the water is frozen it will make an ice block on the side the bottle, but doesn't block the opening.

Water bottle held over flowers in a garden.
Bottled water and bread on a refrigerator shelf.
Water bottle held over flowers in a garden.
Bottled water and bread on a refrigerator shelf.

Now when you need to cool off, just take a bottle from the freezer, fill it up with your favorite drink, and you've got an instant, icy cold beverage ready to go.

Water bottle being filled at a kitchen sink.

Summer Life Hack #2: Cutting Mangoes Easier

To eat a mango easier, carefully cut off the two sides of the fruit, and hold one piece in your hand. You can gently cut a few lines vertically, and a few more across, until the pattern resembles a checkerboard. Now take it with both hands and gently push from the back. You'll see bite-sized pieces pop right up, and they're ready to eat. You can use a spoon to scrape them into a bowl, or just eat them right off the peel.

Slicing a ripe mango in preparation for serving.
Sliced mango with a crosshatch pattern held in hands.
Freshly cut mango showcasing cubed fruit on a plate.
Slicing a ripe mango in preparation for serving.
Sliced mango with a crosshatch pattern held in hands.
Freshly cut mango showcasing cubed fruit on a plate.

It's fast, easy, and they won't get stuck in your teeth.

Summer Life Hack #3: Get Rid of Ants with Popcorn

If you've got ants and you're looking for a natural form of pest control, try measuring out a cup of popcorn kernels. Put them in a blender, on high speed for about 30 seconds, and you'll end up with a batch of fresh, homemade cornmeal. Just make a few piles around the ant trails and within a few days, your ant problems will, literally disappear.

Brown sugar in a glass bowl with a spoon.
A close-up of a pile of sand with numerous small ants crawling around it.
A small pile of sand on a concrete surface.
Brown sugar in a glass bowl with a spoon.
A close-up of a pile of sand with numerous small ants crawling around it.
A small pile of sand on a concrete surface.

Summer Life Hack #4: Eat Your Hamburger Upside Down

The next time you eat a giant hamburger, try turning your sandwich upside down. The tops are nearly twice as thick as the bottoms, and a lot more durable. So be smart, and eat your hamburgers upside down.

10 Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Better Summer
A plain hamburger bun.
Juicy hamburger with lettuce and tomato held in hands.
10 Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Better Summer
A plain hamburger bun.
Juicy hamburger with lettuce and tomato held in hands.

Summer Life Hack #5: Make a Covert Container

When you're at the beach, reduce the chances of things getting stolen by making a covert container.

Smartphone, cash, car keys, and sunglasses on a decorative cloth.

Just take your old shampoo bottle and twist the top so that it pops right off. Clean it out and cut a hole in the top that's just big enough, to stash your valuable items inside. Now you can snap the top back on, and your items are perfectly concealed.

L'Oréal Total Repair 5 shampoo bottle being held near a yellow cap on a sandy surface.
10 Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Better Summer
Smartphone and cash hidden inside a black case on a patterned surface.
Sunscreen tube on a black and red floral scarf with sunglasses nearby.
L'Oréal Total Repair 5 shampoo bottle being held near a yellow cap on a sandy surface.
10 Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Better Summer
Smartphone and cash hidden inside a black case on a patterned surface.
Sunscreen tube on a black and red floral scarf with sunglasses nearby.

Anyone who sees this will just think it's a shampoo bottle, and chances are, nobody's wants to steal your shampoo.

Summer Life Hack #6: Using a Straw in a Soda Can

Have you ever noticed that when you put a straw in a can of soda, it doesn't want to stay? Try bending the tab of the can over the hole and sliding your straw down through the tab.

A green soda can with a straw inserted through the opening.
Hand opening a soda can.
A straw inserted into a soda can.
A green soda can with a straw inserted through the opening.
Hand opening a soda can.
A straw inserted into a soda can.

No more floating straws, because now, it's held in place.

Summer Life Hack #7: Get Rid of Fruit Flies

It's the season for fruit flies, so before they take over your kitchen, slice a few pieces of banana and mix them with some of your leftover mango peels.

Find yourself a couple of small containers, and add the fruit. Now just stretch a piece of plastic wrap over the top, and use something like the tip of a chopstick to poke a small hole in the center that's just bigger than the fly. Now you can set it and forget it. Within a few minutes, the flies will be checking things out, and once one goes in, you can be sure his friends will follow. Within a couple of days, they'll all be having a rocking fruit party.

Sliced fruits in plastic containers on a kitchen countertop.
Person inserting a stick into a container with small items.
Container with water and small insects, held by a hand.
Sliced fruits in plastic containers on a kitchen countertop.
Person inserting a stick into a container with small items.
Container with water and small insects, held by a hand.

And now you can simply, take the lid of the container and press it on, sealing them inside. Now you, are the lord of the flies.

A small, sealed container with a red lid holding a specimen.

Summer Life Hack #8: Dripping Popsicle Fix

Summer means popsicles, and popsicles mean your kids are going to get sticky fingers. Grab a small paper cup, and carefully poke a hole in the bottom, about the size of a popsicle stick. Now when you push a popsicle inside, you've got an instant drip catcher, and no more sticky fingers.

Carrot on a stick held by a hand in a garden setting.
A hand holding a purple popsicle in a colorful cup near a pond.
Carrot on a stick held by a hand in a garden setting.
A hand holding a purple popsicle in a colorful cup near a pond.

By the way, this works great with cupcake liners as well!

Summer Life Hack #9: Quick & Clean Condiments

You've probably been to a BBQ where the condiments take up half the table, and the lineups for using them take forever. Solve the problem with a muffin pan.

This way your condiments are easy to access and your lines will move along quickly. You'll also dramatically increase your table space, and cut down on the things to clean up afterward.

A person holding a muffin tin filled with various condiments and toppings for a meal outdoors.
Condiment tray with various toppings including cheese, tomatoes, pickles, onions, mustard, ketchup, and salsa.
Condiments in a serving tray for toppings at a food event.
A person holding a muffin tin filled with various condiments and toppings for a meal outdoors.
Condiment tray with various toppings including cheese, tomatoes, pickles, onions, mustard, ketchup, and salsa.
Condiments in a serving tray for toppings at a food event.

Summer Life Hack #10: Instant Snack Bowl

The next time you're at a party and someone has bags of chips laying around, impress your friends by making them into custom snack bowls.

You can fold the top edge inside the bag first, then begin rolling the bottom corners, up into the base of the bag, pushing the chips up as you go. You'll end up with a custom snack bowl, with chips overflowing.

Person opening a bag of Doritos in an outdoor setting.
Person holding a bag of snacks outdoors.
Tortilla chips in a Tostitos container with dips in the background.
Person opening a bag of Doritos in an outdoor setting.
Person holding a bag of snacks outdoors.
Tortilla chips in a Tostitos container with dips in the background.

Well there are a few tricks to make your summer a littler easier.

If you liked these summer life hacks, perhaps you'll like some of my other projects. Check out my other articles here on WonderHowTo or see the videos at thekingofrandom.com.

The next big software update for iPhone is coming sometime in April and will include a Food section in Apple News+, an easy-to-miss new Ambient Music app, Priority Notifications thanks to Apple Intelligence, and updates to apps like Mail, Photos, Podcasts, and Safari. See what else is coming to your iPhone with the iOS 18.4 update.

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