Brewing a cup of coffee might be a simple activity However, many people do not know what to do with the old coffee beans. For this reason, many people throw the beans into the trash.
Luckily, there are many things that you can achieve with a pack of old coffee beans. With this in mind, you can use these materials for various chores.
What to Do with Old Coffee Beans
Are you looking for ideas on how to work with your old beans? Here are some tips that might help you.
Here are some easy ideas that will need your old coffee beans.
1. Composting
If you are creating a compost pile, some coffee beans can improve the quality of the product. Since this task does not require much work, you can add the beans without any special skills.
- Pour the old coffee beans on the ground. Remember to cultivate it into the soul
- Spread the old coffee beans on the soil. Then cover them with organic waste such as leaves or bark mulch. You can also use it with your compost.
- Layer about ⅓ of the old coffee beans into the compost pile. Also, add ⅓ leaves and fresh grass cuttings to the pile.
- Mix the coffee beans with dry leaves or pieces of paper
2. Eliminating Odors
Coffee beans might be used to produce a popular beverage. However, you can use this item to chase nasty smells from your home or workplace.
Coffee uses caffeine to clear odors. Besides, you should stick with lighter shades of coffee beans as they are gentler on fabric.
Now here’s how to remove smells by using these beans.
For Carpet Smells
- Dry the old coffee beans in the freezer.
- Sprinkle the coffee beans on the carpet and leave for a few hours.
- Vacuum the carpet properly until the area is clean.
For Car Smells
If your vehicle smells funny, you should consider using some old beans. As expected, this material can handle anything from food smells to pet odors.
- Get a jar and remove the cap
- Pour in some old beans and leave the jar open
- Place the jar on the dashboard of the vehicle.
- Leave the jar for a few hours
- Remove the jar from the vehicle
For Smelly Drains
Coffee beans can also remove smells from drains. If you want to make your pipes smell fresher, try the following steps.
Pour some old coffee grounds into pipes. Then follow them up with hot water. But do not use this method to clear clogged pipes in the home.
For Smelly Skin
Apart from inorganic surfaces, coffee beans work well with human skin. So if your hands smell of garlic, use old coffee beans to clean your skin. As you perform this task, the beans will also remove dead cells from your hands.
For Kitchen Countertops
You can use old coffee beans grounds to clean countertops. All you need to do is wrap some old beans in cheesecloth and scrub dark-colored countertops.
3. Dyeing Clothes
Old coffee beans can regain their color on worn-out clothing. To use old coffee beans as a fabric dye :
- Grind the old coffee beans and brew them.
- Pour the liquid into a pot and boil.
- Place the clothing into the container and stir until completely covered.
- Leave the fabric in the water for an hour.
- Remove and rinse with cold water until the water becomes clear.
- Set the coffee dye by leaving the fabric in cold water mixed with vinegar.
4. Softening Meat
If you add old coffee beans to meat, you will get an enhanced flavor. Also, the beans improve the texture of your protein. You can soften meat with beans by using the following steps:
- Brew some strong coffee with the old beans.
- Allow to cool and marinate your beef, chicken, or any meat with the liquid.
- Leave the meat in the coffee for a day.
5. Fighting Pests
Coffee beans have enough ingredients for dealing with pests. Even if you use them outdoors, coffee can still be as effective as any natural insecticide.
To fight insects outside your home, place the old coffee beans in bowls. Then set the bowls at the various spots around your picnic or “activity” area.
6. Treating Hair
Do you want to improve the appearance of your hair? Well, coffee can turn your weak-looking strands into luscious locks.
- Ground some old coffee beans and brew them.
- Allow to cool and apply to your hair.
7. Washing Dishes
Sometimes, pots and pans might have stubborn stains on them. If you want to clean such items, you should use coffee beans as they can remove such dirt.
- Dump some wet coffee beans on the stains.
- Scrub with the beans until the gunk comes off.
8. Dealing with Fleas
Pets can enjoy the benefits of old coffee beans. Simply add some old ground coffee beans to the pet shampoo and wash the animals as usual.
9. Making Coffee
Even if the coffee beans are old, they can still offer healthy coffee. However, this beverage might not be tasty as coffee made from fresher beans.
Cold brews work well with old coffee beans. You can use the following method to produce great-tasting coffee from old beans.
- Add 49-55 grams of old coffee grounds to the brewer
- Top the machine’s chamber with fresh water
- Then keep in your fridge for 12 hours.
- Remove from the fridge and make your cup of coffee.
10. Cleaning Fireplaces
Fireplaces require excess care and intense cleaning. But you can reduce the stress by using old coffee beans.
Sprinkle some coffee grounds around the fireplace. Apart from helping you to take out dirt, the beans do not allow fireplace dust to cover your home.
11. Fixing Wooden Furniture
You can repair your furniture with coffee with old coffee beans. As expected, this type of task does not need any special carpentry skills.
- Add water to the old ground coffee and make a paste
- Use a cotton swab to apply the paste to the scratch.
- Let the paste sit for 10 – 15 minutes. Then clean with a rag.
- Continue applying the coffee until the mark disappears.
12. Cultivating Mushrooms
Mushrooms grow well with old coffee beans. When it comes down to it, these plants thrive better in these items than with regular soil.
- Get a container for growing the mushrooms.
- Place around 5 pounds of ground coffee beans into the container.
- Moisten the beans in a spray bottle
- Add some mushroom spores and sawdust mixture.
- Create four air holes in the container where you will grow the mushrooms.
- Spray the grounds daily
- Wait for two weeks and look for little mushroom plants. If you notice any, place the container in a brighter location with more air.
- Harvest the mushrooms if they look healthy with upturned caps.
13. Removing Dark Circles (from The Eyes)
Applying coffee to your eyes can make you look younger. Thanks to the oxidants in the beans, you can use these beans to fight puffy eyes with aging. To get the best results, use the coffee daily.
Here’s how to remove puffy eyes with coffee
- Make a paste by adding water or coconut oil to ground old coffee.
- Rub the mixture under your eyes
- Leave the mixture for 10 minutes
14. Making Healthy Snacks
Chocolate tastes nice. But when you drench old coffee beans with this dessert, you should expect a tasty snack. The following recipe will show you how to make coffee beans soaked in chocolate.
- Pour some chocolate in a saucepan and boil with low heat.
- Allow the chocolate to melt and add the old beans
- Mix the coffee beans with chocolate
- Remove the chocolate-covered beans and place them on parchment paper.
- Allow the sweet to cool and serve.
Wrapping Up
Old Coffee beans are a great way to start the day. But when they become old, you would want to throw them away.
By using the above steps, your old coffee beans can become valuable at home or work. Also, these ideas do not require any special equipment or techniques. Besides, they are great for your home and workplace.
For instance, old coffee beans can remove stains, bad smells, and pests. It also works against bad skin or aging. So before throwing old grounds into the trash, try using them for our recommendations.