Cleaning Your Camping Cooler Is A Breeze With The Help Of This Unexpected Medicine

Most seasoned campers already have a set routine when it comes to getting ready to head out into the wilderness for their next off-grid adventure. Generally, the first step when preparing for a camping trip is to find all your gear, pack it, and then get everything loaded up into the car. Typically, the last step before hitting the road is to pull out your cooler and fill it with enough food and ice to last for your stay (pro tip: you can also add some salt to make your food stay colder longer). However, what happens when you open your cooler to discover that it wasn't properly cleaned after the previous use and is not only dirty but also has that unpleasant moldy smell? Well, because your cooler is vital to ensuring your food is safe to eat, you're going to have to clean it.

Luckily, there's an easy way to get the inside of your cooler clean and all you need is a common medicine that's probably already sitting in your cabinet: Alka-Seltzer. In fact, these fizzing heartburn-relief tablets are actually secret stain-fighting agents that have long been recommended to help clean household items like vases, jewelry, thermoses, and even toilets. The best thing about using Alka-seltzer on your cooler is that it doesn't require any scrubbing. 

So, let's get down to the nitty gritty stuff: how do you actually clean a dirty cooler using Alka-Seltzer? According to one poster on the frugal forum of Reddit, the process is super easy. All you have to do is fill the bottom of your cooler with about an inch of water and then drop in four tablets of this popular antacid. Then, simply close the lid and let the mixture sit for about an hour. Once the hour is up, go ahead and drain the water out of your cooler then rinse out the inside, and you are good to go. Your cooler will be clean and odor-free — no elbow grease needed.

The reason this trick works so well is because Alka-Seltzer contains baking soda which not only removes stains but also gets rid of bad smells by actually destroying the particles that cause them. On top of this, Alka-Seltzer also contains citric acid which is a mild acid that not only can remove stains and mineral deposits but also has antibacterial and antifungal properties. Together these two ingredients work as a powerful cleaner that is non-toxic and biodegradable.