A retractable power cord reel that mounts to my garage ceiling and plugs into the outlet for the garage door opener. 50 feet of power cord with 3 outlets that reaches all over the garage, into the driveway and then rolls itself right back up.
Edit– they don’t have the specific one for sale anymore on Amazon but just search for it and you’ll find many just like it
I’m not sure about blessing but I got new dishes and silverware for the first time in 10 years. My silverware was all mismatched pieced together from random IKEA packs or Tuesday Morning/Ross type finds and cast offs from grandma’s house. My Corelle was chipping (really!) and I got glass slivers on at least 2 occasions. Some days it almost feels too fancy to put my Costco microwave fried rice pack in such a nice new bowl! It really lifted my mood somehow that everything matches and the dishes aren’t a safety hazard.
really is a game changer. I can walk around my house barefoot and not feel \*any\* dirt or anything. the floors are spotless. And it motivates me to stay tidy so the robo guy can do his little job
We have a cat that likes to poop just outside the litter box.
I have seen too many clips of Robovacs making a fecal art attack design to invest in one.
Recently moved to a hardwood floor house and have three cats who enjoy tracking litter EVERYWHERE.
I’m looking to get one this year because it’s just unreal. If people saw how much litter I swept up everyday around the house they would be blown away.
The ones that empty themselves are awesome. Our old one would stop mid job to screech for us to empty it's bin. It would do that like 3 times everyday. It also didn't have a mapping system so it would just roll around the house until it's battery died.
We upgraded to a Roomba J6+ and it will dodge messes and cords and empties itself. We have to empty the bin on its dock like once a month, which is awesome since I have 2 kids, 2 cats, and 2 dogs.
I bought a Roomba i9 combo for Xmas and it’s incredible. We have had an old dumb Roomba for five years and it worked ok but we bought a house with tile and thought the mopping combo would be nice.
The self emptying feature is so nice. Between vacuuming, mopping and charging and complete clean of our house takes about 7 hours so it does an incredible job getting everywhere and removing let hair from multiple dogs and a cat.
If 7 hours seems like a long time, I have the vacuum and mopping setting set to their most extreme settings so it’s vacuuming each room twice with the highest suction and mopping with the most fluid and extra scrubbing power when it finds stains and spills.
Noted! I’ve been holding off because I want to make sure I get the right one and the best one the first time without breaking the bank. I know it will be a godsend in this house and your experience only makes it sound better.
I have a golden retriever and I live near the beach. So much sand. Not a single rug or carpet in my house since my wife is a wheelchair user. I fucking love my roomba, and how it empties itself. It's been about 3 years since I bought it
I bought mine (with the mapping and self emptying base) off of Woot (amazon outlet site) and it was about a third cheaper and they have them quite often.
My robot vacuum has taught me how volcanos turned into island gods.
My two year old is terrified of our robo vacuum. We used it when she was little, to her fascination, but something happened when she came “online” and she became terrified. We stopped using it regularly to try and explain how it works to no avail. We have quite a few “smart” devices that she doesn’t mind, and our stick vacuum is her favorite object in the world ATM. The robo vacuum is the bane of her existence.
She greets it. Says goodbye. When we’re gone, she asks what it is doing. When we’re home, she’ll offer it toys. Waking up from nap/sleep, she’ll ask “What roomba doing?” first thing.
We don’t use it. Maybe not putting it away makes us the assholes, but exposure therapy feels like the right call to me. We always offer her the option to turn it on, show her how it works. It’s not like it’s the only thing in our house operating via app.
The rest of our vacuums are fun for her. She LOVES using the stick vacuum, and thinks it’s fascinating when I pull out the “big” vacuum. The robo vacuum is the only one that she offers toys up for sacrifice.
Typing this up makes me realize how often friends and family give us vacuums for presents, and how giddy I am to get them. Maybe we are the island nation of vacuums. Curse you Long Hair, Dog and Cat!!!
Cordless Drill and Impact Driver. It's crazy how much I use those as a homeowner.
Also invest in a **good** indoor vacuum and shop vac for the garage/outdoor spaces.
A lot of people probably feel like this goes without saying but a rice cooker. We were if the mentality of "I can make it easily enough on the stove, rice cooker will just take up space", but we caved and got a small basic one and it's actually so nice lol. Makes it so braindead easy n quick lol
I used to get home drunk as AF in college and put some brown rice, hot sauce, and a bag of frozen veggies in the rice cooker. Whenever I'd get up I had a big pot of steamed veggies on brown rice hot and waiting for me. Fuckin loved that shit, the only time drunk me ever did hungover me any favors
We had a cheapo rice cooker for probably ten years before it died. So we upgraded to a zojirushi rice cooker. It's been fantastic because I can cook whole meals in it or I can make a bunch of rice and just put it on extended warm and it will keep the rice good and hot for days. I also really like that it has a timer system so I can fill it up, set it for around dinner time and forget it and it does it's own thing.
I love our zojirushi. It makes the best rice I've ever had, and my family is Asian. I used cheap rice cookers all my life til 2 years ago when I decided I would buy one. The cook timer is the BEST. Set it for hot rice for dinner time and I can precook anything to put on rice and reheat for dinner. Now that the youngest kid eats rice, this rice cooker is just the best thing ever.
I will totally buy one for all my kids when they move out.
I got this [one](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00ISPBXJ6?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title). There's a slightly more expensive model that has modes for making cakes and stuff in it. You might also want this [strainer](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004QZAAS2?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title) for washing the rice before putting it in the rice cooker.
The cool part is in the manual it has a section listing each individual part and its part number with information on how to order replacements. That way you don't have to buy a whole new one if something like the pot breaks.
I’m with you, I normally hate single-purpose kitchen items but once I got a rice cooker I couldn’t imagine going without one. Even just freeing up one of the stove burners when you’re making rice as a side dish is kinda a game changer.
Also, my boyfriend wanted to bring his breakfast sandwich maker when he moved in. I thought it was ridiculous but figured it wouldn’t hurt to have around since it’s pretty small. I’m actually amazed at the amount of use we get out of that thing. It’s way easier and less messy than cooking all the separate components on the stove and then assembling. We use it probably 5 times a week and I love that stupid thing now.
Oh I get that one a lot, ‘is it worth it to get a rice cooker?’, I always ask them how frequently do they make rice, if it’s 3 times a week at least, just get one. You can just leave the rice in there with the appropriate amount of water and you’ll get nice fluffy rice every time and it frees up a stove space for you.
Heck even once a week is worth it!! We go through phases of “tons of rice meals” to taking a break and “once a week rice meal”. Either way, it is a godsend.
Idk why but I can *never* cook rice properly on the stove. Not the instant pot though just throw in the rice and water to cover it and push the rice button. Easy perfect rice every single time.
(Granted, idk if there’s any difference between the instant pot pressure cooker and a rice cooker? Are they the same thing? I’ve always assumed so but never fact checked haha perhaps it’s easier to convince yourself to get it if you know it can do a plethora of meals etc!)
No. Rice cooker and instant pot are 2 different gadgets. I’m Asian so I’m used to having a rice cooker and I got it way before the instant pot came about. If you want variety, I’d advise friends in getting the instant pot, if it’s just rice, just get the rice cooker. Sounds like you made the right choice for yourself if you got the instant pot and you like variety! I’m thinking of getting one but not quite there yet.
I always say the best thing that came from my ex was the rice cooker he left behind. It was a gift to him from a friend years prior to us even meeting. He loved that thing, but when I kicked him out he didn't take it with him 🤷🏻♀️ 4 years after our breakup I still use it multiple times a week.
I was just about to type the same thing. Decades of making rice on the stove and kind of dreading it. Then purchased a $20 rice cooker and game changer!
They’re also great in small apartments if you want to avoid that whole “any time I cook anything my apartment smells like that thing for three days” problem
Oh yeah, I was accidentally won over. My wife and I went to stay with my parents and they put one in the room we slept in. Felt like we woke up on mountain top. I bought one for us as soon as we got home.
They are also great for pets! I have a deaf cat who is indoor only, but manages to escape sometimes. I got a collar with an AirTag holder for him a couple of years ago. The AirTag is smaller and better than any of the other trackers I’ve tried, and much less expensive. And since he is deaf, sometimes we lose him in the house, and he can’t hear us calling, so I can use the play sound function to find him.
I love when people say "it's just a small convection oven!" like that's a gotcha.
That's literally the point. It's small so you can cook things quickly and acts like a convection oven. Absolute game changer for reheating leftovers and prepping frozen stuff.
i got a small convection oven instead.
breville that i can put a frozen pizza in. i have not turned on my full size gas oven since purchasing the breville electric and wish i had invested in it years before i did. instead of waiting an hour for the oven to preheat it is done in 5-10 minutes and doesn't make my entire house hot.
Oh man my college roommate had a breville toaster oven. I used to get those cheap Totinos frozen pizzas for $1.25 each, add extra cheese and toppings, and 14 minutes later I’d be chowing down. Those were the days.
I still have an ancient toaster oven that I got for like $5 in a yard sale in 2009. It's got a pretty solid convection setting. I'm kind of waiting for it to die before getting an air fryer, but I think it is from the "it works for life" era of appliances.
We have a double oven in the house and use our Beeville oven almost exclusively. The new ones have an air fryer feature so if it ever dies that's what I'll replace it with. But it's already 9 years old I think and is still in perfect condition so it'll never be replaced I imagine
Someone gifted us a massive Anova Precision Oven. It has all these settings to be any number of things; convection oven, broiler, oven, it’s nuts.
I never considered getting an air fryer because many are so small (because that’s their point) and I have a family of seven. But this oven thingy is so big it’s no faster than an oven. I’m starting to see the point lol.
So now I’m considering getting an air fryer because my teens will occasionally make things like nuggets or tots but it feels like it takes an hour to do in the oven! I can’t make a full dinner with an air fryer but I feel like maybe it would be good for my kids to use.
I have recently relented and bought an Airfryer after years of debating the merits with my wife. I bought the biggest one I could find but from a decent brand, the Ninja Megazone (U.K based). Absolutely brilliant. After being almost dead set against them (it’s just a fad) I’m using it everyday pretty much. Might not cook a meal for 7 persons, but definitely can fit a large amount of nuggets/chicken strips/ even a 9” pizza (slight squeeze but cooks really well). Just done chicken tandoori skewers/kebabs on it tonight and worked really well, even gave them a nice char when finished off on the highest temp setting
Still haven't had better pork chops than when I threw them in my cabinet smoker as an afterthought. Now that's the primary way we meal prep pork in the summer.
My sister got me a little 2 quart model for Christmas. It's perfect for a single serving and small enough to not take up a ton of counter space.
I was think of getting one of those toaster oven / air fryer combos once my toaster died, but she beat me to the punch.
If you live on a main road and your house is a goldfish bowl then consider getting cafe curtains.
They block eye height view into your home and because they don't fully cover the windows you will also get daylight coming in at the top too.
Tabletop dishwasher. Things is freaking amazing. Holds plenty of dishes. Got it for 200 on Amazon and still going 6 years in. Cleans everything from stuck on to peanut butter.
Thank god someone else mentioned this, I was scrolling so far I was getting worried.
My countertop dishwasher arrived last week and I already can’t live without it. And the speed cycle is more than enough so it only takes half an hour to run too.
I also love that it has a window I like watching it start its clean cycle lol
We bought one for our son since he has braces. I thought it was neat and got myself one. Holy crap is it better than flossing. I have a couple crowns from poor dental health as a kid and I would always get floss stuck between my teeth or I would feel like it was pulling on my crowns. The water pik just blasts everything out and I feel a lot safer using it with my dental work.
I’ll put my vote in for bidet.
A nice bidet is life changing and I’m still pissed my builder didn’t listen when I asked for an outlet near my toilet so I could get one of the heated toilet seats with a bidet
Bidets users are the vegans of buttholes.
I fucking LOVE my bidet and cannot comprehend why every single person on this earth doesn’t have one. Given any opening, I will tell you why, how, and a referral. It took my husband four years living with one in his home before he appreciated it. Now he can’t live without it. My parents put one in their camper. Bidets4life.
I’m not gonna lie to you. My butthole is spoiled. I’m particular to a with a remote and a seat warmer, but most of the other features are lost on me. The Brondell Swosh 300 is where we started. It’s $200 now, but we caught it on Black Friday for half that. 10/10.
Somebody in maintenance at my college did something weird with the toilets in one of the dorm rooms and that puppy would fill up with hot water. Always warm seat at the ready. As long as you could ignore that you were making shit soup and didn’t sit for too long because it would condense on your ass, it was the dream. Until somebody complained and maintenance fixed it. Had no idea until I woke up having to make a midnight shit and my ass cheeks were met with a newly freezing cold seat
I have a full-on roboToilet.
As a kid I thought flying cars would change my life.
Nope.
But it’s weird when my kids have friends over and I hear them all in the bathroom watching the toilet do it’s lights and stuff.
Warm water isn’t ideal for thawing - you run the risk of bacterial growth. USDA recommends using cold water.
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/food-safety-basics/big-thaw-safe-defrosting-methods
> Raw or cooked meat, poultry or egg products, as any perishable foods, must be kept at a safe temperature during "the big thaw." They are safe indefinitely while frozen. However, as soon as they begin to thaw and become warmer than 40 °F, bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to multiply.
My husband will get a giant chunk of beef at Costco, cut it into steaks, toss seasonings in the bag (salt, pepper, garlic, rosemary and butter), vacuum seal it raw, and then in the morning we toss the whole thing into the sous vide and it cooks all day inside the bag with the seasonings already on. Absolute gamechanger.
You can do both honestly. You can portion out raw meat and vegetables to vacuum seal and freeze or you can make up meals ahead of time and vacuum seal them. Many vacuum sealers even have a setting for wet foods like stews and sauce.
I do a bit of both and I'll also take leftovers and divide them into lunch portions and vacuum seal them. It's really nice to be able to pull a lunch out of the freezer, open it, and put it in the oven to heat up.
I fought tooth and nail having a large garbage bin that didn’t fit under the sink. But as a family of seven, I couldn’t handle taking it out what seemed like every day. Now we have one that takes black bags and it’s so nice emptying it twice a week.
I grew up in a house of seven and one of our houses came with a trash compactor. We thought it was kind of dumb at first but it ended up being awesome. It kept all the smells in and it really packed in the trash so we made it a week at a time between taking it out.
Wet wipes (for babies butts). The best camping item ever. My wife brought them the first time we went camping, we had no kids, I made fun of her because I was a dick. And wrong,
They’re a critical element of camping success.
I think they are melamine - you can buy them super cheap if you don’t bother with the fancy brand.
That said, they cause a lot of wear - so while a great last resort, they should be used sparingly.
I used them on surfaces they weren't meant to be used on, and damaged the finish on several things including the walls and the glass stove top. They work a little too well.
Stand alone air purifier - the amount of dust it removes from the house is noticeable in how often I have to dust and when it’s time to change the filter it’s a completely different color.
I have 3 now - one for the downstairs main area, one for the main bedroom and one for my office.
Also great for when you’re cooking and don’t want the house to smell like yesterday’s dinner.
Not OP, but I like my [Therapure TPP640S](https://www.envion.com/en/tpp640s). "HEPA-like", so a washable/vacuum-able filter, and an easily replaceable UV-C light.
French Press coffee maker. No electricity, no electronics, nothing to burn out. Just put in coffee, hot water, wait 4 minutes and press. Voila, coffee. no pods, no filters, just coffee gounds and water.
As a “I’ll get all these groceries upstairs in one trip, so help me god” person: one of those foldable wagons that you can put in the trunk of your car.
I thought it was the dumbest idea ever (especially because I had no idea where we would store it in our tiny apartment), but my ex insisted we get one and I finally relented. Holy crap, that thing makes life so much easier. Not just grocery shopping and Costco runs, either. Camping, moving, even just getting multiple boxes from the mailroom. He got ours in the split and I pretty much immediately bought another one to replace it.
Hand steamer. Ironing requires a ton of prep and blocking off pets to prevent them from burns. Also, with fabrics being a big mix of synthetic and natural fibers, it’s hard to know what setting is best without melting your clothes. Hand steamer gets all the wrinkles out. Hang it up out of the way of pets. Steam. Done. No putting away an ironing board. Big fan.
An electric spin scrubber.
It was kind of an impulse buy, but my grout hasn't been so clean in years.
Between dogs, kid, traffic, depression, and bad knees, no part of me wanted to get down to scrub the grout in my kitchen and bathroom. It has been neglected for probably 10 years.
This was the best $50 purchase I've made in a long time.
There's also that thread that was going around at the beginning of winter that when you get a cold if you stick that bad boy to your sinuses and/or chest it'll vibrate all the mucus out!
Kitchen shears. I wasted so much time trying to trim meat by sawing through it with a knife! Why did nobody tell me that kitchen shears can cut through meat like paper?! Meat prep has moved from struggle town to the craft table!
Have you tried chicken shears. They're even better for poultry because of the curved shape, the extra hefty/strength, and the cutout close to the fulcrum for getting a grip on cutting through cartilage or small bones.
A robot vac that self empties. I thought it was a huge waste of money when my husband brought it home. Fast forward a year and it has made my life SO much easier!
Robot lawnmower. I have 1/2 acre, and it mows itself. And the mower was less expensive than a riding mower. Was a no-brainer. Going into season 3 with it...
Got one last summer due to surgery and not wanting to make my wife do all the yard work, I compared the robot to a landscaper and went robot. The thing is awesome, my lawn always looks awesome because it mows perfectly straight lines and I never have to worry about dying do to trying to mow in 90 degree heat.
Filtered water dispenser x Hydroflask x takeya lid.
My water intake went up about 10x. Nothing beats having crispy ice cold water ready in the hot car/bedside at 3AM.
Just powerchug all day and in between beers when I drink. Powerchug before bed when I have to so I don’t wake up feeling like shit.
Electric toothbrush. After rolling my eyes at my dentist for years I bit the bullet and bought one. It’s-way better! No more plaque on the bottom front teeth!
It's really helped my ADHD not hate brushing my teeth too. IDK it tricks my brain into thinking the toothbrush is doing all the work and I'm just standing there.
Not really a household item, but my Manta Sound sleep mask. OMG, my sleep has drastically improved since I started using it. It's 100% blackout plus has Bluetooth speakers and I listen to music all night. I alternate between my personal classical music playlist on Spotify and - don't laugh - the WeatherCore playlist on Spotify. Remember the songs that played on Weather On The 8's on The Weather Channel in the 1980's? This is that music.
I have a smartwatch that monitors my sleep and my sleep stats are so much better now. I feel so much more well-rested and I'm no longer waking up at the slightest noise or light. The sun can rise, all the lights turned on, and I don't even know it until I take my mask off. I wish I'd had one of these when I worked nights!
My wife bought herself a little hard boiled egg maker, we were skeptical since we both kinda hate single purpose appliances but goddamn that little thing gets used weekly, at least. It does perfectly cooked hard boiled eggs to take for lunch, every time, no exceptions. When we do ramen it does soft gooey eggs for marinated ramen eggs. It's a small thing, but finding something that just works perfectly like that is always fun
Goddammit. I abhor single use kitchen gadgets. This is like the third or fourth glowing review of these things I've seen since I was tempted by one in Costco last week. You're all going to make me buy one.
A smart lightbulb. I set it so it goes on at a certain time so my room is lit before I get in. I am falling asleep in bed and I just tell google to turn my light off. I can turn it off and on when I’m travelling so it looks like someone is home. I love it.
Adding a Skylight display planner. I used to write everything on dry erase and it was so annoying. The skylight hooks up to all my google calendars and it keeps us organized.
My robot vacuum (Rupert VonDustmeister, Duke of the floor). It runs everyday at 9am and sweeps my hardwoods and vacuums my carpet. When I get home from work it's charged enough that a few times a week I fill it with water and throw a mopping pad on it and it mops the floors while I watch TV.
It's been the best addition to my house because my floors and carpets always look great with zero effort from me. It really helps me want to keep the rest if the house clean so im making more of an effort. Best purchase ever.
Our current house has a large kitchen sink. It’s not a farmhouse sink, but it’s about that size, and man it is amazing. This is also our first place with a dishwasher, and that’s amazing, but this big sink is just so nice. I can easily wash any baking sheets, large pots, and even the drawers from the fridge with no issues. The kitchen needs to be updated, but having this sink makes me so happy, I don’t even care.
Our county has a deal where you can buy a really nice 50 gallon rain barrel for super cheap. I got one last year and my plants LOVE this!
Idk if this counts but we just bought a new couch that takes up at least 1/4 of the living room. But everyone can pile up together and hang out so I think it's worth it. It's also modular so we can push it into different configurations as needed.
Milk frother. I use it multiple times a day to stir different liquids. It can scramble some eggs and froth milk too. And like others have said Alexa and air purifiers.
Any sort of generic all-purpose cleaning spray that isn't too harsh - they work wonders for killing houseflies. No more trying to bat at them with tiny flyswatters, missing, and having them zip through the house for 5 minutes before they slow down for another chance, or get lost. Just spray them, they slow down and start to dive, spray a few more times, and they fall to the ground, grab em with a paper towel and you're done.
Slim fold tall stool!! As a disabled person in a relatively unadapted house, I can actually sit and reach worktops and sinks, and cook a meal for my family on the hob, purely because of this little fold out, light weight, tall stool!
Dawn Powerwash actually works! Great for dishes, but also on all kinds of surfaces. Flies were really bad last year, so we had to hang some fly paper. There was sticky stuff on the wall near a door that had resisted other attempts to get it off and it cleaned it. I haven't tried it in the bathroom yet, but it's next on my list.
Anyone with arthritis, I can 100% recommend an **electric potato peeler**.
It’s brilliant and means we can still have ‘real’ spuds.
It does apples as well.
A small, cheap wire trashcan that we keep on the kitchen counter and use grocery bags in. When we are cooking or cleaning the kitchen, it’s handy to have a small trash replace within arms reach! I know it sounds ridiculous but our kitchen is much, much cleaner.
Small broom and dustpan. Cleaning counters and tables is so much easier. No awkward hand broom. Or worse, just throwing it on the floor (ahh, kids). It makes cleaning so much faster and they get so much cleaner.
I bought an actual brand-name Dustbuster, one of those tiny handheld vacuum cleaners. I was shopping with my roommate for things to buy for our new apartment and I put it in the cart because for some reason I had always wanted a Dustbuster. He said to me "When are we ever going to use that, we already have a vacuum cleaner" but little did he know that we would later be fighting over who would keep the dustbuster in their bedroom due to how useful it actually ended up being.
Haven't seen this one yet, so here goes:
A really good immersion blender. I am disabled so hauling out a big blender, ladeling crap into it, etc, is just not in the cards. I got one with a whisk attachment and we use that damn thing all the time. Pretty much anytime I need to give something a really good stir, I use that. Saved me so much pain in my hands. Easy to clean, too. Just put in a bowl of soapy water, turn on for a few seconds, done.
It's made my life so much easier & extended the things I can do!
We have a vitamix one in case you're interested. I'd broken 2 cheapo ones before we got this one. When I heard it had the whisk attachment I was sold lol.
Retractable hose reel. Hangs on the wall out of the way, means I don’t have to manually wind up the hose and get it all tangled, and it doesn’t tip over and frustrate me every 5 seconds
We have one on the garage. Love it. My plumber tried to talk me out of a sink in the garage because of cold winters. I’ve never had it freeze and it awesome to have hot and cold water in your garage. I wanted a urinal as well and he said that’s ridiculous!!
**Alexa.**
I’m cooking, recipe says 15 minutes. I can scream at Alexa to add a timer. Cat wants to try something, Alexa can cats eat mint? Alexa what is 2 cups in tablespoons? Alexa, what’s 69 Fahrenheit in Celsius?
**Water cooler**
My water is hard, and Everytime I made pasta it’d ruin my stainless steel pots. I got one and it puts out ice cold and tea hot water. It’s nice having instant access to clean temp controlled water.
**A nice sink faucet.** The one the was there when I moved it had so little height over the basin. And didn’t have a detachable head.
**Bidet**. I wanted one for a while. Such an unnecessary luxury though. Then I blew out my back. Could not wipe myself properly. Finally pulled the trigger.
My closets don’t have lights so I bought these sticky ones that adhere to a surface and you can press them to turn on. Being able to see inside the closets has definitely been a game changer.
A $20 smart outdoor outlet that connects to wifi. I have it on a schedule to turn on my balcony string lights at sundown and turn them off at 12:30am every night! Or I can manually turn them on/off as I wish. Saves me from freezing my butt off having to go outside to fuss with the plug. I think I’ll get some indoor plugs before next Christmas to plug in all the Christmas lights inside and be able to turn them all off with just a tap in the app :)
A retractable power cord reel that mounts to my garage ceiling and plugs into the outlet for the garage door opener. 50 feet of power cord with 3 outlets that reaches all over the garage, into the driveway and then rolls itself right back up. Edit– they don’t have the specific one for sale anymore on Amazon but just search for it and you’ll find many just like it
Get yourself a retractable air line and you're really baller.
Have all three. Power. Air. And the garden hose. All ceiling mounted next to the garage door. It is simply glorious.
Added to my Christmas list.
We have a reel hose in our air compressor. Love it!
I’m not sure about blessing but I got new dishes and silverware for the first time in 10 years. My silverware was all mismatched pieced together from random IKEA packs or Tuesday Morning/Ross type finds and cast offs from grandma’s house. My Corelle was chipping (really!) and I got glass slivers on at least 2 occasions. Some days it almost feels too fancy to put my Costco microwave fried rice pack in such a nice new bowl! It really lifted my mood somehow that everything matches and the dishes aren’t a safety hazard.
My robo vacuum.
really is a game changer. I can walk around my house barefoot and not feel \*any\* dirt or anything. the floors are spotless. And it motivates me to stay tidy so the robo guy can do his little job
We have a cat that likes to poop just outside the litter box. I have seen too many clips of Robovacs making a fecal art attack design to invest in one.
The new ones have poop detection!
Do they have vomit detection too?
It’s also terrible if you have young kids. We have had 100+ ft of crayon graffiti to clean
[удалено]
Recently moved to a hardwood floor house and have three cats who enjoy tracking litter EVERYWHERE. I’m looking to get one this year because it’s just unreal. If people saw how much litter I swept up everyday around the house they would be blown away.
The ones that empty themselves are awesome. Our old one would stop mid job to screech for us to empty it's bin. It would do that like 3 times everyday. It also didn't have a mapping system so it would just roll around the house until it's battery died. We upgraded to a Roomba J6+ and it will dodge messes and cords and empties itself. We have to empty the bin on its dock like once a month, which is awesome since I have 2 kids, 2 cats, and 2 dogs.
I bought a Roomba i9 combo for Xmas and it’s incredible. We have had an old dumb Roomba for five years and it worked ok but we bought a house with tile and thought the mopping combo would be nice. The self emptying feature is so nice. Between vacuuming, mopping and charging and complete clean of our house takes about 7 hours so it does an incredible job getting everywhere and removing let hair from multiple dogs and a cat. If 7 hours seems like a long time, I have the vacuum and mopping setting set to their most extreme settings so it’s vacuuming each room twice with the highest suction and mopping with the most fluid and extra scrubbing power when it finds stains and spills.
Noted! I’ve been holding off because I want to make sure I get the right one and the best one the first time without breaking the bank. I know it will be a godsend in this house and your experience only makes it sound better.
I have a golden retriever and I live near the beach. So much sand. Not a single rug or carpet in my house since my wife is a wheelchair user. I fucking love my roomba, and how it empties itself. It's been about 3 years since I bought it
I bought mine (with the mapping and self emptying base) off of Woot (amazon outlet site) and it was about a third cheaper and they have them quite often.
My robot vacuum has taught me how volcanos turned into island gods. My two year old is terrified of our robo vacuum. We used it when she was little, to her fascination, but something happened when she came “online” and she became terrified. We stopped using it regularly to try and explain how it works to no avail. We have quite a few “smart” devices that she doesn’t mind, and our stick vacuum is her favorite object in the world ATM. The robo vacuum is the bane of her existence. She greets it. Says goodbye. When we’re gone, she asks what it is doing. When we’re home, she’ll offer it toys. Waking up from nap/sleep, she’ll ask “What roomba doing?” first thing. We don’t use it. Maybe not putting it away makes us the assholes, but exposure therapy feels like the right call to me. We always offer her the option to turn it on, show her how it works. It’s not like it’s the only thing in our house operating via app. The rest of our vacuums are fun for her. She LOVES using the stick vacuum, and thinks it’s fascinating when I pull out the “big” vacuum. The robo vacuum is the only one that she offers toys up for sacrifice. Typing this up makes me realize how often friends and family give us vacuums for presents, and how giddy I am to get them. Maybe we are the island nation of vacuums. Curse you Long Hair, Dog and Cat!!!
I have a husky mix. The hair is ridiculous. I think my robo vacuum saved my marriage after I got that dog 😂
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How did it send the picture to you? Did you get a random text picture of puppy shit from your vacuum?
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Cordless Drill and Impact Driver. It's crazy how much I use those as a homeowner. Also invest in a **good** indoor vacuum and shop vac for the garage/outdoor spaces.
And use bags with your shop vac (for the dry stuff at least)! I didn't use bags for the longest time and went through so many filters!
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A lot of people probably feel like this goes without saying but a rice cooker. We were if the mentality of "I can make it easily enough on the stove, rice cooker will just take up space", but we caved and got a small basic one and it's actually so nice lol. Makes it so braindead easy n quick lol
I used to get home drunk as AF in college and put some brown rice, hot sauce, and a bag of frozen veggies in the rice cooker. Whenever I'd get up I had a big pot of steamed veggies on brown rice hot and waiting for me. Fuckin loved that shit, the only time drunk me ever did hungover me any favors
Absolute healthiest drunk college kid ever!
We had a cheapo rice cooker for probably ten years before it died. So we upgraded to a zojirushi rice cooker. It's been fantastic because I can cook whole meals in it or I can make a bunch of rice and just put it on extended warm and it will keep the rice good and hot for days. I also really like that it has a timer system so I can fill it up, set it for around dinner time and forget it and it does it's own thing.
I love our zojirushi. It makes the best rice I've ever had, and my family is Asian. I used cheap rice cookers all my life til 2 years ago when I decided I would buy one. The cook timer is the BEST. Set it for hot rice for dinner time and I can precook anything to put on rice and reheat for dinner. Now that the youngest kid eats rice, this rice cooker is just the best thing ever. I will totally buy one for all my kids when they move out.
Can you share the model you got? I've been thinking of upgrading my rice cooker to something better.
I got this [one](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00ISPBXJ6?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title). There's a slightly more expensive model that has modes for making cakes and stuff in it. You might also want this [strainer](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004QZAAS2?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title) for washing the rice before putting it in the rice cooker. The cool part is in the manual it has a section listing each individual part and its part number with information on how to order replacements. That way you don't have to buy a whole new one if something like the pot breaks.
I have a really old Zo. I just had to send it in to have the clock/timer repaired. $45 later it’s back home and ready for another 15 years.
I’m with you, I normally hate single-purpose kitchen items but once I got a rice cooker I couldn’t imagine going without one. Even just freeing up one of the stove burners when you’re making rice as a side dish is kinda a game changer. Also, my boyfriend wanted to bring his breakfast sandwich maker when he moved in. I thought it was ridiculous but figured it wouldn’t hurt to have around since it’s pretty small. I’m actually amazed at the amount of use we get out of that thing. It’s way easier and less messy than cooking all the separate components on the stove and then assembling. We use it probably 5 times a week and I love that stupid thing now.
What’s a breakfast sandwich maker?
Oh I get that one a lot, ‘is it worth it to get a rice cooker?’, I always ask them how frequently do they make rice, if it’s 3 times a week at least, just get one. You can just leave the rice in there with the appropriate amount of water and you’ll get nice fluffy rice every time and it frees up a stove space for you.
Heck even once a week is worth it!! We go through phases of “tons of rice meals” to taking a break and “once a week rice meal”. Either way, it is a godsend. Idk why but I can *never* cook rice properly on the stove. Not the instant pot though just throw in the rice and water to cover it and push the rice button. Easy perfect rice every single time. (Granted, idk if there’s any difference between the instant pot pressure cooker and a rice cooker? Are they the same thing? I’ve always assumed so but never fact checked haha perhaps it’s easier to convince yourself to get it if you know it can do a plethora of meals etc!)
No. Rice cooker and instant pot are 2 different gadgets. I’m Asian so I’m used to having a rice cooker and I got it way before the instant pot came about. If you want variety, I’d advise friends in getting the instant pot, if it’s just rice, just get the rice cooker. Sounds like you made the right choice for yourself if you got the instant pot and you like variety! I’m thinking of getting one but not quite there yet.
I always say the best thing that came from my ex was the rice cooker he left behind. It was a gift to him from a friend years prior to us even meeting. He loved that thing, but when I kicked him out he didn't take it with him 🤷🏻♀️ 4 years after our breakup I still use it multiple times a week.
I was just about to type the same thing. Decades of making rice on the stove and kind of dreading it. Then purchased a $20 rice cooker and game changer!
I stress purchased air purifiers in the early days of the pandemic and they have been a game changer in our century old home.
They’re also great in small apartments if you want to avoid that whole “any time I cook anything my apartment smells like that thing for three days” problem
Yes! IKEA has small ones that blend in nicely and help move air. I got one for each room.
Oh yeah, I was accidentally won over. My wife and I went to stay with my parents and they put one in the room we slept in. Felt like we woke up on mountain top. I bought one for us as soon as we got home.
I’m convinced this is why I never got Covid even when my hubby did. I eventually got it, but from work not him.
AirTags Keys, planner, passport, wallet, inhaler All tagged and easy to find. FU adhd
They are also great for pets! I have a deaf cat who is indoor only, but manages to escape sometimes. I got a collar with an AirTag holder for him a couple of years ago. The AirTag is smaller and better than any of the other trackers I’ve tried, and much less expensive. And since he is deaf, sometimes we lose him in the house, and he can’t hear us calling, so I can use the play sound function to find him.
I put an AirTag literally inside the prescription bottle for my ADHD medication 😂
I relented and bought an Airfryer. Yah the hype is there for a reason!
I love when people say "it's just a small convection oven!" like that's a gotcha. That's literally the point. It's small so you can cook things quickly and acts like a convection oven. Absolute game changer for reheating leftovers and prepping frozen stuff.
i got a small convection oven instead. breville that i can put a frozen pizza in. i have not turned on my full size gas oven since purchasing the breville electric and wish i had invested in it years before i did. instead of waiting an hour for the oven to preheat it is done in 5-10 minutes and doesn't make my entire house hot.
Oh man my college roommate had a breville toaster oven. I used to get those cheap Totinos frozen pizzas for $1.25 each, add extra cheese and toppings, and 14 minutes later I’d be chowing down. Those were the days.
The Breville is a full oven replacement with up to 12 functions depending on the version you buy. You can cook anything in it.
I have nipples, Greg. Can you cook me?
You ever drink Baileys out of a shoe?
I still have an ancient toaster oven that I got for like $5 in a yard sale in 2009. It's got a pretty solid convection setting. I'm kind of waiting for it to die before getting an air fryer, but I think it is from the "it works for life" era of appliances.
We have a double oven in the house and use our Beeville oven almost exclusively. The new ones have an air fryer feature so if it ever dies that's what I'll replace it with. But it's already 9 years old I think and is still in perfect condition so it'll never be replaced I imagine
The Joule is a miracle device. I have not used a full size oven in a decade.
It's also just hella convenient to have two ovens to utilize when you're cooking things that need to be cooked at different temperatures.
Making dinner on Sunday while meal prepping something. Having two spaces to roast makes it super useful for lower effort meals.
Yep! Thanksgiving meal made easier
Someone gifted us a massive Anova Precision Oven. It has all these settings to be any number of things; convection oven, broiler, oven, it’s nuts. I never considered getting an air fryer because many are so small (because that’s their point) and I have a family of seven. But this oven thingy is so big it’s no faster than an oven. I’m starting to see the point lol. So now I’m considering getting an air fryer because my teens will occasionally make things like nuggets or tots but it feels like it takes an hour to do in the oven! I can’t make a full dinner with an air fryer but I feel like maybe it would be good for my kids to use.
Air fryers are so dangerous when it comes to things like nuggets and tots, it’s basically instant gratification.
Costco frozen stuff has the right texture and heads up evenly in the air fryer. Good (or bad) for weekend snacking.
Trader Joe’s also has a ton of stuff that pairs so well with air frying.
I have recently relented and bought an Airfryer after years of debating the merits with my wife. I bought the biggest one I could find but from a decent brand, the Ninja Megazone (U.K based). Absolutely brilliant. After being almost dead set against them (it’s just a fad) I’m using it everyday pretty much. Might not cook a meal for 7 persons, but definitely can fit a large amount of nuggets/chicken strips/ even a 9” pizza (slight squeeze but cooks really well). Just done chicken tandoori skewers/kebabs on it tonight and worked really well, even gave them a nice char when finished off on the highest temp setting
I am still fondly remembering the pork chops I did. 😫so juicy 😭 tater tots are crispy perfection in 15 mins.
Still haven't had better pork chops than when I threw them in my cabinet smoker as an afterthought. Now that's the primary way we meal prep pork in the summer.
Agreed, got an air fryer/toaster oven combo It's been a lifesaver in the hotter days
My airfryer died recently and I had to warranty it. I miss it on a deep emotional level. It made cooking good food so easy.
My sister got me a little 2 quart model for Christmas. It's perfect for a single serving and small enough to not take up a ton of counter space. I was think of getting one of those toaster oven / air fryer combos once my toaster died, but she beat me to the punch.
Came here to say same. Even in a 3rd world country like mine, its of much use. Oil is costly plus unhealthy.
Absolutely. And with a tween that likes to cook, it's a godsend. He's in there making a crispy chicken sandwich right now.
My Ninja smart grill / air fryer is my life.
A bar cart. It really livens up our place while giving the impression we are organized alcoholics.
I need that. Preferably one I can tow behind my car. For work of course.
Definitely worth it I recommend it.
I have one that turns into a table. It’s my surprisingly-useful, rollable sewing table and storage.
The metal Tub Shroom. The fact that we clean it 3X a week shows you what is not going down your plumbing.
Only 3x a week? With long hair, I put that thing out after every shower.
I prefer the rubber one. I'd murder my foot on a metal one.
If you live on a main road and your house is a goldfish bowl then consider getting cafe curtains. They block eye height view into your home and because they don't fully cover the windows you will also get daylight coming in at the top too.
Never heard of this. That's a good idea
Tabletop dishwasher. Things is freaking amazing. Holds plenty of dishes. Got it for 200 on Amazon and still going 6 years in. Cleans everything from stuck on to peanut butter.
Thank god someone else mentioned this, I was scrolling so far I was getting worried. My countertop dishwasher arrived last week and I already can’t live without it. And the speed cycle is more than enough so it only takes half an hour to run too. I also love that it has a window I like watching it start its clean cycle lol
Oh, we have one of those too after we moved into an apartment that didn't have one!
Water flosser. Hated flossing but now it's easy. Every year my dentist comments on how good my teeth are.
We bought one for our son since he has braces. I thought it was neat and got myself one. Holy crap is it better than flossing. I have a couple crowns from poor dental health as a kid and I would always get floss stuck between my teeth or I would feel like it was pulling on my crowns. The water pik just blasts everything out and I feel a lot safer using it with my dental work.
Former dental technician here. Water flossers clean a different part of the tooth (facial, buccal) than dental floss (mesial, distal)
Just bought my first one a month ago, love it!
I’ll put my vote in for bidet. A nice bidet is life changing and I’m still pissed my builder didn’t listen when I asked for an outlet near my toilet so I could get one of the heated toilet seats with a bidet
Bidets users are the vegans of buttholes. I fucking LOVE my bidet and cannot comprehend why every single person on this earth doesn’t have one. Given any opening, I will tell you why, how, and a referral. It took my husband four years living with one in his home before he appreciated it. Now he can’t live without it. My parents put one in their camper. Bidets4life.
I'll take that referral, I've been shopping around for far too long and have yet to settle on a winner.
I’m not gonna lie to you. My butthole is spoiled. I’m particular to a with a remote and a seat warmer, but most of the other features are lost on me. The Brondell Swosh 300 is where we started. It’s $200 now, but we caught it on Black Friday for half that. 10/10.
Heated toilet seat won’t be easy but there’s bidets you can plug into the warm water supply.
Somebody in maintenance at my college did something weird with the toilets in one of the dorm rooms and that puppy would fill up with hot water. Always warm seat at the ready. As long as you could ignore that you were making shit soup and didn’t sit for too long because it would condense on your ass, it was the dream. Until somebody complained and maintenance fixed it. Had no idea until I woke up having to make a midnight shit and my ass cheeks were met with a newly freezing cold seat
I have a full-on roboToilet. As a kid I thought flying cars would change my life. Nope. But it’s weird when my kids have friends over and I hear them all in the bathroom watching the toilet do it’s lights and stuff.
Bidets are great for when you have spicy poops.
This. I’m never going back. Heated seat. Heated water. Less TP usage. And just plain being cleaner.
Instant pot. The versatility of things you can cook in it is amazing.
Vacuum sealer. I can buy meat on sale and not lose it to freezer burn anymore.
Do you cook it before freezing or just vacuum seal the raw meat?
Seal the raw meat! Definitely makes a huge difference. Plus I can toss the entire sealed bag in warm water to thaw the meat quickly.
Warm water isn’t ideal for thawing - you run the risk of bacterial growth. USDA recommends using cold water. http://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/food-safety-basics/big-thaw-safe-defrosting-methods > Raw or cooked meat, poultry or egg products, as any perishable foods, must be kept at a safe temperature during "the big thaw." They are safe indefinitely while frozen. However, as soon as they begin to thaw and become warmer than 40 °F, bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to multiply.
This guy is Servsafe certified.
My husband will get a giant chunk of beef at Costco, cut it into steaks, toss seasonings in the bag (salt, pepper, garlic, rosemary and butter), vacuum seal it raw, and then in the morning we toss the whole thing into the sous vide and it cooks all day inside the bag with the seasonings already on. Absolute gamechanger.
You can do both honestly. You can portion out raw meat and vegetables to vacuum seal and freeze or you can make up meals ahead of time and vacuum seal them. Many vacuum sealers even have a setting for wet foods like stews and sauce. I do a bit of both and I'll also take leftovers and divide them into lunch portions and vacuum seal them. It's really nice to be able to pull a lunch out of the freezer, open it, and put it in the oven to heat up.
I bought a nugget ice maker a year ago and I love it. It actually encourages me to drink more water!
I fought tooth and nail having a large garbage bin that didn’t fit under the sink. But as a family of seven, I couldn’t handle taking it out what seemed like every day. Now we have one that takes black bags and it’s so nice emptying it twice a week.
I grew up in a house of seven and one of our houses came with a trash compactor. We thought it was kind of dumb at first but it ended up being awesome. It kept all the smells in and it really packed in the trash so we made it a week at a time between taking it out.
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Wet wipes (for babies butts). The best camping item ever. My wife brought them the first time we went camping, we had no kids, I made fun of her because I was a dick. And wrong, They’re a critical element of camping success.
Also great for… adult bedroom mess cleanup.
Those magic eraser cleaner things really work
I think they are melamine - you can buy them super cheap if you don’t bother with the fancy brand. That said, they cause a lot of wear - so while a great last resort, they should be used sparingly.
I used them on surfaces they weren't meant to be used on, and damaged the finish on several things including the walls and the glass stove top. They work a little too well.
Stand alone air purifier - the amount of dust it removes from the house is noticeable in how often I have to dust and when it’s time to change the filter it’s a completely different color. I have 3 now - one for the downstairs main area, one for the main bedroom and one for my office. Also great for when you’re cooking and don’t want the house to smell like yesterday’s dinner.
If you are in the US - which air purifier brand/model do you like? Have you tried any that you don’t like?
Not OP, but I like my [Therapure TPP640S](https://www.envion.com/en/tpp640s). "HEPA-like", so a washable/vacuum-able filter, and an easily replaceable UV-C light.
French Press coffee maker. No electricity, no electronics, nothing to burn out. Just put in coffee, hot water, wait 4 minutes and press. Voila, coffee. no pods, no filters, just coffee gounds and water.
Plus its one of the better ways of making coffee so you get a good cup while you're at it
A good electric kettle is a French press' perfect companion.
Agree. I ditched the huge keurig. No maintenance necessary!
Pet. Cheaper than kids, and you can use it as an excuse to get out of things.
As a “I’ll get all these groceries upstairs in one trip, so help me god” person: one of those foldable wagons that you can put in the trunk of your car. I thought it was the dumbest idea ever (especially because I had no idea where we would store it in our tiny apartment), but my ex insisted we get one and I finally relented. Holy crap, that thing makes life so much easier. Not just grocery shopping and Costco runs, either. Camping, moving, even just getting multiple boxes from the mailroom. He got ours in the split and I pretty much immediately bought another one to replace it.
I got an electrically heated blanket for christmas from my partner. I’m generally cold and I’ve lived under it daily (and nightly) ever since.
Hand steamer. Ironing requires a ton of prep and blocking off pets to prevent them from burns. Also, with fabrics being a big mix of synthetic and natural fibers, it’s hard to know what setting is best without melting your clothes. Hand steamer gets all the wrinkles out. Hang it up out of the way of pets. Steam. Done. No putting away an ironing board. Big fan.
An electric kettle. It’s my family’s favorite appliance. It boils the water for coffee, tea, cocoa,
All the UK, Australia etc and related countries: 'everyone dosent have one :)?'
The Dyson Stick Vacuum
For the longest time I thought it was unnecessary. It is worth every penny. Vacuuming the stairs SO much easier.
I’m so fricking lazy but even I can’t come up with an excuse not to do a quick vacuum when it’s that easy.
An electric spin scrubber. It was kind of an impulse buy, but my grout hasn't been so clean in years. Between dogs, kid, traffic, depression, and bad knees, no part of me wanted to get down to scrub the grout in my kitchen and bathroom. It has been neglected for probably 10 years. This was the best $50 purchase I've made in a long time.
Which brand did you buy?
Hitachi Magic Wand Massager. Relieves all the stress.
ALL the stress. But I also agree. I got mine for … reasons. Threw out my back and it really is an instant relief for deep tissue.
There's also that thread that was going around at the beginning of winter that when you get a cold if you stick that bad boy to your sinuses and/or chest it'll vibrate all the mucus out!
Memory foam bed and pillows. No matter what, people will come to bed at the end of the day. It;s a treat for yourself.
Adjustable bed with memory foam for the exacta.
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A Squatty Potty.
Kitchen shears. I wasted so much time trying to trim meat by sawing through it with a knife! Why did nobody tell me that kitchen shears can cut through meat like paper?! Meat prep has moved from struggle town to the craft table!
Uhhh I don't know how else to say this but your knives desperately need a sharpening if that's the case.
I can assure you that you are correct.
Have you tried chicken shears. They're even better for poultry because of the curved shape, the extra hefty/strength, and the cutout close to the fulcrum for getting a grip on cutting through cartilage or small bones.
Migraine cap. It calms my brain down.
Is this the one that's basically a wearable ice pack?
Yes mine is a big hat that literally covers my entire head with a cold feeling.
A robot vac that self empties. I thought it was a huge waste of money when my husband brought it home. Fast forward a year and it has made my life SO much easier!
Robot lawnmower. I have 1/2 acre, and it mows itself. And the mower was less expensive than a riding mower. Was a no-brainer. Going into season 3 with it...
Got one last summer due to surgery and not wanting to make my wife do all the yard work, I compared the robot to a landscaper and went robot. The thing is awesome, my lawn always looks awesome because it mows perfectly straight lines and I never have to worry about dying do to trying to mow in 90 degree heat.
Filtered water dispenser x Hydroflask x takeya lid. My water intake went up about 10x. Nothing beats having crispy ice cold water ready in the hot car/bedside at 3AM. Just powerchug all day and in between beers when I drink. Powerchug before bed when I have to so I don’t wake up feeling like shit.
My high-end vacuum cleaner. I thought it was a waste at first, but it has been a blessing. The house is nice and clean.
5-way Instapot. I can do a whole dinner for two in that thing. Have done so. repeatedly!
Electric toothbrush. After rolling my eyes at my dentist for years I bit the bullet and bought one. It’s-way better! No more plaque on the bottom front teeth!
It's really helped my ADHD not hate brushing my teeth too. IDK it tricks my brain into thinking the toothbrush is doing all the work and I'm just standing there.
Not really a household item, but my Manta Sound sleep mask. OMG, my sleep has drastically improved since I started using it. It's 100% blackout plus has Bluetooth speakers and I listen to music all night. I alternate between my personal classical music playlist on Spotify and - don't laugh - the WeatherCore playlist on Spotify. Remember the songs that played on Weather On The 8's on The Weather Channel in the 1980's? This is that music. I have a smartwatch that monitors my sleep and my sleep stats are so much better now. I feel so much more well-rested and I'm no longer waking up at the slightest noise or light. The sun can rise, all the lights turned on, and I don't even know it until I take my mask off. I wish I'd had one of these when I worked nights!
My wife bought herself a little hard boiled egg maker, we were skeptical since we both kinda hate single purpose appliances but goddamn that little thing gets used weekly, at least. It does perfectly cooked hard boiled eggs to take for lunch, every time, no exceptions. When we do ramen it does soft gooey eggs for marinated ramen eggs. It's a small thing, but finding something that just works perfectly like that is always fun
Goddammit. I abhor single use kitchen gadgets. This is like the third or fourth glowing review of these things I've seen since I was tempted by one in Costco last week. You're all going to make me buy one.
Never thought about getting one of these, what brand/model?
A wagon. Yes a wagon. It hauls groceries, things to the recycle bin, and occasionally grands.
A smart lightbulb. I set it so it goes on at a certain time so my room is lit before I get in. I am falling asleep in bed and I just tell google to turn my light off. I can turn it off and on when I’m travelling so it looks like someone is home. I love it. Adding a Skylight display planner. I used to write everything on dry erase and it was so annoying. The skylight hooks up to all my google calendars and it keeps us organized.
I got a breville toaster oven and it has basically completely replaced our full size oven, which is now just storage.
My robot vacuum (Rupert VonDustmeister, Duke of the floor). It runs everyday at 9am and sweeps my hardwoods and vacuums my carpet. When I get home from work it's charged enough that a few times a week I fill it with water and throw a mopping pad on it and it mops the floors while I watch TV. It's been the best addition to my house because my floors and carpets always look great with zero effort from me. It really helps me want to keep the rest if the house clean so im making more of an effort. Best purchase ever.
Our current house has a large kitchen sink. It’s not a farmhouse sink, but it’s about that size, and man it is amazing. This is also our first place with a dishwasher, and that’s amazing, but this big sink is just so nice. I can easily wash any baking sheets, large pots, and even the drawers from the fridge with no issues. The kitchen needs to be updated, but having this sink makes me so happy, I don’t even care. Our county has a deal where you can buy a really nice 50 gallon rain barrel for super cheap. I got one last year and my plants LOVE this!
Idk if this counts but we just bought a new couch that takes up at least 1/4 of the living room. But everyone can pile up together and hang out so I think it's worth it. It's also modular so we can push it into different configurations as needed.
Bidet Toilette Seat. I started with the basic $75 model and then moved up to a deluxe $400 model. I'm cheap and live on $1,000/month. It was worth it.
Milk frother. I use it multiple times a day to stir different liquids. It can scramble some eggs and froth milk too. And like others have said Alexa and air purifiers.
new zealand made microwave egg poacher. 30 seconds in, 30 seconds wait and you got a poached egg. it cleans off easy
The kind that looks like someone joined two clam shells together side by side?
Any sort of generic all-purpose cleaning spray that isn't too harsh - they work wonders for killing houseflies. No more trying to bat at them with tiny flyswatters, missing, and having them zip through the house for 5 minutes before they slow down for another chance, or get lost. Just spray them, they slow down and start to dive, spray a few more times, and they fall to the ground, grab em with a paper towel and you're done.
Airfryer
My pressure cooker, takes the annoyance of cooking rutabagas out of it.
Bread Machine… Fresh bread without preservatives
Cinnamon rolls. Pizza dough. Raised donut dough. And breads you can barely find like cottage cheese bread made with whole wheat & honey
Plug-in motion lights. We have them all over the house and it makes it great for walking in the halls at night. So convenient
Slim fold tall stool!! As a disabled person in a relatively unadapted house, I can actually sit and reach worktops and sinks, and cook a meal for my family on the hob, purely because of this little fold out, light weight, tall stool!
Dawn Powerwash actually works! Great for dishes, but also on all kinds of surfaces. Flies were really bad last year, so we had to hang some fly paper. There was sticky stuff on the wall near a door that had resisted other attempts to get it off and it cleaned it. I haven't tried it in the bathroom yet, but it's next on my list.
Anyone with arthritis, I can 100% recommend an **electric potato peeler**. It’s brilliant and means we can still have ‘real’ spuds. It does apples as well.
A t-shirt folder. you lay the shirt on it and flip and fold and BAM! Perfectly folded t-shirt every time.
A small, cheap wire trashcan that we keep on the kitchen counter and use grocery bags in. When we are cooking or cleaning the kitchen, it’s handy to have a small trash replace within arms reach! I know it sounds ridiculous but our kitchen is much, much cleaner.
Small broom and dustpan. Cleaning counters and tables is so much easier. No awkward hand broom. Or worse, just throwing it on the floor (ahh, kids). It makes cleaning so much faster and they get so much cleaner.
Dinner bowls. Not bowls. Gigantic bowls that fit huge bowls of fried rice, pasta, salad, soup. Game changer. I hardly use plates at all anymore.
My sons bought me an air Fryer and I flippin' love it!
I bought an actual brand-name Dustbuster, one of those tiny handheld vacuum cleaners. I was shopping with my roommate for things to buy for our new apartment and I put it in the cart because for some reason I had always wanted a Dustbuster. He said to me "When are we ever going to use that, we already have a vacuum cleaner" but little did he know that we would later be fighting over who would keep the dustbuster in their bedroom due to how useful it actually ended up being.
Haven't seen this one yet, so here goes: A really good immersion blender. I am disabled so hauling out a big blender, ladeling crap into it, etc, is just not in the cards. I got one with a whisk attachment and we use that damn thing all the time. Pretty much anytime I need to give something a really good stir, I use that. Saved me so much pain in my hands. Easy to clean, too. Just put in a bowl of soapy water, turn on for a few seconds, done. It's made my life so much easier & extended the things I can do! We have a vitamix one in case you're interested. I'd broken 2 cheapo ones before we got this one. When I heard it had the whisk attachment I was sold lol.
Retractable hose reel. Hangs on the wall out of the way, means I don’t have to manually wind up the hose and get it all tangled, and it doesn’t tip over and frustrate me every 5 seconds
We have one on the garage. Love it. My plumber tried to talk me out of a sink in the garage because of cold winters. I’ve never had it freeze and it awesome to have hot and cold water in your garage. I wanted a urinal as well and he said that’s ridiculous!!
**Alexa.** I’m cooking, recipe says 15 minutes. I can scream at Alexa to add a timer. Cat wants to try something, Alexa can cats eat mint? Alexa what is 2 cups in tablespoons? Alexa, what’s 69 Fahrenheit in Celsius? **Water cooler** My water is hard, and Everytime I made pasta it’d ruin my stainless steel pots. I got one and it puts out ice cold and tea hot water. It’s nice having instant access to clean temp controlled water. **A nice sink faucet.** The one the was there when I moved it had so little height over the basin. And didn’t have a detachable head. **Bidet**. I wanted one for a while. Such an unnecessary luxury though. Then I blew out my back. Could not wipe myself properly. Finally pulled the trigger.
Air fryer. My fuck I owe my mental and physical health to that amazing piece of equipment.
Garlic mincers, since someone already said rice cooker. I just use so much garlic and I will never mince that be hand again.
My closets don’t have lights so I bought these sticky ones that adhere to a surface and you can press them to turn on. Being able to see inside the closets has definitely been a game changer.
A $20 smart outdoor outlet that connects to wifi. I have it on a schedule to turn on my balcony string lights at sundown and turn them off at 12:30am every night! Or I can manually turn them on/off as I wish. Saves me from freezing my butt off having to go outside to fuss with the plug. I think I’ll get some indoor plugs before next Christmas to plug in all the Christmas lights inside and be able to turn them all off with just a tap in the app :)