23 Clever Uses for Tennis Balls

1. Cut an X in the top of each ball and put them on the bottoms of chair legs to cut down on noise and floor scuffs. You can even paint them the color of your chair so they don’t stand out as much.
2. Donate them to a local nursing home for use on residents’ walkers.
3. Hang one on string from the garage roof to help you park without running into things. When it touches the windshield or rear window (depending on which way the car is pointing), you know it’s time to stop.
4. Keep certain types of gnats or flies away from you when you are outdoors.
5. Just cover a tennis ball in Vaseline and hang it from a tree or bush.
6. When packing something for shipping in a box that’s too large, use tennis balls as shock-absorbing cushions that will hold the item steady in the box.
7. Use them to remove scuffs on floors. Many janitors use this trick by placing a tennis ball on the end of a broom so it’s always handy.
8. Throw a few tennis balls into the dryer when you are drying comforters, fluffy coats, pillows, or anything else that could use a good fluffing.
9. Tennis balls can also help any laundry load dry faster – just throw two or three in the dryer and your clothes will be done quicker.
10. Hide stuff in them. Make a slit in a tennis ball, then squeeze either side of the slit to open it up. Place money or other objects inside, and release to close the opening.
11. Cut a portion of the ball off so that it will fit over the sharp corner of your coffee table. Repeat for the other corners to baby-proof a room.
12. Use this for all furniture with sharp or protruding bits to protect little foreheads.
13. When you are seated, put a tennis ball (or two or three) under each foot and roll your feet around on them. They make wonderful massagers.
14. Use tennis balls to anchor clusters of helium balloons at parties. Knot together a group of ribbons attached to balloons. Cut a small X in the top of a ball and insert the knot. Fill the ball with sand if you want extra security.
15. Prevent your bike’s kick stand from sinking into soft dirt by cutting a small slit in a tennis ball and sliding it over the kick stand.
16. Keep the yuckiness out of your pool by floating some tennis balls in the water. Supposedly, the balls will absorb body oils from people who swim in the water – but you need to replace them every few weeks to keep them fresh.
17. Cut a tennis ball in half and use it to get a better grip when opening jars. Just place the ball half over the lid, and the rubber on the inside grips the lid to help you rotate it easier.
18. To keep a door knob from smashing into and damaging an interior wall, cut a large slit in a tennis ball and slide it over the knob. This trick also works great to keep curious toddlers out of off-limits rooms…until they figure out how to squeeze as they turn.
19. Protect a padlock. Cut a slit in a tennis ball with a utility knife and slip it over an outdoor padlock to prevent water from getting into it and freezing.
20. Remove a broken lightbulb. The bulb broke off in the socket? No problem.
21. Carefully clear away any shards of broken glass, then gently push a tennis ball against the light socket and twist it to remove the bulb’s embedded stem.
22. Cushion the blow. Cut an X in a tennis ball and slip it over the head of a hammer so you don’t ding up walls, wood, or other fragile materials while you’re pounding away.
23. Collect change for tolls. Cut a slit in a tennis ball and stash spare change inside. Keep the ball in your car so you don’t have to grope for your wallet when you’re at the tollbooth.

Knowledge is power!  Learn fun facts, hints and tips, and creative ways to use every day items with “The Buzz” posts on Thursday.