HELOISE Reader needs formula for cleaning insulated beverage container

Dear Heloise: What can be used to clean the inside of an insulated beverage container? A Reader in Florida
It's as easy as putting 3 to 4 tablespoons of baking soda in, then filling it the rest of the way with hot water. Let it sit several hours or overnight, then follow by giving the container a couple of good shakes. Pour the baking soda and water down a drain or garbage disposal (this helps to deodorize the drain as well). Rinse the container out well, and it should now be fresh-smelling and clean.
Another suggestion you can use is to squirt some automatic dishwasher detergent into the container and then finish filling it with hot water. Give it several shakes to mix things up, and let this sit for 30 minutes. Follow by washing and rinsing the container well. Either one of these methods should help clean those insulated beverage containers.
FYI: Insulated containers are not only handy for beverages such as coffee. They can be used for soups, stews or any other hot-food item and are especially good for a hot meal while on a road trip. I have also heard of them being used to hide jewelry in an inconspicuous place -- who would ever think to look through your kitchen cabinets? Heloise
Dear Heloise: I went through all of my photo albums and took out the best of my five children's baby pictures, their school pictures and various other ones I felt were of favorite memories from their growing-up years. My son scanned them and made a CD for each child. One of my sons has passed away, so his two grown children also received a copy.
I ran the pictures through a program and entered their ages in each photo (as I always write dates on the backs of pictures). The actual photos are now in a special coffee-table album. Louise Morell, Via E-mail
Dear Heloise: My wife, Carolyn, frequently washes dishes and wears rubber gloves. She thought of a hint that I think might be helpful to your readers. Since she is right-handed, the right glove always wears out first, leaving her with many left-handed gloves. It dawned on her to turn some of her left-handed gloves wrong-side out, thereby giving her more right-handed gloves.
So, she washes dishes with one glove wrong-side out and one glove normal-side out. Pretty smart, I think, and sure beats having to buy a new pair of gloves every time she wears one out. Leonard McDaniel, Macon, Ga.
Dear Heloise: When removing stickers from fruit, when you get one off cleanly, use it to stick to the next one and pull it off. It comes off without having to dig your fingernails into the fruit. Fruit Lover in California
XSend a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000, or you can fax it to (210) HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com.
King Features Syndicate