Because we heat a good portion of the house with wood, we have an ongoing source of wood ash virtually throughout the year.

Luckily, while are have used up the energy potential of the wood, there are a lot of ways we use wood ash around the property.

1. Insect Repellent

If you have an alkaline soil, you may be able to use wood ash liberally enough to even control your pests with it. Wood ash draws water from the bodies of invertebrates such as ants, snails, slugs, and other insects. For this purpose, apply dry wood ash to problem areas or around plants that you wish to protect.

2. Compost

A sprinkling of wood ash adds nutrients to compost and also helps to balance and stabilize the conditions of the compost for optimal microorganism growth. A little goes a long way, so be sure to use a light sprinkle of wood ash every once and awhile instead of a large dose of this powerful compound.

3. Odor Remover

Wood ash can also be a powerful odor remover. Use it in hard-to-bust areas like in the kitty litter box or place a mound of the stuff on a plate in the fridge to rid yourself of unpleasant odors.

4. Melt Ice

You can even start utilizing your wood ash in the winter with this great hack. Melt away ice, free your car from a slick spot, and clear your walkways with the use of wood ash. The salt and acidic properties of wood ash make it the perfect solution to melt the ice on your sidewalk, porch, or even the street. Keep a little in your car to use when your tires slip to add some traction and avoid dumping more salt on the roads.

Even if you live in an urban or suburban area, if you have a wood stove or fireplace, you have a source of wood ash that you can use in some basic ways like keeping some in a bucket to help melt ice and provide traction on your driveway.

We keep a bin of ash in our garage that we use as we need it and add to it every time we have to empty the ashed from the wood stove.

To review other uses for wood ash, please check out Home and Gardening Ideas.