WE all know the disinfecting power of rubbing alcohol. Here are other alcohol functions that can be useful to you.

* Remove hair spray from mirrors. As you apply your daily hair-spray, it inevitably creates mist on the mirror. A quick wipe with rubbing alcohol will whisk away that sticky residue and leave your mirror sparkling clean.

* Cleaning venetian blinds. Rubbing alcohol does a terrific job of cleaning the slats of venetian blinds. To make quick work of the job, wrap a flat tool, wrap in cloth and secure with a rubber band. Dip in alcohol and go to work.

* Dissolve windshield mist. Fill a spray bottle with rubbing alcohol and spritz the car glass. You’ll be able to wipe the mist right off.

* Prevent ring around the collar. To prevent your neck from staining your shirt collar, wipe your neck with rubbing alcohol each morning before you dress. Feels good too.

* Remove ink stains. Did you get ink on your favorite shirt or dress? Soak the spot in rubbing alcohol for a few minutes before putting the garment in the wash.

* Remove dog ticks. Ticks hate the taste of rubbing alcohol as much as they love the taste of your dog. Before you pull a tick off, dab the critter with rubbing alcohol to make it loosen its grip. Then grab the tick as close to the dog’s skin as you can and pull it straight out. Dab again with alcohol to disinfect the wound. This works on people too.

* Get rid of fruit flies. The next time you see fruit flies hovering in the kitchen, get out a fine-misting spray bottle and fill it with rubbing alcohol. Spraying the little flies knocks them out and makes them fall to the floor, where you can sweep them up. The alcohol is less effective than insecticide, but it’s a lot safer than spraying poison around your kitchen.

* Make a shapeable ice pack. The problem with ice packs is they won’t conform to the shape of the injured body part. Make a slushy, conformable pack by mixing one part rubbing alcohol with three parts water in a self-closing plastic bag. The next time that sore knee acts up, wrap the bag of slush in a cloth and apply it to the area.

* Clean bathroom fixtures. The next time you need to clean chrome bathroom fixtures, pour some rubbing alcohol straight from the bottle onto a soft, absorbent cloth and the fixtures. No need to rinse and it also kills any germs in its path.