Dear Heloise: I was in the hospital for a while, then confined to my bed at home for a nearly three weeks. Now that I’m up and much better, I’ve been able to see my kitchen, and it was a real catastrophe. My husband did all the cooking, but accomplished very little cleaning.

The burners on my gas stove are caked with heaven knows what. How can I get burnt-on food off of my burners? I’ve tried a number of commercial cleaners with very little success. Help. — Diane H., Bridgeport, Connecticut

Diane, take a large trash bag and place your burners inside. Pour in 1 cup of ammonia, then tie the top very tightly so that there are no spills or leaks. Place the bag with the burners in a well-ventilated area and leave them there overnight.

The next morning, remove the burners and wash them off using warm water. The baked-on food should come off easily. Use a steel scrubbing pad on any hard or stubborn areas. — Heloise

AVOIDING MOVING MADNESS

Dear Heloise: I had several clear, plastic shoeboxes, and when we moved, I found a great use for them. I took each kitchen drawer and emptied each drawer into one of the plastic shoe boxes. I did the same thing for our bathroom items. Makeup and hair products went in one, while other small items went in another. Then I stacked those boxes inside cardboard boxes for moving.

I also labeled the outside of the boxes with the room they correspond to. It makes moving a lot easier. — Carmen Z., El Paso, Texas

TREATS FROM THE GARDEN ELVES

Dear Heloise: I once read a letter in your column about scratching a child’s name in thick-skinned vegetables, such as watermelon, squash and cucumbers. I tried it, and my grandkids loved it. We couldn’t get my grandson to eat veggies before, but when he saw his name on a zucchini, he couldn’t wait to eat because he saw that it was labeled just for him.

This year, when I plant my vegetable garden, I’ll do the same thing with a pin so that the kids can have vegetables “left to them from the garden elves.” Thanks for such a useful and fun hint. — Deanne R., Webster, Iowa

CHANGE THE LOCKS

Dear Heloise: Please tell your readers that when they purchase a home that was once owned by someone else, the first thing they need to do is change the locks. This is also true if someone is going through a divorce or if one of your parents dies.

Why? Because you never know who might have a key to the house. When my mother passed away, the lawyer who handled her estate told us to get a locksmith out to the house to get this done, and I’m so glad that we did.

Her security camera picked up people trying to get into the house with what looked like a key after her obituary was printed in the local papers. She had some expensive paintings, silverware, computers, equipment and more that would have been robbed if we had ignored the lawyer’s advice. — Norah S., Jacksonville, North Carolina

SECURING TISSUE BOXES

Dear Heloise: When I open a new box of tissues, I put a couple handfuls of marbles in the bottom so that when I go to grab one tissue, the whole box doesn’t come with it. A heavy weight on the bottom keeps the box on my nightstand.

I enjoy your column. — J.W., Vermont