When cleaning, cooking, washing we all use water as a solvent/agent. What makes it so special ?
In: Chemistry
We are made from water, so we and stuff we usually interact with work pretty well with water. The stuff is also very common around the universe, so it is easy to come by.
The special properties that matter come mostly from being _polar_, it having some tiny-magnet-like* properties that makes it attract more of itself and other substances such as salts. As a consequence it dissolves things well, freezes relatively easily, and even expands when freezing. All those have benefits for life. Hence why nature ended up using water.
But there are potential alternatives, they are just less common in the universe and/or less optimal. There are also stronger solvents than water, but being too strong of a solvent also has disadvantages (imagine it dissolving your skin, for example!).
*: not actually magnets, but close enough for ELI5; it’s electric charges, though.
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