can't-live-without: mr. clean magic eraser
I know having a big apartment sounds like a ridiculous thing to complain about it. But when every vertical surface is in need of paint-cum-camouflage, lots of wall space can be a huge bummer. Luckily, for lazy corner-cutters like me, there’s Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. It looks like a sponge and works like a power-cleaning paint brush. Scrub the lines left by picture frames or careless movers until they disappear. After a friend suggested the eraser, I had to test it’s so-called “magic.” All those years-old scuff marks I was convinced I’d have to hide? Gone, with one quick rub. So now it’s official: I’m in love with an animated bald man. Too bad I’m probably not his type: you know, industrious and holding a broom. Do you have a magical cleaning product you can’t liveout? Please share! – Ashley P.
clorox wipes!
I too am totally hooked on the Magic Eraser. It’s the only thing that cleans the greasy stovetop. It’s great for removing schmutz from the old iBook, too.
For the bath and shower I swear by the old-school damp sponge and baking soda. And if the drain is slow, a good baking soda/vinegar volcano does the job better than anything. It’s magical and fun!
I LIVE for the Magic Eraser. I use it to clean everything in my apartment, including the tub. The Magic Eraser, scrubbing bubbles, and Cinch all purpose cleaner are all I think anyone needs to clean their entire place. Maybe soft scrub for occasions and method leather wipes for my shoes but other than that, nothing else is ever needed!
Beware of the Magic Eraser on dark walls. It rubbed off some of my red paint!
CITROCLEAN – I don’t know if you can get it in the US but it is powerful stuff – what baking soda & vinegar can’t get off, Citroclean will.
More uses for the miracle Magic Eraser!: If you happen to use a white iBook for around 14 hours per day (as I do), it gets really dirty very quickly. The Magic Eraser is pretty much the only thing I’ve found that can clean it — I cut the sponge into little sugar cube-sized pieces, dip in a tiny bit of water and scrub off all the gross wrist sweat that stains the keyboard and mousepad.
I once mentioned the Magic Eraser to a guy fixing my computer at the Mac store and he wasn’t even appalled, so I think we can even say this is somewhat Mac-approved.
Magic Erasers made the trasition from dorm room to housewife the best thing ever!
I also can’t live without my book, How the Queen Cleans Everything, by Linda Cobb. She is the one you see on all the morning talk shows telling you how to get red wine out of your french poodle after a night of drunken bumbling.
Her book is AMAZING, and everything in it is environmentally friendly as well as kid friendly, no fumes, no mess, and I haven’t found one solution yet that hasn’t worked. I mean who knew you could polish your sink with flour or your faucet with alluminum foil?
Combine dishwashing liquid with baking soda to make a soft scrub. UNBELIEVABLY powwerful. And will NOT scratch things.
OMG, the Magic Eraser is amazing.
I am not one to ever be swayed by commercials, but when I saw them wipe the textured bottom of a tub, I had to give it a try.
OMG, OMG, OMG, it was so easy. I used to spend so much time scrubbing the pebbley bottom of my tub, and now in a few wipes, it is sparkling white. (No, I am not Mr. Clean, nor do I work for him. He is kinda hot though.)
OK, you all convinced me. I’ve been looking for a solution to the scratch and scuff marks on the wall for a while now. After reading this post this morning, I bought myself a magic eraser and oh my gosh. It worked like a charm. Praise Mr. Clean!
I agree that it stinks on walls… we have some odd yellow marks now on our green walls after Mr. Clean got through with us.
Mr. Clean’s magic eraser saved my bathroom in my old apartment. The bathroom was painted wallpaper with an awfully lousy exhaust fan. Thus, the whole bathroom–behind the tub, creapping up the walls and the ceiling, streaking behind the picture frames–had varying amounts of black or red mold and this orangey-yellow stuff that I figured out was the wallpaper glue leaking from behind the paper. Mr. Clean whooped up on all of it.
Also, another cleaning product I cannot live without: Kaboom. It cuts through soap scum almost immediately, and it’s environmentally friendly. I love it.
I have an old cast iron tub from the 50s that has lost its coating over the years. As a result, cleaning it is a nightmare – until the magic eraser. It still took some elbow grease, but the old grime came off like. well, magic! It can hold me over until my arm falls off and I finally get the tub reglazed.
Wow I’ll have to buy one on the way home, I wonder if it will help my white whale of a stain, a rusty-orange drip on my bathtub, caused by bleach!
Has anyone heard of such a thing? Pure chlorine bleached it when I moved in as I was scared of previous owner’s habits, and it immediately turned whatever part of the tub it hit orange. I got most of it off with quick water and Scrub Free action, but a bit remains. If anyone has a solution I’d love to know.
Laurie, I don’t know that solution, but chlorine is really bad for rust. Maybe it has to do with the chemical content of the buildup combined with the bleach. I would try lemon juice and salt, maybe, but that’s just a guess.
I am using mostly Method stuff now, but my all-time favorite all-purpose cleaner is Simple Green. Non-toxic, biodegradable, and sold in concentrated form, so one bottle is actually more like ten.
I love Clorox/Lysol wipes, but I think I love Method’s Eucalyptus/Mint bathroom wipes even more. They *smell* “clean” and are flushable.
I also really dig the Swiffer WetJet, but even if you have one you still have to do “real” mopping once in a while. The great obstacle to mopping around my house has been everyone’s bad backs. Now, no more!
A cleaning caddy and a few microfiber cloths of various types are also great to have around.
Finally, there’s a kind of sponge you can buy in the cleaning aisle at places like Bed Bath & Beyond and Linens N Things. It’s for removing pet hair from furniture, and it’s made of foam rubber. (I don’t think a regular sponge would work as well: this one is clearly very rubbery, and it’s durable.) It works A LOT better than lint rollers and almost as well as vacuuming with a brush attachment. The pet hair sort of rolls up into little matted strands that can be picked up easily. It costs like $5 and is invaluable if you have pets. There are rubber brooms that work similarly for carpets (they’re often sold for tile floors and have a squeegee on one side). So amazing.
I guess I am a minority here because I really don’t like the magic erasers. My reasoning is that they fall apart super easy. if you are really doing a tough cleaning job, they barely last through one cleaning. i find it so wasteful.
I think they are really only helpful when you are moving out and doing that final clean (or moving in if the people before you didn’t use the magic eraser!).
They fall apart if you scrub too hard. While they’re really great on grime, they’re not for everything. If you have to push on the eraser, it’s not EVER going to clean. So wipe gently and you won’t rip them.