Life Changing Cleaning - Why Didn't I Know?

[Wavingnotdowning]

I can't believe I didn't know about rubber brooms before now! No word of a lie, it has changed my life - picks up dog fur from the stairs better than any hoover. My carpet is like new. This, after spending £s on Dyson. Anyone else got any brilliant cleaning tips?

Glass, windows and mirrors - fabric softener in water and smells amazing too

I was sceptical but I can verify this works! Been trying to get smears off our mirrored wardrobe doors - tried this trick on them this morning after reading this thread and they are now totally smear free and the bedroom smells gorgeous.

@Cherrysoup

Mil gave us one years ago, we’d just bought the same breed of dog as her! Also, wet rubber gloves on stairs and trainers on rugs.

For limescale, get Kilrock, it is amazing!

Oh I wonder how our pet grooming glove would work

If you watch obsessive compulsive cleaners or hoarders, you'll find you no longer need to clean as your home will compare amazingly better. Also I paint the grout and sealant twice a year with white emulsion and wipe off the excess while damp. Life is too short to clean grout.

LSquiggles

Do you mean the rubber bath mat with suction pads?

I used to put it in the washing machine when I remembered (before it gets mouldy) with the other type of bath mat (the towel ones you stand on afterwards)

Probably shortens the life of them, but if they get mouldy then you probably end up throwing them away anyway?

@grassisjeweled

Any advice for skirting boards?

A small child and the offer of a reward for dusting.

Anyone know how to get tea stains off a white laminate kitchen door?? Even Pink Stuff didn't work on that sadly.

I'd try bar keepers friend.

Anyone know how to get tea stains off a white laminate kitchen door??

Bleach

hasmanylinksopennowthankstothisthread

Anyone know how to clean aluminium gas burners? I have used Lakeland oven cleaner which gets some of the burnt on stuff off but I don't think it's safe to use on aluminium.

I use the tub Pink Stuff to clean the bottom of my Dutch ovens and with a bit of scrubbing it can take most of it off. My only issue with Pink stuff that no matter how many times I rinse it off there is always a bit of grit left. I love cleaning my stainless steel sink and drainer with it but hate the surprise grit left behind.

If you like rubber brooms, wait till you try a rubber (dustpan &) brush. The conventional kind of brush is so pointless in comparison.

I'd also say bleach the stain. I have a white laminate bathroom floor I bleach it once a week.

@AvocadosBeforeMortgages

Astonish Mould & Mildew Blaster - makes short work of black grout in the shower

The Astonish range is much better than some of the more expensive ones too, and you can find it in Poundland.

Also, Elbow Grease (comes in a yellow spray bottle) is great for removing anything involving fat or grease

Off to buy some of this as I usually use an old toothbrush with bleach on.

How exactly do you use this?

If you are getting left over gritty bits from pink stuff you might be using too much I spent an afternoon cleaning it off my hob I over did it. Next time I used less and had no grit

Pink stuff is awful. There I said it.

Barkeepers friend is so much better. Oh have two tubs of pink stuff here I keep meaning to throw because it really is terrible I find. The barkeepers powder and paste wipe the floor with it.

I used to have a rubber broom and broke it. I use a shower screen cleaner on the rug and stairs, it does the same job but requires hands and knees. I’m not minging I add. I vacuum every other day and this was last done a month ago. Combination of long haired people and the dog I think.

@Cherrysoup

Mil gave us one years ago, we’d just bought the same breed of dog as her! Also, wet rubber gloves on stairs and trainers on rugs.

For limescale, get Kilrock, it is amazing!

Agrees with Kilrock

I second the citric acid approach to de scaling kettles.
Has anyone used citric acid to clean out a Nespresso machine? I really hate spending ££ on their cleaning fluid.

@endofthelinefinally

I used viakal on my chrome bathroom fittings and it destroyed them. It wasn't even my viakal, it was MIL's. Not something I would have bought myself.

I use Viakal spray on my chrome taps every week and haven’t had any problems at all *@userxx. Are the fittings solid chrome endof*, maybe if they’ve just got a coating this might be a problem?

E cloths aren't really environmentally friendly. They shed fibres, known as microplastics, into the water, thus into rivers and oceans etc when they're washed. They're also totally unrecyclable and uncompostable, meaning they'll stay in landfill for hundreds of years. This all also applies to synthetic clothes. There are ways of mitigating the release of microplastics from cloths, though. This Good Housekeeping article is useful on the subject www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/consumer-advice/a32941472/microplastic-microfibers-pollution/

@AvocadosBeforeMortgages

Astonish Mould & Mildew Blaster - makes short work of black grout in the shower

The Astonish range is much better than some of the more expensive ones too, and you can find it in Poundland.

Also, Elbow Grease (comes in a yellow spray bottle) is great for removing anything involving fat or grease

Astonish is also cruelty-free, unlike a lot of the cleaners mentioned on here.

[quote VinylDetective]@DobbyTheHouseElk, yes, the ironing board is plugged in. The bloke bought one and thinks it’s the dogs’ bollocks. I hate it because it’s huge and heavy.[/quote]
Mine isn’t huge or heavy. It’s just a regular ironing board with an electric cord and a one plug socket near the iron plate. Mine is over 10 years old so a bit worn.

Means you don’t over stretch the iron cord.

Just came on this thread to add the obligatory post about the Vileda instant spray mop. The best tip I ever got on MN.

www.argos.co.uk/product/8551159

I don't do any dusting or rather I do it all with the Hoover nozzle
(that might be a rubbish tip but I want to be on this thread to get the good tips🤩)

I'm so excited about the painting over grout and sealant tip, can't believe I didn't think of that before!

My tip for cleaning paintwork is 2 bored children with a squirty bottle full of water and a tiny bit of washing up liquid, and a cloth.

I bought an ilife robot vacuum and that has been life changing. It's so good I don't need to vacuum or sweep any more. I just vacuum my stairs once a week with a little hand held.

Rub a dishwasher tablet into stains on the inside of frying pans. Put a tiny bit of water in the pan. Works brilliantly.

SOboredofcleaning
Any natural ways to keep my kettle limescale free please? 
Lemons, cut a couple in half and chuck in, fill with water, boil and leave overnight. Quick rinse in the morning and nice clean limescale free kettle

This☝️....amazing results!

@ByeByeMissAmericanPie

I second the citric acid approach to de scaling kettles. Has anyone used citric acid to clean out a Nespresso machine? I really hate spending ££ on their cleaning fluid.

Yep but its the husbands job so I'm not sure of the ins and outs of it - we use it on all electricals