The Thriftiest Home Improvement – Cleaning!

On of my favorite and most cost efficient home improvements is simply cleaning. Is it sad that I consider it a home improvement? Yes, but it doesn’t make it any less true! It’s so hard to take the time to clean when there are more fun things to do, but cleaning is the easiest and cheapest thing you can do to make your space look more inviting and more wonderful.

We have a few house guests coming our way soon, so I spent my morning with my favorite power tool and my Swiffer – room by room making my area more spacious and inviting by hanging clothes, putting shoes away, catching dust bunnies, filing bills, folding towels all of those good things and all incredibly easy to do – no need for me to hire out here. However my Kohler cast-iron tub is my one problem fixture. It’s so shiny and beautiful, but the no-slip texture is impossible to clean. I hate that this is what my guests see when they shower.

No scrubbing or crazy chemicals could break through the dirt that gets caught in it’s texture so I turned to Google and the power of chat rooms for a solution. On my first search I found a thread full of solutions. Apparently Kohler sells a product ($24) to clean that area, someone suggested a deadly paste of bleach and powdered soap, I saw a recommendation for “Bar Keeper’s Friend” and then I read a comment about “Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser,” which I’m a huge, huge fan of. So before I could even try Bar Keeper’s, I pulled out a Magic Eraser and in 10 seconds it took care of it. My tub looks showroom ready again and it literally took me no time at all!

I’m just so surprised that elbow grease wouldn’t do it. Not sure what is in those things but they are mighty powerful…and magical.My $1.50 Magic Eraser provided me with an incredibly thrifty renovation.