Tackle It Tuesday

There's a saying in the blog world that goes something like this, "The first sign of a broken computer is a clean house." However, that is not the case if you are subscribed to 5MinutesForMom. Why? Because Tuesday is the day you "tackle" large cleaning projects, and there is definite motivation...giveaways! Plus, getting on the computer reminded me that I had promised to do this tackle, despite the fact that I'd already cleaned and vacuumed both children's bedrooms. I regret that I don't have photos, they look really good, but I can't take them now, as they are asleep.

This week's tackle was wonderful. First, those who signed up got a free bottle of CLR (no postage, either, really, FREE); then, we agree to whoop up on some nasty, dirty spots in our house, and post our results. How hard is that? And even if you don't win the giveaway after posting the results, your house is still cleaner than it was. Can't beat that. So, here is my review.

The Kitchen BEFORE (aaack!)

Now, I know that is scary, but please believe me when I tell you the mess is the result of another tackle: canning & mass cooking. Really, in the long run, it'll be a good thing that I made that mess!

Given that I'd taught a class a few years ago named Cleanliness is next to Godliness, but is it also next to Impossible? I thought I'd take some of my own advice, and multi-task. So, I put all the stove parts in the bath tub, which also needed a little cleaning (it wasn't bad, though, this is the before shot), and sprayed away! Then I sprayed the stove, and then I let those soak while I did the dishes. The bottle says to let the CLR soak for 2-3 minutes, and not prolonged periods of time, but doing the dishes takes about 5 minutes, maybe 10. Time yourself sometime, you'd be surprised how much longer you put it off than it takes to do.

A few minutes later, I rinsed all things off (stove parts, stove, counters), and here is my finished product!

Stove AFTER

Not super impressed with the results, but it is better than it was. I went over it twice. Might need something a little stronger. However, the rest of the kitchen looked great!

Kitchen AFTER

My overall opinion of the CLR? It removes hard water very well. My pictures of the white, solidified minerals on my sink didn't turn out so great, but the sink looks much better, as does the dish drainer. It doesn't work as great on cooked on dirt / grime, but it's satisfactory for today. I also did not like the smell. Given, I don't like the smell of very many cleaners...I prefer soap and water, it just smells...clean. Would I buy CLR? Yes, for cleaning the hard water with less elbow grease (I usually scrub it off--much less scrubbing with CLR).

One more thing. I must add that after a good scrubbing session, my hands feel thrashed. So, I rub them down with Dairy Maid Skin Cream in either Peppy Mint or l'Orange Crush. Yum!