November 11, 2011

The story of the "magic eraser"

It's no secret that my 2 favorite cleaning products are bleach, and magic erasers.
Years ago I started using the name brand "Magic Eraser" and paid about $6-7 for a box of four.

Later, I discovered the cheap version at the dollar tree, 2 for $1. I was flyin high.

HERE is a post I did with a quick before/after of my kitchen sink using this and another product
All along, I'm thinking, gosh, what IS this material? This magic material? After some simple google work, I found my answer.

They are made of melamine foam. Same stuff that has been used as insulation in pipes, ductwork, and sound proofing material. Sounds appealing huh.

So no more paying a whole dollar for 2. No no, ladies and gents, I give you $8.90 for 30 melamine foam pads. THIRTY. I go through one to two a week. ( I should probably start cutting them in half to make them go further ) It's via ebay and it's a reputable seller, in the USA. Click HERE to go there.
I may be giving you new information or I may be the last to know this !

If you havent used these yet, here's a convincing list:


1. Outdoor Furniture and Toys
Take grungy white resin or white painted furniture by lightly scrubbing with an eraser cleaning block. The eraser gets into crevices and cracks while leaving paint finishes intact. The same principle applies to outdoor plastic toys.

2. Pool Liners
Pool owners, this will make your life easier: A gentle scrubbing on your liner will get rid of the water mark better than any other product.

3. Vinyl
Take an eraser to scuffs on just about anything made from vinyl: siding, boat seats, shoes, etc.

4. Car Interiors
Clean the car seats with an eraser block: Go lightly on leather, but it's okay on fabric and vinyl, lightly scrub the car steering wheel. Eraser blocks get rid of grease streaks left inside after the car's been to the shop, too.

5. Hubcaps
Clean your car's hubcaps with an eraser for a water-free car wash.

6. Refrigerator
Get rid of last year's drippings that are pooled in the back of the fridge. It'll take a whole eraser block, but it gets the job done. The seals that have gotten a bit black and moldy will also respond well to an eraser.

7. Dishwasher Interior
What are those colors inside your dishwasher from time to time? Lime, mold, ewww. Just take an eraser to them and the stains will banish.

8. Bathtub and Sinks
Getting rid of dirt and water marks is easier (and not so gross) with an eraser block. Bathtubs can take a tough scrub, but go lightly on sinks -- even a light scrub gets rid of that caked on dirt that you often can't see until you try to get it off.

9. Rust Removal
Scrub anywhere (around pipes in kitchen and bath) that you see rust.

10. Computer
A magic eraser gets rid of oil and dirt that has built up on your keyboard and mouse; you can use it on laptops, too.

11. Phones
Use one on your phone's mouthpiece, too -- it gets rid of the same grime that builds up on your computer.

12. Bugs
Wherever there are smooshed bugs (porch pillars, car windshields, interior walls, exterior doors, exterior light fixtures) wipe them away with an eraser block.

13. Glass Stove Tops
No need to have special stove top cleaner on hand, get rid of burned-on food by lightly scrubbing until the gunk is gone.

14. Dishes and Glassware
Rub hard-to-clean build-up off of thrift store dishes and glassware, like Pyrex bowls, following advice from the blog Pyrex Love.

15. Gutters
Get rid of green slime that builds up on gutters with an eraser. It's another ewww-worthy task, but it'll be almost effortless with an eraser.

16. Mirrors (and Windows)
Many fans of eraser blocks swear it gives them a streak-free and clean mirror, if the pad is slightly damp when you give it a light scrub.

17. Floors
Erase scuff marks, old paint drips-great for most floors (but always go lightly, especially on finished wood).

18. Grout
Which leads us to grout. The eraser does well with most grout (except really old and darkened-beyond-help grout that will remain gray even with best scrubbing efforts).

19. Granite countertops
Everyone is afraid to scrub granite, but an eraser pad, used at first gently and then with a little more oomph as the stains disappear, will indeed get stubborn stains out of granite.

20. Leather
You can use and eraser lightly on leather upholstery, purses or shoes to lift up marks -- just be sure to use a gentle touch.

(Disclaimer-never use eraser cleaning blocks to clean skin, animal fur, glossy, brushed, satin or dark painted surfaces-including appliances, and lastly, never use on delicate fabrics.)

7 comments:

  1. Cleans the edges on the white soles of athletic shoes when nothing else will.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I totally discovered them this week, too! Pinterest saves the day, right?

    Anyhoo...I ordered 120 of them and will hoard them like someone might take them away ... because I'm that person.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nice! Just ordered...love me cleaning goodies.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I can't live without these! The whiten up my plastic white eiffel chairs like nothing else and take stains off my counters.
    The only place I can't use them is on my waxed floor, learned the hard way by cleaning random spots and it took the wax off too.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for the info. I just ordered 120 so I'm good for a while! :-)

    ReplyDelete


  6. Melamine foam is a kind of soft, thermosetting and environmental protection material made from melamine resin by foaming. They work great for getting dirt off walls without taking the paint off.
    Melamine Foam Insulation



    ReplyDelete
  7. Love them to clean white floors. Always use them on my stove, fridge and stainless sink.They are my favorite for all cleaning. Actually I used them on my round based kitchen pub style table.Top ,bottom base and chairs,too…endless cleaning possibilities.Melamine Magic Eraser

    ReplyDelete

Ikea Ribba Frame Hack // Custom Mats

This one was one of those projects where I'm asking myself, why didnt I do this sooner?? Was I intimidated? Did I assume it'd be co...