THE CLEANING EDIT

Cleaning Products + What I Use Them For

Bar Keepers Friend Soft Cleanser — Stainless-steel sinks and stubborn buildup on compatible surfaces.

Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner — Finished hardwood floors; ready to use.

Clean Shower Daily Shower Cleaner — Spray-and-leave shower maintenance between cleanings.

CLR — Calcium, lime, rust and hard-water buildup. Never use on natural stone or mix with bleach.

Comet with Bleach — Porcelain sinks.

Dawn Powerwash — Dishes, grease and general heavy-duty everyday cleaning.

Finish Dishwasher Deep Cleaner — Periodic deep cleaning of the dishwasher itself.

Hypochlorous Acid Cleaner — Freshening and deodorizing sofas, drapes and compatible fabrics; light cleaning when I don't need a degreaser.

Lemi Shine Disposal Cleaner — Cleaning and freshening the garbage disposal.

Mrs. Meyer’s Multi-Surface Cleaner — Everyday surface cleaning.

O-Cedar EasyWring + RinseClean Mops — Floors, shower walls, tile and hard-to-reach areas; multiple mop heads for switching between jobs.

Orange Glo — Dusting and cleaning finished wood. Spray lightly on the cloth and wipe with the grain.

OxiClean Odor Blasters — Musty or stubborn laundry odors.

OxiClean Washing Machine Cleaner — Periodic washing-machine deep clean.

Pumice Stone + Rubber Gloves — Stubborn rings inside porcelain toilet bowls. Keep both the pumice and porcelain wet.

Rubbing Alcohol + Water — Glass jars, bottles and other alcohol-safe non-living objects. For 70% alcohol: 1 part alcohol + 1 part water.

Scrub Daddy + Scrub Mommy — Everyday scrubbing.

Scrub Daddy Wand — Kitchen sink and one kept in each shower.

Scrubbing Bubbles — Toilets, sinks and porcelain tubs.

Sprayway Glass Cleaner — Mirrors, windows and glass.

Sprayway Stainless Steel Cleaner & Polish — Stainless steel and polishing black porcelain wall tile to maintain its shine.

Weiman Gas cooktop cleaner Gas range and greasy cooktop messes.

Weiman Quartz & Stone Cleaner / Stone-Safe Cleaner — Marble, limestone, travertine, slate and other natural stone. No vinegar, Scrubbing Bubbles or acidic cleaners on natural stone.

White Vinegar + Water — Everyday cleaning, ceramic/porcelain tile and soap residue. 50/50 vinegar + water; add about 1 teaspoon Dawn per 16 oz. when needed. Never use on natural stone.

White Vinegar — Laundry — About ½ cup in the rinse/softener dispenser instead of conventional fabric softener; helps with odors and detergent/mineral residue.

ZEP Foaming Shower, Tub & Tile Cleaner — Soap scum, grime, tubs and tile.

ZEP Mold Stain & Mildew Stain Remover — Mold and mildew stains. Spray, let it sit, then wipe/rinse. Repeat stubborn spots if needed.

Always follow the product label for surface compatibility and safety. Never mix household cleaning chemicals unless the label specifically says it is safe.

Window Cleaning Cloths

I’ve tried a ridiculous number of cleaning products over the years. These are the ones that have earned a permanent place inmy house, plus a few simple mixtures I make myself.

This isn't meant to be an exhaustive cleaning manual. It's the short version: what I use, what I use it for, and the things I think are worth knowing.

My Everyday Workhorses:

White Vinegar - Probably my favorite household cleaner. I keep a spray bottle mixed 50/50 vinegar and water for everyday cleaning and sometimes add about 1 teaspoon of Dawn per 16 oz. bottle when I need more grease-cutting power. I also use about 1/2 cup of white vinegar in the rinse cycle of my laundry instead of traditional fabric softener. I hate fabric

softener and the coating it leaves behind. Vinegar helps with odors and detergent/mineral residue.

The big vinegar rule: NEVER use it on natural stone. Marble, limestone, travertine, slate and other acid-sensitive stone can be etched and dulled by vinegar. When in doubt, I use warm water and a little Dawn.

Rubbing Alcohol + Water - I keep this in another labeled spray bottle for quick cleaning of non-living objects: glass bottles and jars, especially things going back into the refrigerator, fingerprints, light grease and sticky residue. For 70% rubbing alcohol, I mix 1 part alcohol + 1 part water. This is a cleaning solution, not my disinfectant. Avoid alcohol on acrylic/Plexiglas, leather, delicate finishes, finished wood and anything you aren't sure is alcohol-safe.

ZEP Mold Stain & Mildew Stain Remover in the bathroom- Hands down the best mold-stain remover I have ever used, and I've tried them all. Spray the stain and walk away. Come back later and wipe or rinse. Really stubborn stains may take another application.

ZEP Foaming Shower, Tub & Tile Cleaner - I'm slowly migrating from Scrubbing Bubbles to ZEP because ZEP is just good stuff. I use this for bathroom grime, soap scum and buildup.

Scrubbing Bubbles - Still a longtime favorite for toilets, sinks and porcelain tubs.

Pumice Stone + Rubber Gloves - My answer for a stubborn hard-water ring inside a porcelain toilet. Keep both the pumice and the porcelain wet and gently work at the ring. Pumice is abrasive; this is a toilet-bowl tool, not an all-purpose scrubber.

CLR - For serious calcium, lime, rust and hard-water buildup when ordinary bathroom cleaner isn't cutting it. This is a specialty cleaner, not an everyday one. Never use CLR on natural stone and never mix it with bleach.

One of my biggest bathroom-cleaning rules: give the cleaner time to work. Spray it, leave it alone for a bit, then come backand clean.

O-Cedar EasyWring + Rinse Clean Systems - I have both and keep multiple mop heads and buckets. I use them for much more than floors: shower walls, large tiled surfaces and places that are otherwise difficult to reach.

For porcelain and ceramic tile, I use water + vinegar + a little Dawn. For natural stone, I use warm water + a small squirt of Dawn. No vinegar.

Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner - My dedicated cleaner for finished hardwood. It's ready to use; don't dilute it and don't saturate wood floors.

Sprayway Glass Cleaner - My go-to for mirrors, windows and glass. Sprayway products are just superior, and they smell good. A little goes a long way; overspraying makes streak-free glass harder, not easier.

Sprayway Stainless Steel Cleaner & Polish - My stainless cleaner/polish. I keep the cloths used with it completely separate from my glass cloths because stainless polish leaves an oily residue.

Dawn Powerwash - Dishes, obviously, but also an excellent grease cutter when something needs more than an everyday cleaner.

Weiman Gas Range Cleaner - My dedicated cleaner for the gas range and greasy cooktop messes.

Weiman Quartz & Stone Cleaner - For stone surfaces where I don't want to gamble with an acidic household cleaner.

Bar Keepers Friend Soft Cleanser - One of my heavier-duty options for appropriate sinks, cookware, stainless and stubborn mineral/rust-type stains. It's not an all-purpose cleaner, so I pay attention to the surface before using it.

The Pink Stuff Cleaning Paste - A targeted scrubber for stubborn grime on surfaces that can tolerate a mild abrasive. Test first.

Comet with Bleach - Old-school heavy-duty cleaner for appropriate bathroom and kitchen surfaces when I actually need bleach and scrubbing power.

Never mix bleach products with vinegar, ammonia, alcohol or other cleaners.

Hypochlorous Acid Cleaner - Particularly handy for freshening upholstery, sofas, drapes and other compatible fabrics and for light cleaning/deodorizing where I don't need a heavy degreaser.

Mrs. Meyer’s Multi-Surface Cleaner - Straightforward everyday surface cleaning when I want something easy and pleasant-smelling.

Laundry

OxiClean Odor Blasters - For laundry that needs extra help with sweat, mustiness and stubborn odors.

OxiClean Washing Machine Cleaner - I periodically clean the washing machine itself. A clean washer matters if you expect clean laundry. And again, white vinegar in the rinse cycle instead of conventional fabric softener is one of my longtime laundry habits.

My Microfiber System

I color-code microfiber by job: Blue - glass + mirrors; Yellow - stainless steel; Green - dusting. Other colors get their own assigned jobs. Microfiber grabs and holds oils and cleaning products. Use a cloth with stainless-steel polish or dusting oil and then later use it on a mirror, and you're essentially smearing that residue onto your glass. Once a cloth has a job, it keeps that job. Dirty cloths go into matching colored mesh bags until laundry day. I never use fabric softener or dryer sheets on microfiber.

If You Remember Nothing Else know what you're cleaning before choosing the cleaner. Natural stone, wood, acrylic, glass and stainless steel are not interchangeable surfaces.

More product isn't necessarily better. Use the right product, give it time to work, and keep your cleaning cloths separated by job. Always check the manufacturer's directions before using a product on an unfamiliar material or finish, and never mix household