The Best Cleaning Supplies

With so many new commercial cleaning products on the market, which ones are the best values for the money? There are just too many choices on the market for the average consumer, each claiming to be the best, fastest, and most powerful cleaners out there.

We’ll go over the best cleaning supplies and why they work.

The best cleaning supplies are still the simple stand bys that your mother and grandmother used. Make no mistake about it. There are some good products out on the market for specialty cleaning, such as rust and hard water spots, but overall, you need only have this small arsenal in your best cleaning supply closet:

Bleach – This is the number one best cleaning supply.

The old stand by of chlorine bleach has hundreds of uses, is a bacteria (and therefore smell) killing agent and has the scent of cleanliness that takes us back to our childhoods. Use this for everything from killing mould and mildew in the bathroom to cleaning the refrigerator. Mix sparingly with water and always make sure you have good ventilation. Be careful though how you handle bleach, because it will damage permanently almost anything: carpets, other type of flooring, fabrics, furniture surfaces etc.

Ammonia – This is not used as much anymore because too many people were mixing it with bleach and dying from the fumes. Grandma used it for cleaning the sinks and the outside patio.

Pine cleaner- For floors and the toilet bowl, this was the smell of clean that most of us came home from school to. In fact, pine cleaner is associated with the olfactory sense of smell so much so that if you are having company, pouring a small capful down the sink will make even a clean kitchen smell fresher.

Borax – Sometimes called cleaning or scouring powder, this wonderful substance can be used to scour away the rust stains on the drain in the tub and the kitchen sink. You can buy it loose in a can or in the wire scouring pads sold by the box.

Window cleaner – The blue stuff that Mama used on the windows is still the best cleaner. Use old newspapers instead of paper towels to save some money and recycle those old newspapers. They also work better than paper towels to prevent streaking. If you’re out of blue commercial cleaner, you can always use white vinegar.

Investing in a good broom and taking care of it is an excellent cleaning supply. The length should come from the floor to the tip of your nose and always sweep standing straight, letting the broom do the work with light strokes. If you have to really push to get the bristles to pick up your dirt, the broom is too light for your needs. Take the time to install a broom holder in your utility room, hanging the broom up after each use will cause the bristles to last longer.

And finally – the mop. I have used sponge mops, squeeze mops, and dry flat floor mops. The very best cleaning supply in the mop arsenal is the string (Kentucky) mop and a good wringer. Unless you have a very small kitchen floor and can use a scrub brush and towels, invest in a good commercial mop and bucket. Janitorial supply stores carry them, they are not cheap; but they will last you forever and mop heads can always be replaced.