Spring Cleaning Products Put to the Test

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Every season, a glut of new cleaning products pop up in supermarkets and drugstores, with promises to be "50 more absorbent" or to have "stronger scrubbing action." This season, the majority of them also claim to be green. Do they really work? We tried out close to 75 new products to find out what works, what doesn't and what will make your spring cleaning faster, easier, and better than ever, so you can get outside and enjoy the sunshine.

Nathan Ellis Perkel

Bathroom

It makes sense that the room that gets the most use would require the most cleaning. It also makes sense that it's hardest to get motivated to even attempt scrubbing the bathroom. We tried a batch of new bathroom cleaning products to see if they could make cleaning fun, or, at least, a little less gross.

Nathan Ellis Perkel

Toilet Cleaners

Method's Lil' Bowl Blu toilet bowl cleaner "has a great spout that allowed for ease getting under the rim," even though the bottle itself was a bit heavy, one tester said. The scent was overpowering at first, but later in the day left the bathroom smelling quite nice.

The Clorox Green Works Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner left our tester's bowl "squeaky clean." "I will definitely make the switch to Green Works because it actually works!" she raved.

The Nature's Source Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner from Scrubbing Bubbles didn't clean any better or worse than our tester's regular products, but smelled pleasant. "The added bonus is that it's 'green,' but there are an awful lot of funky-sounding chemicals listed on the back," she noted.

Nathan Ellis Perkel

The tester of this product could barely contain her glee at the prospect of not having to scrub the toilet bowl every two days. The applicator of the Scrubbing Bubbles Toilet Cleaning Gel, seen here, sticks a glob of cleaning agent that looks a lot like a gumdrop to the inside of the bowl. With each flush, the water activates the cleaner and the bowl gets a rinse. Each box has enough gel for six applications, and each one is supposed to last up to a week. Our tester was happy to report that she didn't scrub the toilet for days (though she had to get used to the ever-present cleaner smell).

Nathan Ellis Perkel

Tub and Tile Cleaners

Ecover's Ecological Bathroom Cleaner passed muster with a doubtful tester. It cleaned as well as any harsher cleaner she tried and best of all, "I didn't have to open up my window to air out a chemical smell."

"I was surprised to discover that no matter how much I sprayed, I didn't get hit with an overwhelming bleach smell," reported a satisfied tester of the Clorox Green Works Natural Bathroom Cleaner. Once she got past the expectation of a big layer of foam, she loved that the Green Works product didn't cause her bright pink sponge to bleed color.

The Nature's Source Natural Bathroom Cleaner didn't perform as well. "The product actually made me sick to my stomach," according to one tester. "It smells like a wet dog with a splash of rancid lemon." Another tester had a quite different reaction. She said she lazily sprayed the product on her bathroom surfaces and was pleasantly surprised to see the gunk come off without scrubbing.

The Seventh Generation Emerald Cypress & Fir Natural Tub and Tile Cleaner also got a bad review. "This smelled nice but didn't seem to have any more effect on my pesky shower mold than if I had just sprayed water on it," one disappointed tester said.

The Le Scrub abrasive cleaner from Method has an interesting bottle, with a purpose--that's a handy sponge-holder on top. The cleaner itself didn't get grout as clean as a bleach-based product, according to our tester.

Nathan Ellis Perkel

Mr. Clean's Magic Eraser, the pre-soaped sponge that claims to clean everything from tubs to baseboards, is one of those products that's constantly being reformulated. We tested two new versions--Magic Eraser with Febreze and Magic Eraser Extra Power--with mixed results.

A Magic Eraser-devotee tried the new Febreze version and was disappointed. "Although it smelled delightful as a spring day, it took two erasers to clean the bathtub alone," the tester said. "I'd rather have it work than smell good."

The Magic Eraser Extra Power did its job well, wiping scuffs off white walls and baseboards with ease. A caveat: the Magic Eraser should not be used on colorfully painted walls because it will strip the paint. If only it were warm enough outside to test the product's claims about cleaning grill grates!

Nathan Ellis Perkel

"Presumably there are folks out there who don't groove on the fresh pine scent of traditional Pine-Sol, and perhaps they'd enjoy this scented alternative," one tester said of the Pine-Sol Lavender Clean version. "But it packed a floral punch that was just too much for me." How did it clean? "It got the job done," she said. She can always try one of Pine-Sol's five other scents, including the newest, Wild Flower Blast.

Pine-Sol

Kitchen

Lasagna. Chocolate cake. Chili. To some, it sounds delicious, while others can only think of the inevitable clean-up. But when clean-up's a breeze, the food tastes so much better.

Nathan Ellis Perkel

With all the sponges, scouring pads and scrubbers on the market, it can be hard to figure out which one to buy, if any. Sometimes a new sponge makes all the difference. Sometimes a microfiber cloth works just as well. We put in the elbow grease to find out what's worth it.

Nathan Ellis Perkel

Method's line of stainless steel and granite cleaners, including sprays, wipes, and microfiber cloths, wowed in our test kitchen. The cloths worked better than the rags our tester had been using and can easily be tossed in the washing machine.

Though the Method Daily Granite spray and cloth worked well, our tester said she'd prefer to use the wipes on a daily basis. "After I cook and disinfect my countertops every night, the last thing I want to do is put even more effort into protecting the granite--one quick wipe solves that problem."

The Method Steel for Real stainless steel wipes could only be described in one word by our tester: "Amazing."

Nathan Ellis Perkel