1. GUNK ON KITCHEN CABINETS
If your cupboards are painted or laminated, use a liquid all-purpose cleaner like Mr. Clean Multi-Surface Spray. Rinse with a soft cloth, and dry. For finished wood, de-film with a product that's specially made for that surface. Try Weiman Furniture Cleaner ($5.49), which beat five competitors in GH Research Institute tests.

Tip: Every few days, quick-wipe the cabinets nearest your stove with a damp cloth -- then you can postpone the big job even longer.

2. FILTHY CEILING FANS
Grit your teeth, climb up the ladder, and try this one-two-three trick: Sweep an electrostatic duster along the blades to remove loose particles (Swiffer has a long-handled duster that makes the job easier; $8). Then work premoistened cleaning wipes (such as Pledge Multi Surface) over all sides. To get at stuck-on residue, use a scrub pad made for cleaning nonstick cookware.

Tip: Before you begin, spread an old sheet on the floor below the fan, so you don't end up with another mess.

3. HARD-TO-REACH OUTDOOR WINDOWS
Skip the shaky ladder. Instead, grab the Carrand SmartNozzle Deluxe Window Squeegee: a pivoting tool that's 71/2 feet long when assembled ($60 for three parts). Attach the Carrand to your garden hose and fill its canister with a glass cleaner, such as Windex -- now you're ready to spray, scrub, rinse, and squeegee.

Tip: Try not to work when the windows are exposed to direct sunlight: Fluids will dry before you can wipe them off, which is what causes streaking.

4. SCRATCHED-UP WOOD FURNITURE
Fine blemishes can usually be buffed out with a paste wax that's sold at hardware stores (try SC Johnson Paste Wax). But if the marks go deeper, you'll need to apply a color treatment. Consider the Guardsman Furniture Touch-Up Pen Kit ($4.50 for three pens ? light, dark, and medium), which quickly camouflaged cuts in our tests. (GHRI also tried the old-fashioned rub-it-with-a-walnut trick: It may have worked for Grandma, but it didn't work for us.)

Tip: Dust first -- otherwise, left-behind granules can mar the surface.



Reprinted with Permission of Hearst Communications, Inc. Originally Published: http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/syndication/tough-cleaning-tasks-may07-synd