Spring Cleaning With CLR Products

Samples provided.

This month, I have been tackling some major Spring cleaning projects. I’m preparing for a big family garage sale in July, so I’ve been sorting through items in storage and re-organizing things from top to bottom and deep cleaning as I go. In addition to this, I also hosted a big party and out-of-town family in mid-May, so it could not have been better timing to receive a big box of cleaning goodies from Jelmar! Jelmar are the manufacturers of Tarn-X and CLR products, so they know a thing or two about cleaning. I’ve been putting their products to the test all over my home this month:

Project 1: Cleaning my Vanity With Stain Magnet

Jai built a beautiful custom vanity for me a few years ago which hangs in the bathroom. Since I’m doing my own wedding makeup, I did a makeup trial during a gathering with my bridesmaids earlier in the month, so it was the perfect time to re-organize the vanity and toss any old cosmetics. I removed all the products from the vanity so I could give it a deep clean, and one area that has been bugging me are the makeup stains on the folding shelf. Since I place my makeup items on this surface while I’m getting ready, there are inevitably spills and smears. While I have scrubbed and wiped at these for some time, they wouldn’t budge. Cosmetics can really bond to surfaces – have you ever gotten lipstick on a cup and forgotten to wipe around the rim before it went in the dishwasher? The color will literally bake on to the cup. So I thought this would be a good test for CLR Stain Magnet, which touts itself as having the ability to remove everything from nail polish and lipstick to red wine – in other words, the perfect cleaner for girls’ night. 😉

Vanity shelf before, with black eyeliner and red lipstick stains

Vanity shelf after using CLR Stain Magnet – all makeup stains are completely gone

Closeup of the front of the vanity with red lipstick and eyeliner stains

Closeup of the front of the vanity after cleaning with CLR Stain Magnet

Wow! What a difference – if you love makeup, you definitely need a bottle of this cleaner in your cupboard.

Project 2: Shining The Sink With CLR Stainless Steel Cleaner and CLR Calcium, Lime & Rust Remover

Have you ever heard FlyLady talking about scrubbing your sink as the first cleaning task of the day? I’ve always felt similarly – a clean sink and counters are always my first goal when cleaning the kitchen. One thing that has always bothered me about our kitchen sink is the fact that the caulk behind the sink always gets stained and nasty looking. This house was built in 1929, so not everything has been designed as efficiently as in modern homes, and the sink has always been a trouble area in the 24 years I’ve lived in this home. Jai and I replaced the caulk when we installed a new faucet 4 years ago, which helped temporarily, but the caulk soon got stained and icky looking. I scrub down this area when I clean the sink, but it doesn’t change the staining and always looks nasty to me. Jai and I have tried different cleaning products, but nothing has really helped. Here’s what the sink looked like before:

See what I mean? It’s really frustrating to clean thoroughly and still have something look run down and dirty. So this time, I poured CLR Calcium, Lime & Rust Remover over the caulk and let it sit for a couple of minutes while I sprayed the rest of the sink down with CLR Stainless Steel Cleaner. Much to my happiness, the old stains on the caulk began to lift, so I kept re-applying the Calcium, Lime & Rust Remover until it looked like this:

Now that’s a result! I am so happy that I’ve finally found something that works on this problem area! Jai noticed the difference right away. Now that I know about CLR Calcium, Lime & Rust Remover, I can use this every time I clean to prevent future staining. I also enjoyed having a specific cleaner just for the sink with the CLR Stainless Steel Cleaner, since scrubbing out the sink is such a “Thing” for me. The sink was already pretty shiny, so there wasn’t too much change there, but boy, did the Stainless Steel Cleaner make a difference on another kitchen appliance:

Project 3: Making an Old Oven Look Like New

My oven is a vintage find from The ReBuilding Center, and while retro appliances have their charms, they can look a little rough around the edges. Once again, my oven posed the challenge of looking a bit dingy even after a thorough scrubbing. So for this test, I decided to use the CLR Stainless Steel Cleaner to try and shine up the details on the oven. My first attempt was right before my party, where I quickly sprayed down a stainless steel panel on the stove. I could immediately see the cleaner cutting through baked on gunk:

Since I was pressed for time, I left it there and made a mental note to do another round of the Stainless Steel Cleaner later on. That opportunity arose yesterday, when I took a second shot at shining up that panel as well as digging into the other stainless steel details on the oven. I also used the CLR Bath & Kitchen Cleaner to clean the stovetop and door. To make this a bigger challenge, I attempted this right after a cooking explosion that involved an entire raw egg missing the mark and falling onto the stovetop instead of the frying pan, where it immediately slid down the oven and onto the floor:

Oh, boy!

Oven door where the egg slid down

Bottom of stove, where the egg landed

The egg even got inside the oven door…ugh

I’ve tried to scrub this greasy residue off, but it doesn’t budge.

Here’s how the oven looked after I was done:

Ahhh, much better!

This result really impressed me – the CLR Stainless Steel Cleaner was able to remove the greasy residue that I have been unable to lift before

Look at that shine!

Project 4: Restoring a Door

Oregon is a damp place, so it went without saying that I’d have many uses for CLR Mold & Mildew Stain Remover! One trouble spot we have is the back door – it’s always been prone to spots of mold. Getting rid of those stains is an ongoing battle, so one of the items on my cleaning checklist before my party was spraying down the door with my new Mold & Mildew Stain Remover to see how it would look.

Mildew stains on the door

Spraying the door with CLR Mold & Mildew Stain Remover

Door afterwards

I have to say, I’m impressed: This suite of products are not only great for daily cleaning chores, but presented solutions to multiple trouble spots around the house that have literally been ongoing problems for over 20 years. Anyone who owns a older home knows that it can be hard to get some things looking “Like new”, so I’m really thrilled that I don’t have to “Just live with” some of the dingy things that have been bugging me forever. Jelmar began making products in 1949, which makes me wonder if I’ve been living under a rock to have not known that these solutions were out there!

Another cool aside? Not only are these products great, but Jelmar is certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise, which means that it is at least 51% owned, operated and controlled by a woman or women. Jelmar was also presented with the The Safer Choice U.S. EPA Partner of the Year Award in 2015, 2016 and 2017, and their products are made in the USA.

CLR Products are available all across the USA – click here to find a store near you.

Do you have any “Trouble spots” or stains in your home that are difficult to clean?