People Are Sharing the "Odd" Cleaning Hacks They've Discovered

The cleaning side of TikTok is rampant with hacks for conquering common chores, but it’s sometimes hard to know whether a product recommended by an influencer actually works as well as it claims. If you’ve struggled with perpetually streaky mirrors and stained coffee mugs, Redditors on the Cleaning Tips subreddit are giving their real and unfiltered advice on the “odd” cleaning hacks they’ve discovered that actually work. Chances are, you’ve never heard of many of these.

Plus, a lot of their advice will help you save money (forget buying extra products!) and make your cleaning tasks easier and more efficient. Read below for 10 weird but brilliant tips that can help you get rid of even the toughest cleaning challenges.

1. Use dryer sheets for dusting.

Dryer sheets are great at picking up hair and dust when you dry your clothes, and this also makes them a perfect solution for cleaning around the house (including your baseboards!). According to user Ferociouswhimper, this laundry product is great for wiping down their bathroom of any little pet hairs before doing the rest of the cleaning. “I used to wipe down the toilet with a wet cloth, but the little hairs just stuck to the porcelain and spread around,” they wrote, adding that using a dryer sheet first makes it “so much easier.”

“I use them on the floor around the edges, too,” they added. “They pick up all the fine dust and hair.

2. Use old newspapers to clean glass surfaces.

If streaky windows, mirrors, and other glass surfaces is one of your biggest cleaning pet peeves, your old crossword puzzle might become your new pro-approved secret weapon because it “works like a charm,” according to user Bvzxh.

“You can clean glass surfaces (windows, mirrors) with crumpled newspaper,” user ReallyShortGinger adds. “It gives a great finish without leaving smudges or streaks.”

3. Repurpose laundry pens for grout.

Scrubbing down my shower is one of my least favorite tasks, especially when it comes to trying to keep my grout looking pristine. According to user PoofItsFixed, bleach pens that are “marketed for laundry stains” are amazing at getting rid of “persistently stained” grout and making them look good again — just know that the task can get tedious.

4. Grab white shaving cream as a multipurpose cleaner for beauty disasters.

Your beauty routine can wreak havoc on your home and clothes, whether you’re trying to DIY your holiday manicure or putting on some makeup. According to user GB715, this shower product can also be used to remove “dried nail polish from your carpet.” Just make sure that you’re using a foam solution, not a gel one. 

You can also use shaving cream to make your jewelry sparkle, spot-clean your oven, and give shine back to stainless steel.

5. Squeeze some hand sanitizer as a cleaning hero in a pinch.

Many Redditors credited isopropyl alcohol, which is in many hand sanitizers and rubbing alcohol, for getting rid of hard-to-clean substances. User Pink_nurse said they discovered the “miraculous” way to use Purel to get sap off your pet, your car, or even fabrics, while others suggested it as a way to clean the insides of your car windows without leaving streaks. User Nice_Basil_4223 also revealed that this solution is great for removing ink — it’s a cleaning superhero hiding in your backpack!

6. Spray SPF to get rid of errant Sharpie marks.

While your hand sanitizer might be best for getting rid of pen marks on your walls and other surfaces, you’ll want to look at your sunblock stash for removing permanent marker (because, yes, you can get rid of it). Nice_Basil_4223 noted that “spray sunscreen works great for sharpie.”

7. Scrub with baking soda paste to get rid of coffee cup stains.

Coffee drinkers like myself are well-aquainted with the struggle of trying to scrub away coffee stains on favorite mugs. However, Tess47 revealed that after “years of scrubbing,” they discovered that a simple paste made out of baking soda was the solution. 

“I was so frustrated trying to scrub coffee stains out of coffee cups,” they wrote. “I was so happy that I was mad.”

8. Grab a paint scraper for the refrigerator clean-out.

If you’ve ever cried over spilled milk (literally), you might know that scrubbers don’t work for trying to get rid of the hardened liquid on your refrigerator’s glass shelves. Instead, Redditor Robinaw suggests, “Try a paint scraper.”

9. Use denture cleaning tablets for cleaning hard-to-reach areas.

Who knew that denture cleaning tablets could have so many other uses? User PurpleCollarAndCuffs revealed that these pucks “clean a toilet bowl beautifully.” Other Redditors chimed in and said that they’re amazing for cleaning “narrow vases,” “reusable water bottles,” and “Camelback-type water bladders/tubes.” You can also use them to clean other hard-to-reach things like metal straws or reusable wellness shot containers.

10. Use aluminum foil to scrub your pots.

Even the most watchful cook can’t avoid dealing with burnt or crusted-on food on their stainless steel pots and pans. Instead of soaking your stainless steel pan for hours, you can get rid of any baked-on food with a piece of aluminium foil, as one user, Sledgehammer925, noted that it “cleans up fast and easy.” All you have to do is add water, crumble a piece of foil into a ball, use it to scrub away any burnt residue, then rinse with warm water. Plus, it’s sustainable if you’re reusing old foil!

Further Reading

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Everything You’ve Ever Wanted To Know About Article’s DTC Furniture