November 14, 2010
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I Wondered About……..
TALES FROM THE BRAT FARMThere have been times when I have watched TV and seen something advertised that would seem to make a problem easier if it really worked. Know what I mean? For instance:
The Woolite rug cleaning stick (or whatever it’s called). They show a woman using it on her rug. She uses one side to apply the rug cleaner, flips it over and the other side scrubs the rug. Let it dry; vacuum it up and problem solved! IF it works the way it’s supposed to work.
Well, I get tired of pulling out my big steam rug cleaner to clean the rug in my computer room, especially if it’s just for a few spots. So….I decided to try it. Here’s what I found. First, it’s not very expensive. I paid around $10. for the kit which is the applicator and a small container of the cleaner. Fair enough because I just wanted it for a couple small spots. It’s easy to put together and add the can of cleaner to the head of it. BUT….you really have to press down a lot more than the TV ad showed to get the shampoo out. Other than that, it was really great. The cleaner worked just fine on the few spots I had (including a chocolate milk one). Cleaned it up nice and it smelled good, too. Well, it smelled clean.
There were a few other things I wondered about that I’ve gotten to try. One was the washing machine cleaner, which I really, really like. It’s the Clorox one and it not only got rid of the smell in the washer but it looks like it will get rid of the mildew on the gaskets after a couple more applications. To me, that’s the absolute best part. I’ve tried a lot of things on it, including CLR and nothing seemed to work. But the mildewed areas are much lighter today so I know it had a real effect on it.
I also used the dishwasher cleaner since we now have softened water and we never did that before the Beast installed it. I figured it would be nice to get rid of the mineral deposits from pre-softener days. Just once and the inside gleams. It’s a stainless steel Bosch dishwasher and, trust me, the inside was looking really crappy.
I told you how the softened water helped remove some of the mineral deposits on the bottom of some of my glasses so I am a big fan of that, for sure. I had wondered if it would really make a difference and it’s nice to know that it did. *Grin* It also cleaned up those same kind of mineral deposits from the bottom of my stainless pots and pans. Oh, not the first time but it didn’t take long.
I wondered about how the wood floors would affect a few things around here. First of all, you notice the dust a whole lot more than you would with a rug. In fact, it made me feel a bit queasy to think that all that dust was in the rugs that were down and most vacuum cleaners barely touch the stuff that really gets down into the weave of the rug. I even have my doubts about our Dyson being all that great about sucking it up.
The floors DO feel colder during the winter. That only stands to reason since a rug acts a bit like insulation with it’s pad underneath. That’s gone now regardless of how these floors are constructed. There’s only a thin moisture barrier underneath. But, I wear either socks or slippers all winter rather than walking in my bare feet so that works out okay. I have to admit, the wood looks fantastic in comparison.
That’s all I’ll bore you with for now. I’ll get to others another time.
I spent today mopping the floors and they look great. I also got the down comforter down and changed my linens. I’ve got to wash the bedspread yet. I couldn’t do it while I was cleaning the washing machine and I got a bit busy after that and forgot to do it. No matter. The comforter will be warm enough tonight.
We are supposedly getting rain tomorrow and Monday from that front going through Texas yesterday and today (Saturday when I am writing this). We could use the rain as long as it doesn’t soak the ground too much. I don’t want a repeat of the fungus problem again for our next crop of fruit on the trees. It shouldn’t but who the hell knows how it started….or even if it’s totally gone? I’m hoping the freezes we should get will kill off anything left so that we get some great fruit next spring and summer.
Love you all. Let’s hope you have a great Sunday and good weather. I suspect the Beast may make his way home tomorrow in an effort to surprise me. Keep your fingers crossed that he waits until Monday….for me. TYVM. Be good, stay safe, dry and be sure to tell those you love that you do.
