So I’m taking a bit of a break from blogging about our current basement project progress, in order to participate in the giant CLR Tackle over at 5 Minutes For Mom today.

Don’t worry though – if you’re still interested in the progress we’re making in the basement, you can see some updates over at my other site this week, as I review several other household cleaners that we’ve used during that project. But for right now, let’s talk bathtub. 

Our bathroom has been a source of frustration for me ever since we moved into this house almost 5 years ago. At the time, we were fresh off of a bathroom remodel in our old house, and leaving that sparkling, new bathroom for this one was rather depressing. But yet, at the time, the issues in our bathroom here were mostly cosmetic. You know – the kind where the room certainly functions, so you just can’t justify the cost to change things around, no matter how much you might want to.

Here’s a recent picture that gives an idea of what it looks like:

Yes, the fixtures are all powder blue. And the floor is a lineoleum with blue and brown flowery things. To be honest, I’ve never been sure if it’s yellowed over time or if it’s supposed to be that way. I do know that no matter how much I clean it, the ‘yellow’ tint never goes away, and so to me, it just looks dirty – all the time.

And let’s see, there’s the vanity top with a textured finish that is horrible to keep clean – and the (formerly) white caulk that goes around the edges of the sink, along the bottom of the tub, and around the base of the toilet. Whomever did that job, never smoothed it out, so dirt gets caught horribly in all of the little ridges and such.

Oh yes, and then there’s the bathtub. It’s small, it’s blue, and it holds onto dirt, soap scum and grime like crazy. Over the years I’ve been unable to find any one product that will clean the whole thing. I’ve found some that help with the soap scum, some that will provide a ‘surface’ cleaning (although many products leave a white residue behind that’s almost as bad or worse than the soap scum I’m trying to remove…) – but nothing has really made a dent in the grime. And so the tub’s just gotten worse and worse, until I’ve hated to put the girls into it for baths or even to leave the shower curtain open for guests to glimpse…

Yuck.  Yes – it’s gross. And I can’t believe I’m posting that picture for the whole Internet to see.  But read on…

There’s (much) more that I could tell you about why I hate our bathroom, but let’s get down to the reason we’re here. To tackle. And specifically, to try out the sample of CLR that I was sent through 5 Minutes For Mom.

If you’re unfamiliar with CLR, it stands for ‘Calcium, Lime, Rust’ and those are the things that CLR is known for being able to easily take care of for you. There are several different formulations of the product – this one is meant for Bath and Kitchen areas.

Here’s a quick rundown of the product information:

CLR Brands are a family of specially formulated cleaning products that quickly and effectively solve the toughest household cleaning problems. CLR Bathroom & Kitchen Cleaner is effective for most kitchen and bath surfaces, including: ceramic tile, shower doors, sinks, bathtubs, white grout and caulk, toilet bowls, fiberglass and kitchen countertops. It can be used for everyday cleaning or to tackle tough calcium and lime deposits, soap scum and grime.

The CLR Brand family of products— including CLR Bath & Kitchen Cleaner— have earned the EPA’s Design for the Environment (DfE) designation, providing consumers with effective products that are safe for the family with no added ammonia, bleach or phosphates.

So what exactly did I tackle, and how did the CLR Bath & Kitchen cleaner work?

Yep, that disgusting bathtub.  And I think it’s probably easiest to show you, rather than tell you.

I started off by spraying the CLR pretty much through the whole tub/shower enclosure – but focusing mainly on the ‘grimy’ areas. After a quick scrub down and rinse, I could definitely see a real improvement:

There was still quite a bit of grime left, especially on the bathtub floor, and in the corners – but wow, it was much, much better.

After another go-around with the CLR and scrub brush:

Now this is a tub that I can certainly let guests see! And not have to worry about bathing my kids in.

I went another couple of rounds, but didn’t see much more of a difference. I am thrilled with how well the CLR worked though – and I haven’t seen any signs of residue or anything left behind.

I also tried the product out on the (what used to be) white caulk around the bathroom sink – another area that I’m horribly embarrassed to let be seen. And although the difference wasn’t nearly as dramatic, it did have some effect:

Before:

During: (I also sprayed the sink with it as well, to see how it would handle the usual toothpaste stains the girls leave behind every night. And I let it soak into the caulk for a while)

And after:

Oddly enough, I even got a surprise that I wasn’t expecting – my textured bathroom countertop gets a lot whiter than I ever thought before, at least in parts. I think I’ll have to tackle that next. 

The last thing that I tackled with the CLR was our showerhead. I have no idea how old the thing is – at least 5 years though, since it was here when we bought the house. And it definitely looks its age:

A little bit of CLR, a (very) little bit of scrubbing – and here’s the result:

Ok, so I’m definitely impressed!

But even so, I’m not sure that I would use it for everyday cleaning like wiping down counters or the table and such though. I read on the label that they recommend you wear gloves when using this product – and it definitely has a chemical-like smell. I made sure to rinse down every surface that it came into contact with after I was done cleaning with it.

I guess we’ll definitely be keeping some of this stuff on hand for the ‘big’ jobs though! 

If you’re interested in trying it out, here’s the lowdown on where you can find CLR Bath & Kitchen:

CLR is available for purchase at a variety of retailers across the country including Albertson’s, Ace, Home Depot, Kroger, Lowes, Menards, Safeway, True Value, Target and Wal-Mart. CLR Bath & Kitchen Cleaner is available for an average retail price of $4.67.

What are you tackling this week? And check out other Tackle It Tuesday posts over at 5 Minutes for Mom!