Cleaning Tools CR’s Experts Swear By

This week I’m asking CR's writers what are the cleaning tools that have made the biggest difference in their lives. Anything that can help me like cleaning a litttttle bit more is appreciated. Also in this issue: Car dealership extras you should just say no to, and our response to a reader's question about whether they should take silver supplements.

THE BIG STORY

A carpet layered with hair and dirt. A humidifier with its crevices collecting gunk. None of these are sights people like to see, but they are what can happen when you leave corners of your home uncleaned for too long.

Cleaning can be a chore. I clean daily, but I don't love doing it. The reasons are: 1) Hello? It's gross. 2) If you don't have the right tools, you’re prolonging the gross process without making an actual impact on the thing you’re trying to clean.

With the right tools though, cleaning is less painful. It can be faster and more efficient, and dare I say it—don't make me say it—enjoyable?

That's what I had in mind when I asked CR's writers who work with cleaning products constantly, both at work and at home, to name their favorite tool they use in their daily cleaning. Here's what they said.

For cleaning general surfaces …

✨ Method Cleaning Product + Microfiber ClothThe two together are "a dynamic duo," says CR home writer Tanya Christian, who uses several Method cleaners for the different surfaces in her kitchen.

What she loves about Method is that it offers scents that aren't too heavy, and its products do a great job at cleaning overall. Instead of using them with a paper towel, which tends to leave a residue, Tanya says she usually gets a better clean from a microfiber cloth.

You can check out Method products here . The microfiber cloths are on Amazon from $13.27.

For washing dishes …

🍽️ Dawn Original Dishwashing LiquidIf there's one thing I clean every day, it's dishes, which I suspect is a fact that's true of most people. If you need a good cleaning solution for your dishes, Dawn is a must-try, says Mary Farrell, a CR home writer who first discovered the effectiveness of Dawn detergents when CR tested dish detergents years ago.

Mary says she likes Dawn dish detergents so much that she actually has four types at home: original, EZ-Squeeze, foam, and Powerwash. The reason Dawn is her favorite? "It cuts through grease like no other dish detergent I’ve tried."

The original is available on Amazon and Walmart starting at $4.44. You can also check out more Dawn products here .

For cleaning hard-to-reach corners …

🪥 Reach Ultraclean Toothbrush (Or, Really, Any Old Toothbrush Would Do)We should never underestimate the power of the toothbrush, says Tobie Stanger, a CR home writer who has used soft toothbrushes for various odd tasks over the years, including to gently remove debris from artifacts on an archeological dig when she was in college.

There are many things you can do with an old toothbrush. You can use it, for instance, to scrub the bottoms of narrow containers or clean the corners of your humidifier. Most recently, Tobie enlisted the humble toothbrush as one of the tools for a bigger task: removing a moldy residue that had built up in her parents’ washing machine. She also uses an old toothbrush every time she needs to scrub mud—and anything worse—from the soles of her shoes.

If you want to buy a toothbrush with long top bristles designed to clean crevices, you can go for the Reach Ultraclean, Tobie says. Or you can just use an old toothbrush instead of throwing it away.

From $7.38 for a pack of four on Amazon and Walmart .

For cleaning the bathroom …

🌟 Swiffer WetJet MopWhen it comes to cleaning bathrooms, CR home writer Keith Flamer is a self-professed germaphobe. It's leftover trauma from his college job cleaning a bar every weekend. "I clean as hands-free as possible. You would too if you braved the trenches of happy hour and last call," says Keith.

To clean his bathroom tiles, he uses the Swiffer WetJet Mop. "A lever on the handle sprays cleaning solution on the floor, and with a push, the Swiffer pad handles the rest. I can clean entire rooms in less than 10 minutes," Keith says.

From $25.27 at Walmart, Target, and Home Depot.

🛁 Voweek Electric Spin ScrubberScrubbing the shower is one of the chores that often escapes me until it's too late and my tub is covered in splotches of mold. For the task, Keith recommends this electric spin scrubber, which comes with different snap-on brushes and a long, adjustable pole, which helps eliminate stress on your back when you’re cleaning.

From $49.99 on Amazon .

For vacuuming the floors …

✅ Dyson VacuumDifferent models of Dyson vacuums were brought up as a top choice by my co-workers. For instance, the Dyson Outsize+ vacuum, which is Dyson's largest cordless vacuum, is Tanya Christian's favorite vacuum out of the ones she's owned.

It works well on a variety of surfaces—hardwood, marble tiles, and rugs and carpets—and its suction is top-notch, Tanya says. She uses it daily because her pup has a tendency to bring in leaves and dirt when he comes into the house after a walk.

The Dyson V8 is the favorite of Anna Kocharian, a CR shopping writer who has interviewed dozens of experts on how to organize your home. She likes it because it's lightweight and easy to maneuver around various nooks and crannies.

"Growing up, vacuuming meant lugging around a heavy canister vacuum while tripping over a cord—and then having to find a new outlet to plug into in every room," Anna says. The portability and efficiency of the V8 makes the vacuum worth the investment, in Anna's opinion.

It's worth keeping in mind that CR currently doesn't recommend any cordless stick vacuums, which includes the Dyson V8 and the Dyson Outsize+. While the Dyson vacuums have done well in CR's performance tests, they fare less well in reliability. Both are still rated as very good in our ratings.

According to our survey data, cordless vacuums, in general, are likely to develop problems or break within five years, with battery problems being the most common issue.

The Dyson V8 is available from $394.88 at Dyson and Amazon . The Dyson Outsize+ is available from $861.65 at Dyson , Best Buy , and Amazon .

What about you? Do you have a cleaning tool that you personally enjoy? Send me a message and I might share your recommendation with all of you next time.

Bonus link: Five things you should know before you buy a carpet cleaner.

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SWEET DREAMS ARE MADE OF THIS

Phones are often seen as an enemy to getting better sleep because of all the distractions they provide, but here are a few settings on your phone that can actually help you sleep, rather than hinder it.

🔵 Blue light filter. It can reduce the sleep-disturbing blue light coming from your phone and shift the display to a warmer color temperature.

💤 Sleep mode. Sleep Focus (on iOS) or Sleep Mode (on Android) will notify you when it's time to get to bed and silence your phone so that there are no middle-of-the-night notifications.

👂 White noise maker. iPhones have a built-in white noise app that offers sounds like ocean, rain, or stream. And if you have an Android phone, you can check out The Sleep Foundation's review of third-party white noise apps.

Read more on how to turn on all these settings and more on your phone.

Or check out our guide to getting better sleep and unlock digital members-only benefits to access exclusive savings and sleep product ratings.

TIP OF THE WEEK

Illustration: Joe Darrow Illustration: Joe Darrow

When you buy a new car, the dealership might try to convince you to pay for these pricey add-ons. Here are ones you should say no to outright.

⛔ VIN EtchingThe engraving of the car's VIN, or vehicle identification number, into the windows. It's supposed to deter car theft and assist in car recovery if stolen.

Why you don't need it: It's unnecessary because all new cars already have VINs stamped in multiple places inside the vehicle.

🙅‍♀️ RustproofingIt costs around $800 based on experiences of CR's car shoppers and is sold as a way to prevent underbody rust.

Why you don't need it: The frames of new cars are designed to last a decade or longer, so this extra protection isn't necessary.

What about extended warranty coverage? Is it necessary? Here's what we say.

QUIZ

Around how many people get injured every year when dressers or other clothes storage units tip over and fall on them?

A. 700

B. 1,000

C. 5,000

D. 7,000

(The answer's at the end of the newsletter.)

ASK AN EXPERT

Question from reader Lonnie Phifer: People keep telling me to take silver as a supplement. They say it instantly makes them feel better and prevents them from getting sick. Is any of this true?

Answer:The short answer is no, you shouldn't orally take colloidal silver, often sold as a silver supplement. The Food and Drug Administration warned the public as far back as 1999 that colloidal silver had not been proven safe or effective for treating any disease or condition.

Colloidal silver can also lead to side effects such as argyria, a bluish-gray discoloration of the skin, and the poor absorption of some drugs, including certain antibiotics and thyroxine, which is used to treat thyroid deficiency.

THE GOOD STUFF

Here are five things you should never put in your garbage disposal.

One thing you should be doing is cleaning your garbage disposal weekly if you use it every day. Another tip from us? Don't use garbage disposal cleaners, lye, or chemical drain cleaners to do the job.

Why? Because many of these don't do much to clean residue, and some contain corrosive chemicals that can damage the disposal's metal components.

MUST-READS OF THE WEEK

🚘 How to Keep Your Car From Getting StolenA visible steering wheel lock, for example, can work well as a deterrent.

📱 Is It Worth It to Replace a Cracked Phone Screen?A painful question I recently had to ask myself after my phone did a death drop.

🩸 Best Home Blood Pressure Monitors of 2023Almost 46 percent of U.S. adults could benefit from blood pressure monitoring outside the doctor's office, according to a 2019 study.

🍟 Best Kitchen Appliances of 2023 (available for CR members)These are the best fridges, dishwashers, ranges, and more rated by us.

QUIZ ANSWER

The answer is C. More than 5,000 people (!) are injured in the U.S. every year when dressers or other clothing storage units tip over and fall on them. To prevent this from happening, we recommend anchoring your heavy furniture as well as your TVs.

You’ll need furniture restraints, also called anchoring kits, which are usually two brackets tethered by a strap or cable. One bracket will be screwed directly into your furniture, while the other fastens into a stud in the wall.

You can follow our instructions on how to anchor your furniture here:

Or read our advice on how to anchor furniture on drywall, a plaster wall, or a masonry wall.

"I don't want no scrub."

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Pang-Chieh Ho

I'm a newsletter writer who likes looking into the different ways we can live smarter. The topics I cover typically explore unanswered questions we have about the products we use every day and bridge the gaps between what owners' manuals advise and what we actually do. In my spare time, I like to take photos, critique movies out loud while I watch (at home!), and take care of my ever-increasing plant "children."