Tackle It Tuesday - CLR Edition

When I first heard about the CLR Tackle It Tuesday Contest I was excited because I figured this would give me an incentive to really do some serious cleaning. I have not done a serious cleaning in my bathroom in over a year. My husband didn't wanting me using household chemicals while I was pregnant and then once my daughter got here there just wasn't time. We have been doing quick cleanings in there, but it was past time for a good scrub.

I received my complimentary bottle of CLR Bath & Kitchen cleaner very quickly. When the package arrived I took the time to read the back of the bottle to make sure that I would be using the product properly. After reading all the warnings on the bottle I decided that I didn't want to use the product while my daughter is around. I realize this may be a bit much, but she is only ten months old so I don't want her breathing in those chemicals. I also had to go buy some rubber gloves since the bottle tells you to wear them while using this product. This weekend my husband was finally able to take care of her for me long enough for me to work on the bathroom.

Here are some pictures of what my bathroom looked like before I started cleaning.

Once I got my Before shots taken I shut the bathroom door and turned on the exhaust fan. I kept the door closed while I was working because I didn't want the fumes getting out and into my daughter's room which is right down the hall. As I started spraying the shower the fumes became a bit much. They do say to use the cleaner in a well ventilated area, but this is a bathroom and the best I can do is run the exhaust fan.

After spraying, scrubbing and rinsing following the instructions on the bottle, I took a look at my cleaned shower. Here are the pictures.

Looking at my shower, I didn't feel that the CLR cleaner did a better job on the tiles then any other cleaners I have used. I even feel like I could have gotten better results if I had used soft scrub with bleach like I usually do. The CLR cleaner did do a very good job on the chrome though. My faucet and drain were both extremely shiny.

By the time I was finished with the shower the fumes from the cleaner were overwhelming and I was starting to get a headache. I took a break outside of the bathroom for a few minutes to let some of the fumes clear out of the bathroom. Since the fumes were getting to me so badly, I decided to finish the bathroom with a different cleaner.

Here is a close up my sink after using a different cleaner.

You can see that it is just as clean as my shower and I didn't have the fumes to deal with. The cleaner I used instead was actually pleasant smelling and worked well. I decided to scrub my shower again with it to see if it would get the shower any cleaner.

Here are final shots of my sink and shower after everything was put back and all the cleaning was complete.

The second cleaner didn't seem to get the shower any cleaner then the CLR did. I don't have any way of knowing if the second cleaner would have gotten it as clean as the CLR by itself, but I do think that it would have judging by the results on my sink.

I feel that CLR Bath & Kitchen cleaner did an ok job. It got my shower clean, but I feel that I could have gotten it just as clean with a product that did not have quite as strong fumes and require the use of rubber gloves. Now that I'm a mom I find that I prefer cleaning products that aren't full of warnings. If I was in the store looking at this product, I would have immediately put it back on the shelf when I saw that it required the use of rubber gloves. I feel that I can get a different cleaning product that will do just as good of a job without being so harsh. Besides, I hate wearing rubber gloves. I have no plans to use the CLR Bath & Kitchen cleaner again. I don't feel that it's a bad cleaner, it just isn't something the works for my family. I will be passing on the container of cleaner I received to a neighbor that it interested in trying it. Who knows, she may wind up loving it.

Head over to 5 Minutes For Mom to check out other reviews of the CLR Bath & Kitchen cleaner.