These SUCK!!! And I Mean That In A Good Way
Written: Mar 08 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Available in a plethora of colors, inexpensive, won’t retain offensive odors.
Cons: None!
The Bottom Line: Since of wasting money on sponges that get that funky odor to them? Need a little color when you clean? Check out the 3M Utility Sponge!
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| Freak369's Full Review: 3M OCelO Utility Sponge |
Once a month I do a major cleaning; everything gets cleaned from top to bottom whether it needs it or not. The kitchen gets sanitized from top to bottom and the bleach flows like wine at a wedding. I’m not anal retentive but I like my kitchen to shine and that means at least three to four hours of work. The counter tile gets bleached, the floors scrubbed – even the kitchen sinks get some attention when I flush them with a liquid pipe cleaner. Yes, it’s a glorious time and I am “in my element” the stereo is cranked, iced tea glasses everywhere and the unmistakable smell of “clean” is everywhere. Since I do this once a month, the sponges, rags and cleaners I use get a real beating and since I do most of the stuff by hand [yes, even the floors] I need to make sure that I am working with stuff that is going to least at least three or four months. In the past I used the double sided sponges; one soft side with the reverse having a harder, stiffer surface.
Normal sponges work just fine for day to day cleaning but when I do my monthly cleaning, I need something that is a little tougher, will hold up to the various cleaning chemicals I use and is inexpensive enough that if it needs to get pitched after a single use, it’s no big deal. I do a lot of my shopping for cleaning products at Smart & Final [like Costco and Sam’s but no membership fee] so if I want to try a product without having to make a mega purchase; I have to venture into [gasp] a grocery store. Normally that isn’t a bad thing since I am heavy into couponing but I prefer to shop after 10:00 pm when most of the panic, panic stricken soccer moms are safely off the roads and relaxing at home with Prince Valium. When I saw the display of utility sponges I couldn’t resist picking up a pack to see if they would be a great alternative to the shop sponges I was using; these are a lot thicker and not exactly designed for day to day cleaning but worked well when I did my monthly cleaning spree. Tagged at $1.79 I couldn’t resist getting a pack – the hardest choice was picking out a color combination – who knew there was such a wide array to choose from.
3M O-Cel-O Utility Sponge
While these sponges were great for dishes, pots, pans and the stainless steel sinks, they made a somewhat dirty tile counter surface worse. Since I scrub “so hard” there were small patches of green left over from the hard side. Now I take a more practical approach and use Clorox Soft Scrub Cleanser, allow it to stand for about five minutes then work the joints with an old toothbrush. But, that doesn’t help much when it comes time to clean up that mess! My kitchen is shaped like a large “U” with the sinks being at the center of the action. Until I tried these sponges I was having to waste a lot of time pushing the goo towards the sink with a squeegee but that only got about 75% of it up, I still had to get the stuff out of the joints, corners and inlays. As you can imagine, sponges don’t last long under these conditions and no matter how much money you spend on them, they are still going to deteriorate and lose their absorption power.
These are basic sponges [two to a pack] that can be used for general cleaning, soaking up spills and one of my personal favorites, kids crafts. Since these are only about a half inch thick, they can easily be cut into shapes to use with paints. Another great use is at the bottom of flower pots, while some people may say this could lead to root rot, it does prevent water from overflowing onto your deck or floor. The large size [roughly six by four] means you can cover a lot of ground without having to rinse it over and over again. As I said, this is easy to cut so if it seems a little too big you can always trim it down to an acceptable size. One marketing perk of this sponge is that it “resists bacterial odors” that doesn’t mean that it will not harbor bacterial, just that you won’t smell it. In some ways that can be a negative, you won’t know if there’s something funky living inside the sponge
If you do decide to purchase these and intend on trimming them down, make sure you store the left over pieces in a sealed bag to prevent them from drying out. I often wondered why sponges seemed damp when I first opened the pack and after doing some research I found out that a small amount of water is added to keep the sponge pliable. If it completely dries out the texture of the sponge is slightly compromised and can reduce its overall absorbency when the fibers get stressed and crack. But, after all, we are talking about a sponge and eventually it will get tossed in the trash so don’t lose sleep over it. Stick with the 3M O-Cel-O series of sponges and you’ll get a great product at an acceptable price.
The Bottom Line
So far these have been a great addition to my cleaning arsenal. They are about the same price as other basic sponges but will really take a beating. One of the things that I like the most is that they can easily be trimming to a specific size if you need to use it in a small area, for touching up loose wallpaper or to get into corners. If you are unsatisfied with your current sponge assortment or are looking to upgrade to something that is more industrial, I highly suggest giving these a try. Most stores carry these for about $2.00 and if you need more than a few of them, check the cleaning product aisle of your office supply store to purchase them in larger quantities.
As always, thanks for the read!
^V^ Freak ^V^
© 2004 Freak369
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Recommended:
Yes
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