Sometimes I have an idea around the house, and it works well, but I immediately decide I will not blog about it. It either seems difficult or I think people won’t care or I just plain don’t have the energy. This is one of those ideas.
I didn’t want to blog about Brillo Pads, but I found myself doing it anyway. That doesn’t make sense? I know.
Here are the risks I incur by writing this post: 1) You will be bored to tears because I am talking about Brillo Pads. 2) You will refuse a dinner invite to my house because you will be scared to use the cutlery or bathroom sink after seeing the pictures.
But as I cannot seem to stop this post and my Brillo Pad excitement, I accept these risks. (I did not get paid to write this, but above is an affiliate link. By the way, I’ve also seen a pack of eight for $1 at the Dollar Tree.)
Please put on your no-judgement goggles. Here are the small wonders this classic scrubbing pad has been cleaning around my house. (Everything had been cleaned previously with dish soap or regular multipurpose cleaner that didn’t quite get the job done.)
So here’s the one you were expecting. Yes, Brillo Pads works amazingly well on pots and pans.
… and silverware …
… but have you considered a stainless steel sink? With little effort the pad gets it sparkling in no time.
I also started using it on the dish drainer. Not that it needed it.
The bathroom is another great place for the Brillo. Florida water is brutal, so I scrubbed everything stainless steel in both bathrooms, starting with the water deposits on the faucet.
And then the bottom of my favorite Ikea toothbrush holder.
This hand-held shower head should probably be replaced, but eh, not a top priority. This buys us some time in my opinion.
I don’t know if you can see the green ickiness on the top photo that shower cleaner couldn’t tackle, but it’s gone on the bottom photo!
The whole reason I got on this Brillo Pad kick was because my glass stovetop desperately needed help. Aside from a razor blade, this did the trick for getting rid of burned gunk better than anything else I’ve tried — including the obvious stovetop cleaner. But I could not for the life of me get a decent picture without reflections and poor lighting. I guess you’ll just have to take my word for it.
There, now either you’re yawning (but hey, you made it to the end!) or you’re motivated to get some Brillo Pads. Do you use Brillo Pads for something I’ve missed or have your own secret cleaning weapon?
I love this post. I’m definitely buying some Brillo pads when I do shopping tomorrow.
I’m so happy someone read it ;)
Many years ago, my husband’s grandparents advised us to use Brillo pads to clean our stainless steel sink when it started to look dull. We’ve been following their advice for a long time now and I love the way our sink shines after using a Brillo pad. Thanks for giving me lots of other ideas for using Brillo pads!
Hehehe – I read it too, and enjoyed it! :)
Haha! Awesome.
I am grateful for your insightful post on Brillo pads! ;) I have been struggling on how to clean my silverware and glass carafe that is coffee stained…after reading this and getting some dirt cheap Brillo pads, they shiny as ever! Wahoo!
That’s great! Thanks for letting me know. I’ll have to try the coffee carafe next!
Just found this post. I used Brillo pads to scrub off hard water deposits in the toilets up under the rim where the water comes out. The porcelain wasn’t damaged.
Thanks for the tip, Carla!
Brillo pads are just steel wool with soap. I think they were a constant in the kitchens of our moms, mine anyway. It has been a long while since I have used one, but I do have an old box in the garage. I need to break one out and go searching for things that need a good cleaning. There are a few flower pots on my patio that have hard water marks, that is where I will start. Thanks!
Brillo is a ‘wonder’ scrub. I love it – versetile. In S.Africa this product has been taken off the market, can you believe that? I have to go to a British “shop” to buy at a price you cannot believe! Oh there are 3 or 4 shops in this Country! Are we not lucky? Sorry for the sarcasim – people abroad are so blessed with good products and the very same Companies here do not supply. Willing to take our money for old products. A nice manner for them to get rid of their stock! Thank you for showing and sharing I really appreciate your ideas, thought I could pick up some new ideas on using Brillo. Enjoy the cleaning and remember a bit of hard cleaning makes us appreciate what we have been blessed with. Go well
Elize, I’m so sorry to hear your frustration with the supply and costs in South Africa, but I’m glad that you shared it with me. And you bring up a beautiful point — hard cleaning does make us appreciate what God has given us. You have an amazing attitude even through sarcasm :) I’m praying for you Elize! You’ve truly encouraged me, thank you.
Wow Kate!! Thank you so much for your reply, I was just wanting to see if there is a response to my comment which I placed and what a lovely surprise. A wonderful blessing in words to make my day and yes, such encouragement. In the ‘world’ it seems that many people [God’s creations] have put Him aside, like He is just a myth, they have a wonderful surprise coming. I believe there are many more Christians, true born again Spirit filled people than we realise. This makes me so excited and knowing there is hope for us, God’s children. Eventhough you might think this was just a silly mention of a product, you sow seed and remember we reap what we sow. Our Country is experience tremendous heat and then we also have a drought on our hands, I would be grateful if you could uplift S.Africa in prayer also to all whom are reading this message. Go well with the blessings of the Lord. Kind regards. [Sometimes frustration can lead to sarcasm, I’ll be careful in future re my words, you have what you say]……
It would be my honor to pray for your country, Elize. I will keep you and South Africa in my prayers. I agree, sometimes it seems most people put God aside and either think they will make time for Him in the future and let go all together. It’s such a shame! Having a relationship with God is what makes life worth living, what makes you feel alive! C.S. Lewis said “God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about religion. God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there.” May God bless you and give you peace. xoxo Kate
ok, I’m sold. :)
I grew up with my mom using Brillo pads, but haven’t used them in years. I will check them out the next time I go to the Dollar Store. I have several stains that won’t budge! Love your shower cleaning hints, too. I enjoy your blog, but don’t comment often. Keep up the good work! I am the person who asked where you bought your dining room table, love it! I am still keeping my eyes open for a similar one.
Hi Debra! Yes, I remember your comment. Saying a little prayer that you find that perfect table! Thanks so much for leaving me a comment. I love hearing from you and am so pleased that you find the cleaning posts useful. Thanks again and God bless you! xo
I just bought a box of Brillo pads yesterday, thanks to this post…
Oh good! I hope you like them as much as I do ;)
I know this is a very old post but have to add this one:
Brillo pads work great to remove water spots from glass shower doors and on bathroom walls! I have dark painted bathroom walls that show every condensation drip- brillo pads are the only thing that work!
Thank you, Christine! This post is old, but my passion for Brillo pads has not faded. haha! Love these suggestions and will put them to use immediately :)
I am going to try Brillo on my garden shears. Every article I read on tool maintenance refers to cleaning them off first with steel wool. What could be better than steel wool + soap? I use Brillo on almost any surface including glass. Happy to see the posts on under the ‘toilette’ rim; this Florida hard water is a challenge! Great posts, all!
We use steel wool for everything here in Brazil–including one thing that freaked me out at first. I had the privilege of having someone help me clean recently, and she used steel wool (very gently) to get the scratch marks out of my white(!) plastic(!) cutlery tray. I was certain it would scratch it up and make it worse, but it came out looking brand new!
I love my Brillo pads, too! They work wonders on mineral sediments/water deposits on aquariums. Grills, stove tops, burner trays, ovens and racks look brand new in addition to everything previously mentioned. Glass, porcelain and metal come clean beautifully with a bit of elbow grease and this inexpensive must have!
Genius ideas, Ann Marie! I need to add glass to my list :)
Wow, Ruth! That’s so cool. The uses never end!