Power in Pink (Cillit Bang Power Grime & Lime Cleaner Trigger)

Member Name: cmh4135

Product:	Cillit Bang Power Grime & Lime Cleaner Trigger
Date:	20/10/07 (175 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good at stubborn dirt without too much elbow grease

Disadvantages: Smell

Cillit Bang! We’ve all seen the adverts I’m sure. Seemingly exaggerated claims about cleaning everything from showers to pennies. We’ve seen it all before; usually on a shopping channel. Miracle products that claim so much yet fail to deliver. Why do we ever fall for the claims? Is it just our hatred of cleaning and the thought that this one product might make life just a little easier? There has to be a product that bucks the trend.

I hate to say it, but that product is Cillit Bang.

I didn’t try Cillit Bang for quite a while simply on the basis that I really don’t like the advert. I felt patronised every time I watched it and had absolutely no faith in its claims. However, a conversation with a friend changed my point of view and I relented. Off to the supermarket I went returning with the, by now, very familiar purple trigger spray bottle.

The first thing I noted was that the spray didn’t exactly spray. On squeezing the trigger a blob of pink foam would be emitted from the nozzle. It was almost impossible to control the direction of this blob and absolutely impossible to get a spray coverage. I did think that it might just be the nozzle on this bottle but subsequent purchases have confirmed to me that there is a flaw with the emission of this product.

Feeling quite deflated I thought that, once again, I should have listened to my initial feelings about the product and refrained from succumbing to the advertising both official and unofficial.

Then I wiped.

We live in a hard water area. Limescale is a real issue, even with regular cleaning. To my amazement Cillit Bang really did remove grime, lime and other nasties. It’s cleaning power without scrubbing is, quite remarkable. Spray, leave for a minute or so and wipe with a damp cloth. It’s far more effective than any stainless steel cleaner I have come across for use on the kitchen sinks and less abrasive than my now, second choice, Cif. Sanitary wear is similarly left gleaming and limescale spray drops on the shower doors come off without so much as a whimper. Some deposits will require a bit more elbow grease, particularly limescale where water build up has occurred, but it’s still appreciably less than other products.

What I like most about the product is that it is, in our house, a fairly universal choice for the wet rooms. I have heard that it shouldn’t be used on tile grouting as it tends to discolour the grout. Thus far this has not proven to be an issue for us but I would probably limit the use of the product on any kind of porous surface.

Another slight downside for me is the smell. It’s not offensive but it is very strong. The smell is overwhelmingly chemical and although it’s not too bad when you are actually using it when you go back to a room in which it has just been used you are met with a wall of aroma that will, if not well ventilated, spread to other rooms.

If you can perfect a swashbuckling-style spray technique to get the product to cover your surfaces then, despite the spray and smell issues I would still recommend the product (alternatively you can just spray a blob and then wipe it round with a cloth!). The fact that it cleans surfaces with little or no effort after mere minutes of contact is a huge plus. That it can also tackle limescale build up makes it regular purchase.

Recommended.

Summary: Do you believe the hype?