bathroom, cleaning, Giveaway, Home & Auto Maintenance, Product Review

Endurance BioBarrier Review

Mold & Mildew Free Shower for 4 months | Pretty Handy Girl

Endurance BioBarrier Review

I’m going to warn you now, this is not a pretty post. But, this product review of Endurance Cleaner Prep and Endurance BioBarrier will most likely be one of your favorite posts if you deal with continual mold & mildew growth (especially in a small coffin-like shower from the 1970’s.)

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

You may remember how much I love our master bathroom shower:

That ugly harvest gold tile shower is the ugliest spot in our home. And, its attractive color is not helped by the mold growth that returns like clockwork every three weeks. I have tried everything to control its regrowth. What I’ve tried is using bleach, and leaving the shower door open all day. I even replaced the caulk in this shower. But, every three weeks that mold peeks out from the cracks and crevices.

This bathroom is slated to be demolished at some point, but until then it needs constant cleaning. That is until a few months ago when I tried Endurance BioBarrier Mold Prevention Spray (non-toxic and low-odor.)

Endurance sent me a the Cleaner Prep and Biobarrier to try out. You may remember that I tried it after cleaning our dirty and moldy storm windows.

I didn’t want to blog about the products until I had tried them for more than a few months. I’m happy to report that for four months, I didn’t need to clean our shower! Normally after three weeks the mold and mildew would have been happily growing in the corners of my shower.

On February 5th, 2015 I set about cleaning the shower with high hopes but big doubts.

As directed, I sprayed the Endurance BioBarrier Cleaner Prep in the shower. I let it sit for 15 minutes (1-5 minutes for normal cleaning. 15 minutes for tougher jobs.)

To clean off the mildew and mold, I used a scrub brush. Then rinsed all the surfaces with water.

After the shower is completely cleaned with the Cleaner Prep, spray the Endurance BioBarrier Anti-Mold protection spray to create a thin film on all surfaces.

Wipe up any puddled spray after a few minutes.

The shower was clean and devoid of any mold or mildew. Nothing miraculous yet. I can achieve the same results with bleach cleaner.

But, here’s where the similarities end. After four months (not three weeks) was the first time I began to see some mildew and mold regrowth. Read more

July 8, 2015/103 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

cleaning, Home & Auto Maintenance, Product Review

Black + Decker MAX Litihum Flex Vacuum review

Black + Decker Flex Lithium Vacuum | Pretty Handy Girl

Black+Decker sent me their BLACK+DECKER MAX Lithium Flex Vacuum to test. I’ve been holding this review in my back archives for a while. I never like to publish a review until I’ve given a product a thorough testing and make sure it will hold up for the long haul. I’ve been using my Black+Decker MAX Lithium Flex 20V vacuum for a lot of my projects. You may have spotted it when I refinished the paint on my dryer. Or to clean up sawdust out of the grooves on my farmhouse table build. In fact, I grab for this little vacuum anytime I’ve made a little mess or spilled some powdered drink mix, etc.

But, last week I accidentally spilled a package of almonds in the tiny crevice between the seats in my car. I can’t even get my hand in this space, so I ran in to grab the big vacuum cleaner but stopped when I was in front of the Black+Decker Max Lithium Flex. I hate hauling out the big canister vacuum because it’s so heavy, but could a little vac handle nuts?

I honestly doubted it would be able to get all those almonds up. After all, I’d had poor luck in the past with small dust sucking devices. Read more

May 18, 2015/2 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

cleaning, Home & Auto Maintenance, repair, steam clean

How to Easily Clean Mildew Off Windows

Easy Clean Your Storm Windows with Steam | Pretty Handy Girl

Winter is tough on everyone, but it’s especially tough on your home. The temperature difference between the outside and inside your home can leave a thick layer of mildew on your windows. Aluminum storm windows are especially prone to this condition. Before you open the windows and let in the warm breeze of Spring, you’ll want to quickly and easily clean mildew off your windows.

This is not one of my favorite cleaning tasks. In the past I used bleach and ended up smelling bleach all day long and probably doing damage to my nose (and brain.) This year I have a new cleaning BFF. The HomeRight Steam Machine Plus is my go to tool for cleaning almost anything! Just like when I cleaned the boys’ stinky bathroom, this little steam cleaner did not disappoint.

To clean the windows, release the hand held HomeRight Steam Machine Plus from the upright mop. Read more

April 3, 2015/6 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

How to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding

I love our antique heart pine floors! They are beautifully distressed. The round pegs and square nails securing them in place add loads of character. However, the square nails sit flush with the surface preventing us from ever being able to refinish them with a sander. The nails would tear up the sandpaper in no time. But, that’s no problem because I know a way to Refinish Wood Floors without Sanding!

From time to time, our floors start to look dull…

…and the scratches are more noticeable. This is when I know it’s time to refinish them.

The first time I refinished our floors, it was several years ago when we were painting the office and dining room. I decided to try to refinish the floors because the rooms were already devoid of furniture. Several neighbors had recommended Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner and Bona® Hardwood Floor Polish. I was skeptical, but the results were beautiful floors that had luster, but still showed their beautiful age.

The Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner did a fabulous job of cleaning the floor without damaging them. And, the Bona® Hardwood Floor Polish provided a strong finish without any waxy build up. The high gloss protective layer adds some shine, but isn’t overly shiny. The polish also fills micro-scratches, evening out the appearance of the floor.

Fast forward to this past week when Bona asked me to write a sponsored post for them, I jumped for joy because I already use and love the Bona® Hardwood Floor Products! (Here’s my full disclosure: Yes, this is a sponsored post. No, I was not told what to write. And yes, I probably would have blogged about my experiences using Bona® Hardwood Floor Products at some point anyway. Win-win.)

I highly recommend trying the combo of the Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner and the Bona® Hardwood Floor Polish before spending huge amounts of money to have your floors refinished. (Bona® Hardwood Floor Cleaner & Polish will not work on floors that have an oil or wax coating. Test in an inconspicuous area to be sure it will work for your floors.)

Here’s how to Refinish Your Wood Floors without Sanding:

Materials:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

Vacuum or broom
Bona Hardwood Floor Spray Mop, includes 28.75 oz. Cleaner Cartridge
Bona Hardwood Floor Polish – High Gloss (32 oz. for 500 sq. feet)
Bona Microfiber Applicator Pad

Instructions for Cleaning the Wood Floors:

Remove all rugs and furniture from the room. If you have heavy furniture pieces that are never moved, you can leave them in place.

Vacuum or sweep the floors to remove all dirt and debris.

Assemble your Bona® Hardwood Floor Spray Mop as shown here: Read more

March 2, 2015/31 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

bathroom, Before and After, cleaning, Giveaway, Home & Auto Maintenance

How to Clean a Stinky Boys’ Bathroom (as if a Magazine Photographer was Coming!)

How to Clean a Stinky Bathroom as if a Magazine Photographer was coming | Pretty Handy Girl

I AM SO EXCITED! Remember when I was slaving away on our kitchen on my hands and knees?

While I was in the trenches of DIY, one thing kept me going steady (besides the extra doses of Advil.) It was the dream of having our home featured in a magazine. Well, that dream became reality this week! If you happen to be in the magazine section of a store near you, you might see this:

Do It Yourself is one of my favorite publications because they feature beautiful homes and projects that were created by the homeowner. They Did It Themselves! Plus, the magazine shows you how to complete the same projects yourself! I am super honored that they wanted to photograph my home and some of my DIY projects for this issue.

But, I have to tell you, I was very nervous before the photo shoot. I had visions of the editor and photographer walking in my home and walking back out in disgust. As the date drew closer, I was frantically checking last minute fixes and DIY projects off my list:

master bedroom:
build king sized bed
paint ombré effect on master bedroom walls
paint knotty pine dresser
paint vanity
create button pendant light
add legs to nightstand

foyer:
hack an ugly IKEA dresser
hang mirror

boys’ bathroom:
paint mirror frame
paint vanity
re-caulk board & batten
clean, clean, clean
figure out how to get rid of the urine smell! YIKES!!!

Any of you who have boys know that they have poor aim! No matter how clean I get their bathroom it still has a slight urine odor. Please, please tell me that I’m not the only one with this problem.

Funny story: I created this little piece of art that hangs on the wall over the toilet in the boys’ bathroom. I thought the kids would love it because they are big Star Wars fans. I also wanted them to think about this sage advice everyday when they wake up. Handsome Guy thought it was my attempt to get the kids to improve their aim. #Headsmack

Anyway, back to the urine odor. I would be mortified if the photographer and editor walked into that bathroom and got a whiff of pee. I set forth with only a few cleaning supplies ~~to try~~ to eliminate the odor (because “Do or Do Not…There is No Try.)

How to Clean a Stinky Boys’ Bathroom (as if a Magazine Photographer was Coming!)

Supplies:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

HomeRight Steam Machine Plus
Lots of clean rags
Lemon oil + Water + Basic H2O mixture in a squirt bottle

Let’s get busy! Read more

January 23, 2015/27 Comments/by Brittany Bailey