Don't usually recommend a product, but

[Skidmore]

I just lost my job and there are a number of projects coning up around the house this summer which had the potential to add up dollarwise. Well, I just solved a big one for a couple of dollars. I anticipated needing to paint inside walls in the house this year, and some of the walls where my little grandkids touch a lot, e.g. along the stairwells and doorways were getting kind of smudged, as well as generally looking shabby on the lower part of the walls. Well, I just tried out one of those Magic Eraser thingies that Mr. Clean is putting out to try to clean around one of the light switches. It works great. I had bought a couple of packages of these. so I had some more. I started working on the smudges as scuffs along the back entry way wall. Guys, this thing did a super job. I don't have to paint now, at least immediately. I used four of these and was able to wipe down the walls in the entry way and the stairwell. The nice thing is that they wear themselves away to almost nothing. I'm going to pick up a few more packages and work on some. Should only really need one or two to finish up in the rest of the rooms, but then a couple extra to keep on hand would be a good idea.

[fight4my3sons]

1. Those are definitely worth the money.

I have three little ones, 3yr old and 21 month old twins, and I use those all the time.

[egadsbrain]

2. I'm going to try these...

have a back room that has "dog damage." Preston got his big muddy pawprints on the wall the day after I painted...GRRRR! I'm usually skeptical of all these new disposable cleaning gadgets as they just seem wasteful and not environmentally friendly. Take those toilet scrubbie things! What's wrong with plain old bleach, cleanser and some elbow grease?!!?

[phantom power]

3. Those things work amazingly well.

I thought they had to be a fraud, but they really work.

[Wordie]

4. Oh, yeah. those are absolutely terrific!

I was somewhat skeptical at first, but they work amazingly well. I had some rubber tire marks from a cart that I wheeled down my skinny hallway, and they removed them completely!

The only thing lacking for this product to be absolutely perfect, imho, is that they leave a slight shiny spot sometimes. I can only see it when the light hits it a certain way, but it would be great if there was some fix for that too. Does anyone know how to remove that...or avoid it in the first place?

I'd still give this product a 9 3/4 out of 10. The shiny areas I mentioned really aren't that noticable, and it sure beats having marks on the wall anyway, or having to repaint.

[Lugnut]

5. That's good to hear

I have a coupon for those things so I'll definitely try them after your recommendation.

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

6. I love those.

I was initially skeptical, but decided to give it a go. They are fabulous. After taking one apart & really looking at it DH & I have figured out that they're just really, really, really fine sandpaper. Next time I'm at a home improvement center I'm going to check out the finest sandpaper they carry. I'm thinking it will be a lot cheaper.

[Wordie]

7. Ooohh, careful with sandpaper, wakemeupwhenitsover.

I would think that might remove the paint along with the mark. And it might leave the color of the sand on the wall where you used it. Maybe try it on a spot where it wouldn't be noticable first? Behind the refrigerator, maybe? (Although that would tend to be enamel paint, on which it might work differently than on a matte paint anyway.)

And you know, the Mr. Clean thingies (what do they call them, anyway?) seemed to me to be made of something more akin to a packing peanut, except denser and more flexible. Are we talking about the same thing? But I haven't needed to use one in a while, so it may be me who is off.

I noticed the one I used seemed to disintegrate down to nothing fairly rapidly (but then I used it a lot), but even still, depending on how much cleaning that needs to be done, it wasn't an unreasonable price, if I recall. I don't have kids, so that might make a difference. With kids, I imagine a person could go through a whole lot of them fairly quickly! :)

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

8. My kids are grown & gone.

It's DH & our baby dog who do all the damage.

DH thinks it's something like 600 grit sandpaper. It wouldn't be the rough pads that you buy in the regular sandpaper section.

Also, that's all this stuff is: very fine sandpaper that is taking off the mark, but is too fine to take off much paint.

And you're right: when I buy it I'll try it in an inconspicuous spot just to make sure.

[Wordie]

9. You know...

I keep thinking that we may be talking about two different products. I just rumaged around in my storage and found the package. They are called "Mr. Clean Magic Eraser." They're white and about the size of a sponge. I think I can see the sandpaper similarity - it does have a very fine rough texture. I think it's really an extremely high density foam, but I suppose the theory of how it works might be much the same.

I only say this because I've worked with that really fine sandpaper (I don't remember the specific grit, but it was very fine, but I would be hesitant to use it on my walls. But if you do try it on an inconspicuous spot first, what's the harm, I guess.

Sorry if I'm being a little too parental here! LOL

[Skidmore]

11. I like them because you can load them with soap and

moisten them to boost scrubbing power.

[Tracer]

10. I'm usually averse to buying products based on advertising, but ...

... I bought a package of Magic Erasers and was quite surprised at how effective they were ... at some things.

My biggest dirt problem has been all the black marks that my cats leave on every corner of the house as they rub their necks. Table legs, door frames, kitchen cabinets, wall corners.

The eraser got rid of almost all of them with absolutely no effort ... except on the outside corners of eggshell latex walls. Did nothing there ... soapy water and a sponge worked better.