Hits and Misses from Pinterest

I am excited to report on some experiments I conducted over the weekend.  There are so many claims on Pinterest regarding amazing results using common household items.  I am going to do my best to document which ones really work and which ones are nothing more than smoke and mirrors.  The one that caught my eye this week had to do with cleaning the grates on the top of a gas stove.  There was a picture with a before and after shot of the grate.  One was very dirty and the other was shiny and clean.  The claim is if you put the grate in a bag with some Ammonia and seal it off over night, it will wipe away clean the next morning.  Now this sounded too good to be true, but since Ammonia is cheap and scrubbing the grates is time consuming and obnoxious I decided it deserved a chance.  I have three teenage boys who love to make Macaroni and Cheese and it seems to get more on the grates that in the bowl, so I definitely need an easier way to clean up the mess.

Gas Grate Before

I was glad to see that my experiment was only going to set me back $1.00 since Ammonia is very cheap.  After I put it in the bag as instructed, I started to feel real dumb.  I couldn't help but wonder if I was taking myself down a ridiculous path.  All I could think about was how awful Ammonia smells and what if the thing leaks all over the counter, then I will have an awful smelling mess to clean up and still no easy answer to my dirty grate problem.

Put all the grates in a plastic bag where you plan to leave it.
If you try to move it later you will tear the bag.
Pour in Ammonia

Seal the Bag
Let Sit Over Night

This morning I opened the bag and just about got blown over with the rank smell.  Now I knew I was on a carnival ride.  I was a little mad at myself for falling for such an easy trick.  I put the grate in the sink and sprayed it with water.  This didn't even deserve a wipe with a cloth in my opinion.  But what to my wondering eyes should appear, a miracle of all miracles!  Just like the Pinterest claim said, it came clean as a whistle.  No wiping required.

This get's 5 out of 5 stars.  It accomplishes all the of criteria for my blog.  Cheap, easy, relevant, and definitely uplifting.