This review is written by guest reviewers Joe & Ana Potch.

We’ve seen the infomercials for the Oreck Vacuum cleaners many times on the TV, and we had always wondered if the claims that they make are really true. Claims like being very light weight, having extreme suction power, and a very quiet motor, being very simple in design and even coming with a separate carryon vacuum that would take the place of the myriad of tools and attachments that other manufacturers try to squeeze into a single vacuum cleaner had really piqued our interest. When we were offered the chance to try out the Oreck Platinum Pilot, we jumped at it!

We’ve had all different types of vacuums in our house. We’ve had canisters, uprights, bag less, bagged, and pretty much all of the other brands as well. We have not yet found a vacuum that seemed to fulfill our needs.

While waiting for the vacuum to arrive, we had caught a commercial on TV and saw it’s ability to to go from tile to wood, to carpet without having to change any settings. We knew that we just had to test it!

The day that the Oreck Platinum Pilot Vacuum and companion unit arrived, we were very excited to dive right into cleaning the carpets. We tested it at home and were quite surprised. This simple, light weight, quiet vacuum showed us how loud, heavy and over tooled our other vacuum cleaners really were. We definitely think we’re going to put all of our other vacuum cleaners in our next yard sale.

We also tested out the small companion vac to clean off the drapes, window sills, around the TV and pretty much everywhere else the upright vac could not go. It also performed beyond our expectations. I also used it in my truck and was surprised when my floors looked almost as good as the day we bought it!

To really put it to the test, we thought we’d take the Oreck to one of our rental properties that we’ve been working on. The carpet in this home is 2 years old, and heavily used. In between tenants, we vacuum and steam clean with commercial carpet cleaners. This time, we had gone over the carpet 3 times with the steam cleaner to get some of the more heavily soiled parts clean. We brought in the Oreck and were very surprised to see the amount of additional dirt and dust that was vacuumed up by the Oreck Platinum Pilot.

It is still a mystery to us, how Oreck designed such a powerful and quiet machine. It’s quiet enough that our dogs don’t run away and hide when we bring it out to vacuum the carpets like they did with our previous machines. We definitely recommend the Oreck Platinum Pilot to anyone who has trouble maneuvering some of the larger vacuums, especially if you have pets!

Thanks Oreck for giving us a chance to put your Platinum Pilot to the test! We give it an A+ all around!

*We were sent an Oreck Platinum Pilot and companion vacuum for this review.

Hubby bought me a steam mop from another company for Christmas, that I have really liked for cleaning our hardwood floors, and especially our bathrooms. The only problem with it is that it’s slightly too big for our downstairs 1/2 bathroom, and the little sectioned off portions of our bathrooms upstairs where the toilets sit. The downstairs bathroom is small, cramped, and the door doesn’t even open all the way (don’t ask, I didn’t plan/build the place) and getting behind toilets in general can be a chore. This is where the Shark Steam Pocket Mop should come in pretty handy.

First of all, it’s very easy to put together. It doesn’t require any tools, as everything just snaps together. Filling the water reservoir is pretty easy. It doesn’t detach from the mop, which is a little harder to deal with, but it comes with a little measuring cup, with a pretty good pour spout. There is not marking on it for a fill line, so be careful not to overfill the reservoir. I used about 3/4 of the measuring cup, and was fine.

The Shark Steam Pocket Mop comes with 2 different shaped mop heads, a triangle and a rectangle. It also included 2 of each size microfiber cloth, a microfiber duster, and a carpet slider for refreshing your carpets. I chose the triangle head for the bathroom, thinking that it would help me get into the corners a little easier than the rectangular mop head. I plugged it in, and after about 45 seconds, pumped the handle a few times to initiate the steam. After this, it was mopping as usual. Steam is made as you mop, so there are no buttons to push or switches to flip.

The triangle head was perfect for getting corners and behind the toilet. Oh, the other cool thing… Unlike some of the other steam mops, this one works upside down. I don’t mean steaming the ceiling. What I mean is that when one side of the mop cloth gets too dirty, you can flip the mop head over and keep on mopping! When you’re done, let the mop cool for a bit and remove the mop head! Take off the microfiber cloth and throw it in the washer! Not only is this chemical free sanitizing, but it’s also saving the landfills! There’s nothing to throw away!

It took me about 15 minutes, but I got the bathroom floor cleaned and dust free. I loved getting some of the stains off of the white tile. By the way- White tile and white grout is never a good choice… especially in bathrooms! YUCK!

I didn’t try it yet, but it does come with a carpet glider that you can use with the rectangle mop head. This will not clean your carpets, as it’s not using any solutions, nor is it sucking up the nasty stuff… It’s only to freshen the carpet up with some steam!

The girls saw me cleaning up and had to have a go at it too. The Shark Steam Pocket Mop is pretty light weight, so it was very easy for the girls to help clean up the floors with my supervision, of course! It produces some crazy hot steam, so the kids definitely need to be watched, but any help they can provide makes life just a little bit easier for me!

Another great thing about the Shark Steam Pocket Mop is that the cord is super long! This allows me to clean up the entire kitchen/living room area without having to unplug and move to a new outlet! Oh! And did I mention.. the handle length is adjustable? Yes it is! So even the tall people in the family can use it… ahem… hint hint…

All in all, I think this is a great steam mop. It cuts down on the time it takes to really clean those hard surfaces… If you have hard wood floors though, please  check with your floor manufacturer before using any type of steam mop! Just because it works for mine doesn’t mean it will work for yours!!!

The Shark Steam Pocket Mop retails for $119.95.

For more information about the Shark line of  products, check out SharkClean.com!

Out of the blue a little while ago, I received a message on Facebook… You know I hardly ever use facebook, but this message just spoke to me. It was from Lindsay of Marcal Manufacturing LLC. asking me if I’d be interested in reviewing some of their products. I had heard of the name “Marcal” before, but I couldn’t put my finger on what their products exactly were, so I did some research. After finding out a little bit more about the company, I promptly replied with a “YES!”

If you aren’t familiar with Marcal.. Marcal Small Steps is a line of 100% percent recycled paper products which include toilet paper, towels, napkins and facial tissue. They have been making recycled product since the 50s (before it was the cool thing to do). Of course, I’m all about recycling, and trying to make the planet a better place for future generations. My girls LOVE telling me all about recycling and reusing things too… thanks to Disney Channel’s Friends for Change campaign! Who says marketing doesn’t work on kids? My girls really listen to those commercials!

Marcal Small Steps sent me a large box full of various items to try out.

Dinner Napkins, 180 ct Napkin Drawstring Bag, 80 ct Upright Facial Tissues, 144 ct Facial Tissues, Single Roll Giant Paper Towels, 1,000 ct Bath Tissue, 4 rolls of 1,000 ct bath tissue, and 3 rolls of Regular Kitchen Paper Towels.

We’ve tried them all… and here are the verdicts:

* Dinner Napkins: Love them! They look like the ones you’d use in a semi-fancy restaurant. They hold up pretty well to our dinners (which usually involve a lot of BBQ sauce)

* 180 ct Napkin Drawstring Bag: Great for daily use when not eating ribs! About the same thickness as the other (totally not recycled) napkins I’ve purchased in the past.

* Facial Tissues: A little rougher than the ones that I’m used to. Good to keep around the house, but not sure I can give up my lotion tissues when I need to blow my nose every couple of minutes! Luckily, we don’t get sick too often (knock on wood)… so these will be good to keep around in case of a random sneeze…

* Bathroom Tissue: Like the Facial Tissues, this is also a little rougher than the brand we usually buy. It is better than the stuff I typically run into in public bathrooms, but it would be hard for me to give up my regular brand. I know, I know, the environment is involved here… That is a a big factor, but my tooshie needs the extra softness!

* Kitchen Paper Towels: Similar in thickness to the brand I typically use, but not quite as absorbent. I did the Measuring cup test, and it took me a couple more towels to dry up a 1/4 cup of spilled water than my usual brand. It’s that catch 22. Do I do good by buying the recycled towels and have to use a little more, or do I buy the usual brand, and end up using less when I need to clean up a spill?? Oh decisions…

The Marcal Small Steps products are helping to save 1 million trees. They are green, and hard working, and they are safe for the home. Their 100% recycled paper products are hypoallergenic, virtually lint free, and whitened without chlorine bleaching.

Overall, I think it’s a great idea to buy recycled products whenever possible. Considering the cost of the Marcal vs some of the other brands isn’t much different, it doesn’t hurt to go for the recycled product to help save the planet.

For more information, you can check out the Marcal Small Steps website, follow @MarcalSmallSteps on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook.

**FTC Disclosure: The products mentioned in this review were sent to me to sample for the purpose of this review.

So, I have said in the past, how much I really like the Clorox GreenWorks line of cleaning products. I’ve even said it on Good Day Sacramento!  They seem to be a safer alternative to some of the harsh chemicals out there on the market. Well, thanks to Mom Central, I’ve been given the chance to try out the new Green Works Laundry Detergent and Stain Remover. If it’s supposed to be safer for the family, it should be safer for the clothes too right?

Well, I have no actual way of checking the threads, or the chemical makeup of things, but I can tell you that these products do quite well in taking out set in stains. I wonder if the stain remover is ever going to be available at warehouse stores?? It did take me a couple of tries to get some marker (apparently not washable) out of some clothing, but it’s gone enough that it’s not even noticeable now.

As for the laundry detergent. It’s HE compatible, which is a big deal for me. It smells amazing. I’m not sure if there are other scents, but this one really smells clean when the wash is done. I love the smell of freshly washed laundry too… I know there are others that would agree with me.

If you would like more information about the Clorox Greenworks line of products, especially their new laundry detergent line, check out http://www.greenworkscleaners.com!

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Clorox Green Works and received a bottle of Green Works Natural Detergent and Stain Remover to facilitate my review and a $20 thank-you gift certificate.”

WiskHE had invited me to New York for their Bubbles & Bubbly event. I wanted to go so badly, but due to scheduling issues, I wasn’t able to attend. I watched the tweets fly through my TweetDeck, and was just a little sad I couldn’t be there with everyone. But I was having a blast making awesome crafts and taking my girls to various Meetups in my area.

Well, the awesome people at WiskHE offered me the chance to host my own Bubbles and Bubbly Party here in North Carolina… Well, of course, I couldn’t turn that opportunity down! We already had a Girls Night In on the calendar, so I asked our lovely Hostess if she wouldn’t mind adding a little bit to the par-tay… She was totally game.

We learned that more bubbles do not always equal cleaner clothes. In fact… if you use regular detergent in an HE washing machine, you can actually be REDEPOSITING dirt and oils into your clothing… Not feeling as clean as you thought??? Yeah.. me too. We had fun with soap and water, and learned a little bit about our Bubble IQ.

But all this hard “work” and “studying” could not go without reward. After the bubbles, came the Bubbly! We were sent two different types of Champagne, one more expensive than the other. Our job was to compare the two (without knowing which was which) and guess which one was the more expensive one. We took a look at the bubbles, learned that the shape and makeup of the glass you serve champagne in is very important to the flavor! Who knew?!?! We also learned that more bubbles are better when it comes to champagne..

Ok.. so let’s get this down..

More bubbles in HE Washer- Bad

More bubbles in Champagne- Excellent

For more information about WiskHE and using HE detergents, Check out LaundryHE.com!

Take a look at how much fun we had!!!

*This House Party was sponsored by WiskHE. They provided the materials and equipment necessary for our House Party, including the gift packages for everyone to take home with them! Thank you so much!!!

**This giveaway is now closed! Thanks to all who entered!**

One of my winners (#23) never replied, so I just re-drew a new winner:

Congrats!

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

32

Timestamp: 2009-11-03 05:28:14 UTC

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

23
7
17

Timestamp: 2009-10-27 03:32:15 UTC

I HATE cleaning the toilet! I don’t like dusting, or washing day old dirty dishes, but I really HATE cleaning the toilet. I hate the dirty, germ filled brushes that sit next to the toilet just waiting to be played with by your child… The only thing that makes cleaning my toilet bowl not so bad is the Clorox Toilet Wand. I have had one posted in each bathroom so I can make cleaning the toilets just a little bit faster and easier.

I’ve been using the Clorox Toilet Wand since it first came out in stores. I’ve tried the others, but they just couldn’t hold up. The ones that dissolved in the toilet dissolved too quickly. The Clorox Toilet Wand held up the best, and got the tough stuff out!

If you haven’t tried them yet, you really should! To make it easier, Beginning October 12, Clorox is offering a printable coupon for $5 off the ToiletWand.  Bloggers can embed this link into their posts to share it with readers.  The link allows up to 2 prints per computer. The coupon is downloadable using the following link:http://bricks.coupons.com/bstart.asp?o=59370&c=CT&p=4JmzOp5L.

If you want to find out more about the Clorox Toilet Wand,  visit Clorox.com, where they can learn more about the ToiletWand and other Clorox products.

Clorox is also sponsoring a Twitter Party Oct 23rd from 10-11pm EST. Prizes for the Twitter Party include 3 Clorox Toilet Wand Kits and (1) $100 Visa GC for a Bathroom Makeover.

Oh, and one more thing…

Clorox is sponsoring this giveaway! They’ve given me the opportunity to give away a Clorox Toilet Wand kit to 3 of my readers!!! All you have to do is  leave a comment telling me your most hated chore around the house!

You may gain additional entries by doing either or all of the following:

*  Subscribe to Mommy Brain Reports via RSS or Email and leave me a comment telling me you did so! If you already do, leave me a comment!

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet this giveaway by clicking the green Retweet button, or by copying the statement below:

Hate cleaning toilets? I do too! Enter 2 win a Clorox Toilet Wand! 3 winners on @MommyBrain’s site! http://bit.ly/3j5Jec

Leave me a comment letting me know each time you tweet!

You may enter as many times as you wish, but you must leave a comment each time for it to count.

Entries will be accepted from October 12-October 22nd @ 5pm EST. Winners will be chosen at random. Winners will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond to claim their prize. Winner must be a resident of the USA. Again, you must leave a comment for each option you choose to enter. *Rules subject to change without notice*

Good Luck!

]]> http://www.mommybrainreports.com/giveaway-clorox-toilet-wand/feed/ 36 http://www.mommybrainreports.com/sunandearth/ http://www.mommybrainreports.com/sunandearth/#comments Fri, 21 Aug 2009 04:01:22 +0000 Monica http://www.mommybrainreports.com/?p=2136

**This giveaway is now closed**

I am always looking for safer cleaning products for my house. Something that I can use around the house, and not have to worry so much about the girls or our dog getting into.

Sun & Earth sent me a large selection of their product line, and they truly are great products. The funny thing about sending me all of these products to try out, I’m actually getting the house cleaner faster since there’s so many to review.

All of their products are Non-toxic, and hypoallergenic, which both get pluses in my book.

The products I was able to try out were the Laundry Detergent and Fabric Softener, both of which smelled very nice, the dryer sheets, and the stain release pen, both seemed to work pretty well. I also tried out the All purpose cleaner and the window cleaner, the dish soap, and dishwasher detergent, and hand soap. I think my favorite product out of all of them is the hand soap though! The cleaning products all worked well… like I’d expect them to, but the hand soap is something I used several times a day, and I noticed it a little bit more. It had a great scent, and no matter how much I washed my hands (which is usually a lot) they didn’t get dry.

Well, Sun & Earth is offering one of my readers the chance to try all of these products in their own home! Yes! You would get everything pictured above!!!

Your Sun & Earth Give Away prize package includes:

(1) 50 oz. 2x Concentrated Laundry Detergent
(1) 22 oz. All Purpose Cleaner
(1) 22 oz. Extra Concentrated Dishwashing Liquid
(1) Automatic Dishwasher Detergent Packs
(1) box of Unscented Dryer Sheets
(1) 40 oz. Ultra Fabric Softener Liquid
(1) 22 oz. Glass Cleaner
(1) 8 oz. Hand Soap
(1) Reusable Sun & Earth Shopping Tote

All you have to do to enter is leave a comment!

You may gain additional entries by doing either or all of the following:

*  Subscribe to Mommy Brain Reports via RSS or Email and leave me a comment telling me you did so! If you already do, leave me a comment!

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet this contest! Leave  me a comment telling me you did!

Enter to win a @SunandEarth Product Prize Package from @MommyBrain. Check it out! http://bit.ly/19lOl5

You may enter as many times as you wish, but you must leave a comment each time for it to count.

Entries will be accepted from August 21st- September 7th @ 12pm EST. Winner will be chosen at random. Winner will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond to claim their prize. Winner must be a resident of the USA. Again, you must leave a comment for each option you choose to enter. *Rules subject to change without notice*

Good Luck!

WINNER:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

58
2
100

Timestamp: 2009-09-08 13:15:08 UTC

I have gone through so many vacuum cleaners in the last 10+ years. Some bagless, some with “power steering”, and some that are nothing more than a stick vac. I even had one vacuum with lights that told me if the floor was still dirty or completely cleaned. They’ve all cleaned up just well enough to make my carpets presentable, but did they really get the dust and dirt that had been pretty much ground into my carpets? Who knows?

Well, Dyson sent me their DC25 Animal to try out and see how well it cleaned up for me. Since we got a dog, his hair has been found all over our floors, and in our carpets in the places he likes to hang out the most. Of course, no matter what house we’ve lived in, it’s always had that standard, beige carpet, and being a completely black dog, his hair really stands out. PLUS he has pretty fine hair that sticks to everything! I needed something that would really get his hair out of the carpet fibers!

I tried by vacuuming a room with my old* vacuum cleaner. It got most of the surface hair up. Not too bad. So, completely curious if Dyson was going to live up to it’s reputation, I went over the same room with my DC25 Animal. Wow. The carpet looked a little lighter. There was no hair in the fiber, and the canister was full of dust I didn’t even know was still in the carpet. This vacuum cleaner really “sucks”!!! I’ve always wanted to say that.. :)

In any case… I was impressed. I’ve since given my old vacuum cleaner away. We also now live in a house with hardwood floors. Here’s the cool part though. I can turn the brushes off and use the Dyson DC25 Animal to pick up on the hardwood floors! I also love the telescoping wand! It helps me reach higher places to get spider webs, etc.. because everyone knows I’m height challenged. The only thing that could be a little bit better on the wand is a shorter pole, a sliding handle, or some part that could bend. When vacuuming the car, or the stairs, it’s a little awkward because the handle is so far from the end of the nozzle. Other than that though, I do love this vacuum cleaner. It’s roller ball technology also makes it a dream to steer in my house. I don’t have to fumble/lift the vacuum to get against the walls, under furniture or around the girls’ toys. It’s very nimble in our “obstacle course” in the house!

If you are in the market for a new vacuum cleaner, I highly recommend checking out the Dyson line of vacuum cleaners. If the others are as good as this one, they’re going to be awesome. Yes, they are a bit more expensive, but I think of it as an investment. After all, cleaner homes make healthier families!

I did a very quick video review for the Dyson DC25 Animal which can be viewed below! Feel free to leave comments here or on YouTube!

* Old-not really. It was about 2 years old.

** This giveaway is now closed. **

Ok, so your clothing washer just died and you went out and got this new washing machine that has a huge HE on the front. You read the instructions and it tells you to use “special HE detergents”… But you still have 1/2 a bottle of the old stuff you’ve been using. You really don’t want to throw it out… so what do you do? And what the heck does HE stand for anyway? You just liked the Cherry Red color it came in and the fact that you could wash your comforters in it! 

Well, HE stands for High Efficiency. It results in both water and energy conservation. HE washers use 20-66% less water than the old agitator machines and since there’s less water to heat up, they use 50-80% less energy too! HE detergents are specially formulated to be low sudsing and wash away easily. 

Still confused??? Check out LaundryHE.com! It’s powered by Wisk, and aims to provide clarity, community interaction and helpful tips from experts on how to improve the laundry experience. You’ll find great information about what HE Laundry Detergent is really all about and whether a Top-Loading or a Front-Loading washer is better for you!!! You can even follow @LaundryHE on Twitter to get some great laundry tips! They even sent me some WiskHE to try out in my HE Washer and I must say… My clothes are coming out clean and they smell good!!! 

WiskHE has also given me 3 bottles of their new detergent to giveaway to some lucky readers!! 

To enter, all you have to do is leave a comment! Tell me about your laundry woes or just say hi!

You may gain additional entries by doing either or all of the following:

 *  Subscribe to Mommy Brain Reports via RSS or Email and leave me a comment telling me you did so!

*  Follow me on Twitter and tweet this contest! Leave  me a comment telling me you did!

Get the real scoop on HE Laundry detergents and win some for your laundry! Follow @MommyBrain and enter to win here: http://bit.ly/oRWaw

You may enter as many times as you wish, but you must leave a comment each time for it to count. 

Entries will be accepted from June 4th- June 18th @ 12pm EST. Winners will be chosen at random. Winners will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond to claim their prize. Winner will be announced on Mommy Brain Live on June 18th.  Winner must be a resident of the USA. Again, you must leave a comment for each option you choose to enter. *Rules subject to change without notice*

Good Luck!

**This giveaway is now closed.**

It is Earth Month, and although I’m a little behind here, I wanted to make sure that you didn’t miss out on an amazing opportunity! Thanks to several sponsors, I, along with many of the other ElevenMoms are able to giveaway a Go Green Bundle of five products! This giveaway will be fast so be sure to enter quickly!

The Bissell Little Green Multi-Purpose Compact Earth-Friendly Deep Cleaner is first on the list of goodies! I have had another version of this machine for many years, and I absolutely love it. It’s perfect for picking up little spills or even some larger messes. It has saved my carpet many times! I always keep solution in the tank and keep it on the ready just in case my girls, or my dog decide to make some sort of mess in the house. It has proven it’s weight in gold several times over. 

The next item is the Brita Water Pitcher. My parents have used these pitchers for quite a long time now, and they love them. I received one to try out, and it is pretty cool. I would greatly suggest one if you don’t already have a water dispenser in your refrigerator. Well, even if you do, it’s nice to have on hand for making a quick pitcher of iced tea or something rather than waiting to fill the pitcher from the fridge. It’s definitely great to have on hand rather than buying bottled water all of the time. 

#3 is the White Cloud Green Earth Paper Towels and Toilet Paper. These products are made from 100% recycled paper, and they are actually pretty soft and absorbent! I didn’t get to keep my set because we just didn’t have any room left in our car for our cross country drive, but my parents did get to keep them, and they did like them. I’ve also heard some really good feedback from other moms as well. I think I’ll just have to run to the store and get some to see for myself how well they really do work! 

Tide Coldwater Liquid Detergent is next on the list of goodies in this Go Green Giveaway! Have you ever thought about how much energy you use up when you wash your clothes in hot water? That water heater works over time to refill for other things like showers, dish washing, etc. Using cold water to wash your colors saves a great amount on the environment and your electric or gas bill! 

And lastly…

if you’ve seen my review/appearance on Good Day Sacramento, you saw that I love my GreenWorks All Purpose Cleaner. It cleans up dried spaghetti sauce with very little effort! It’s made from plant based ingredients so it’s safer for your household and the environment. I honestly think the GreenWorks All purpose cleaner cleans messes easier than dishwashing liquid, etc. do a great job of cleaning those tough messing in our homes without worrying about harmful chemicals since Greenworks is a plant-based cleaner. I’ve stocked up on most of their products. 

So now that you know a little bit about the products and what I think of them… who wants to win this Go Green Bundle and try these products out for yourself??? 

Here’s how you enter!

Leave me a comment stating how you plan on making a difference! What do you do to go Green in your household?

If you’d like additional entries:

You can blog this giveaway including a link back to this contest.

Tweet this contest! Use the following tweet:

Quick! Enter @MommyBrain ‘s Go Green Bundle giveaway! Over $150 in prizes! It ends on April 30th! http://bit.ly/RSUvj  #MBRGreen

Leave me a comment with a link to your tweet!

Entries will be accepted from April 22- April 30th @ 5pm EST. Winner will be announced on this site on May 2nd. Winner will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond to claim their prize. Winner must be a resident of the USA. Again, you must leave a comment for each option you choose to enter. *Rules subject to change without notice*

Good Luck!