Real Reviews: Greased Lightning

Every dad has an endless search for that elusive cleaning product that will "do it all" - grease, mildew, soap scum, dirt, grime, carpets, laundry, or whatever my kid just spilled on the floor. I was hoping to find that product when I signed up for the review of Greased Lightning, a cleaner/degreaser that is available a Wal-Mart, Lowe's, Home Depot, and various other stores around the country.

I have been saving a few jobs for the review of this product.  I let my microwave get messy, I haven't cleaned my sink for a while, I fried up some sausage and bacon for a recipe (leaving the greasy splatter on the glass stovetop, yummy), and even though my wife asked me to scrub out the shower and tub last week, I was able to hold off until I got the product.  I even had a few spots of oil and grease around the house that I had been putting off cleaning, so this product gave me a chance to catch up.  My cleaning efforts were met with mixed results.  This cleaner turned out to be an excellent degreaser, but let me wanting more.  Check out the photo evidence.




First, I did some degreasing.  The microwave door was looking terrible.  I think there was some spaghetti sauce, Thai food and maybe some exploded pizza.  Anyway, Greased Lightning did a fantastic job on that messy door.

Microwave door before.. 

Microwave door after!

I had also cooked some bacon and sausage on my glass top stove.  Greased Lightning took care of the new grease, but the older, darker rings that form around the burners were not cleaned up.  This is one of the hardest things in the house to clean.  I have found that dish soap, almost boiling water and the sharp edge of a knife are the only things that help to get rid of them.

Greasy glass stove top...

No more grease!

Here is where I ran into trouble with this product.  It was great at degreasing, but it also claimed that it would clean up soap scum.  So I decided to test it out.  I cleaned the kitchen sink where the soap bottle sits, and you can still see that there is some residue left after the first application.  I also tried to clean up some of that hard water crusty stuff that gathers in the nooks and crannies of our sinks without much success.

Ewww... it's all soapy.

Almost, but not quite.

Hard water buildup on chrome and steel. 

Chrome is clean, but the steel still has a thick residue.

There is no doubt that the strength of this product is its degreasing power.  Even tough-to-clean truck grease was cleaned spotless in one swipe.

Don't let my wife see this! Truck grease on our dinner plates.

I'm really glad that worked.

So, is Greased Lightning the Holy Grail of house cleaners?  Not in my opinion.  I do like it for its degreasing power.  There were other bloggers that reviewed this product and also had great results cleaning mildew, particularly on outdoor items like the vinyl on their camper.

The bottle also says that Greased Lightning can be used as a laundry pre-treat, but due to the warning labels to test in a hidden area before using on carpet, I thought it best not to try the product on laundry. Maybe I will try to clean some old rags first before I put it on the wife's Sunday best.

Will it cut grease?  Absolutely.  Will it cut your cleaning time and budget?  Probably not.  You will either have to use repeat applications or use other products to get the jobs done that this one can't handle.  If you do run into a lot of greasy jobs, it is worth trying out.  There are coupons available on the Greased Lightning webpage.  Also, if anyone has found the Holy Grail of cleaning products, please let me know!

This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media.  Thoughts are my own.  I was provided with this product and a coupon in exchange for the review.