Don’t get me wrong, I love reviewing a luxury beauty product, but when I was asked if I’d like to put to the test a raft of innovative cleaning products from cult household brand, Dr.Beckmann, I jumped at the chance!
Call me sad, but even before the pandemic sent my cleaning instincts through the roof, I’ve always had a slightly nerdy satisfaction from finding new and interesting (?) cleaning products to whizz around the house with.
There’s something strangely appealing about stocking up on easy-to-use products, which bring the promise of a spick and span house. (If anyone loves vintage movies, this feeling is perfectly bought to life in Doris Day’s iconic 1950s Calamity Jane. The scene when she cleans and impossibly ‘fixes up’ a country shack, to the tune of ‘A Woman’s Touch‘, may be stuck in a sexist time-warp, but nonetheless could be perhaps the first and original interior ‘big reveals’ and is just one of my favourite movie moments.) It brings the sort of cleaning – and transformative – feelings of satisfaction that I’m getting at.
With its reassuring hospital-like blue-and-white logo and instantly recognisable packaging, Dr Beckmann has been a go-to label for specialist cleaning products, across Europe for the past 30 years.
The brand’s range of high performing, effective products are constantly being developed to provide the very best specialist cleaners available. Recently launched, for example, and making a hit on Instagram due to its rising-foam action is the Power-Foaming Toilet Cleaner, £3. You empty the sachet into the loo and the blue foam grows quickly – like something out of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (except in the loo!) to fill it up, deep cleaning in all the crevices, as it does. It is a fast and convenient way to deep clean your toilet bowl and it also leaves behind an ultra-fresh fragrance.
The innovative formula targets beneath the surface and develops a deep self-activating foam aiding the effective removal of tough stains, odours and limescale. Add hot water to your toilet before using the product to increase the activity of the foam.
Dr.Beckmann Service-it Deep Clean Washing Machine Cleaner, £2.99, meanwhile, kills 99.9% of microorganisms and bacteria, leaving your machine smelling fresh and hygienically clean and tackling the dirt that you can’t see.
You can sometimes forget that the machine which cleans for you also should be cleaned to combat build-up and bacteria, and this is when this easy-to-use and hassle-free product comes in. You just pour the liquid into the drum – with no washing, of course – and then put on a cycle. It goes to work removing dirt and grime, and eliminating limescale on the machine’s element (this improves efficiency and protects your washing machine against future breakdowns). Made with active carbon, it acts like a magnet to all dirt and odours.
Next up is the Dr.Beckmann Carpet Stain Remover, £3.59, which if you haven’t tried it – is a game changer. I’m always smudging bits of make-up into my silver-grey bedroom carpet, and this has worked on all these areas like a dream. It uses an oxi-powered formula to remove tough stains and odours from upholstery and carpets, and can be used in the home and the car. The brush attachment is genius and means that it goes deep to leave carpets, rugs, and things like cushions and sofas, looking like new again.
When it comes to clothes washing, sometimes I feel like I’m putting in more products than I am clothes – I’m kinda addicted to laundry -aid products! But these Colour & Dirt Collector Sheets, £3.20, are my absolute essentials (particularly after experiencing one too many grey or pink sheets/former white-t-shirts!) I use one in practically every wash, unless it really is strictly all one-colour. They help to keep clothes’ colours brighter for longer and prevent colour running from an errant sock! One sheet per wash will collect the dirt and dye that can come out of your clothes, transferring to others and causing colour loss and dullness of fabrics.
Finally – completing my ‘DIY essential home-cleaning kit’ is the Dr.Beckmann Pre-Wash Stain Devils, £2.29, which is a lifesaver if you’ve ever spilt red wine or tomato sauce on something precious. It contains a unique ‘Triple Active Complex’ to remove stains, yet is gentle on fabrics. The powerful gel is suitable for all washable clothes of all colours. It even works at low temperatures and on short wash cycles. It also has a brush applicator for you to apply it before washing – just leave it on for 10-15 minutes and out damn spot! (Shakespeare would be pleased.)
*This review is based on press samples
