With so many projects to do around the house, who doesn’t need a helping hand? Imagine lifting heavy furniture without breaking a sweat. Or getting a carpet stain out
without lifting a finger. Or even fixing a leaky gutter with just a spray of a can. Consumer
Reports tested three products that are supposed to make life easier.
The infomercial for Flex Seal says it’s “perfect for all your home repairs,” and it shows
a screen door that’s treated with Flex Seal and used as the bottom of a boat. The boat
floats!
Consumer Reports made its own small boat with a screened bottom, sprayed it with
Flex Seal, then launched it on a “pond” in one of Consumer Reports’ labs. The boat
didn’t sink. But when it came to Flex Seal’s gutter claim, the results were disappointing.
Three coats of Flex Seal failed to seal a gutter’s vertical seams.
Then there’s a product called EZ Moves for moving furniture. It consists of special
sliding discs and a lever that you use to lift the furniture so that you can slide the discs
underneath. The infomercial says “… your furniture simply glides across any surface.”
But Consumer Reports found that not all moves were “EZ.” The lever couldn’t get under
a heavy table. Refrigerators can pose a problem, too. And if the furniture is against the
wall, it can be very difficult to get to the back corner of it.
How about Bissell’s Stomp ’n Go carpet stain remover? Its Web video says “Just place
over the stain, stomp to release the stain-fighting formula and leave the pads to do the
work for you.” Consumer Reports dirtied a nice white untreated piece of carpet with
coffee, French dressing, tomato sauce, and red wine. Following the directions, the
stains were blotted, then stomped. After 30 minutes some of the Stomp ’n Go stains
were still pretty obvious.
Also included in the test, another carpet-stain product from Bissell—the OxyPro spray
stain remover. It does a better job removing some stains, such as French dressing. And
stain for stain it costs less than the Stomp ’n Go.
Complete Ratings and recommendations on all kinds of products, including appliances,
cars & trucks, and electronic gear, are available on Consumer Reports’ website.
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