I tried a popular window track hack and it was a fail

9honey Living’s The Wash Up: Your 30-day spring cleaning guide is a month-long series aimed at making your annual house clean easier with hacks and expert advice.
A popular window and sliding door track cleaning hack has been shared on social media for at least a few years now and to me it’s always seemed a little too good to be true.
So when I realised all of my window and sliding door tracks were filthy with years of dust, dirt and debris build up I knew it was the perfect time to try this trick.
But in case it didn’t work out – optimistic aren’t I? – I also had a handy tool that I’ve been eager to try ready to go.
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After trying the hack and the tried and true method, it’s safe to say there was a clear winner that’ll be my go-to from now on.
This trick involves a kitchen sponge, a permanent marker, some scissors and soapy water.
I assumed any sponge would do the trick but you really need the yellow foamy type that tears easily, not the one that’s only soft when you wet it.
Since I didn’t realise only one sponge specific sponge will do and had another type on hand I tried it anyway, but it didn’t fit my window tracks and just pushed dust aside on my sliding door tracks.
So I went and bought the correct sponges and tried again on a different window.
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The first thing you need to do for the hack is place the sponge over your window or sliding door tracks and use a marker to mark where each raised section of the sliding door track is.
Then cut across the sponge to make separate sections. A Stanley knife was suggested for this but I found it easier and safer to use a pair of scissors.
Next dampen the sponge then line it up over the sliding door tracks, push it down and pull it across.
Very quickly I realised that my bathroom window tracks are not even or shallow enough for a sponge with lines cut in it to thoroughly clean.
I also had to maneuver the sponge a bit to get it to cover as much area as possible.
The hack kind of cleaned one part of the window tracks but just resulted in some gloopy clumps.
It worked better on the sliding door tracks which had slightly wider and deeper tracks than the window.
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But I had to push the sponge down and pull it back and forth multiple times to actually clean it. And even then there were wet dirt clumps in the corners and other hard debris that didn’t come up (plus some sponge chunks that fell off).
Basically it’s a fail because the hack assumes you have very shallow, even window tracks that aren’t covered in dust and debris and just need a quick wipe over. Though whether marking and cutting a sponge is easier than just wiping with a cloth I’m not sure.
So save yourself the time and just do it the old-fashioned way.
One of the golden rules of cleaning is to dust first and that’s one thing the hack above was missing. You really need to get all of the dirt and dust off before using the sponge.
Of course, a vacuum with a small attachment seems logical but isn’t narrow enough to get into all the nooks and crannies. Some people attach a toilet paper tube and push in one end for a really narrow vacuum head, but that’s just unnecessary and fiddly.
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So instead start by agitating the dirt and dust using a brush like a toothbrush or grout brush to get into all those nooks and crannies.
I tried a tool designed specifically for this task – Oates brush cleaning trackbuster from Bunnings For $6.49 it made quick and easy work of lifting up all that mess so that it could be easily vacuumed up.
After the fail of the sponge hack it felt like a dream to use and the long bristles really got right into stubborn corners – very satisfying.
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After vacuuming, I dampened a microfibre cloth in warm soapy water and wiped over the window tracks.
The cloth was great because I could manipulate it to fit small spaces that the sponge couldn’t.
Then I dried the tracks with a fresh cloth and finished by wiping the window sill with the cloth and the soapy water mixture, followed by another cloth to dry.
It might not be a cool viral hack but the standard window track cleaning method really is best.
Even though it’s not a quick trick, having a new cleaning tool to try does actually make the prospect of cleaning much more fun.
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Once you’ve cleaned your window and sliding door tracks and dusted the window with a cloth, you can go ahead and clean the windows. Doing it this way means you won’t end up with a dirty gloopy mess at the bottom of your freshly cleaned windows.
But if you can, wait to do this task on an overcast day as the sun will dry the cleaning solution too quickly, leaving streaks.
For a quick, effective and affordable DIY solution you can use a little dishwashing liquid and water, vinegar and water or all three together.
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Either spray the cleaning solution on the window or wet a cloth or a window cleaning tool and start scrubbing. If using a cloth go in circular motions from left to right starting from the top and then going down.
At this point you can rinse off the solution with water or you can just jump straight to using a squeegee to remove the excess water.
The quickest way to use a squeegee is to hold it sideways in the top left-hand corner and pull across to the right hand side and then continue to go downwards using a snake motion or a squished letter S shape.
Wipe up the remaining water and suds on the edges and any splashes on the ground using a cloth or old towel.
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