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Ovens & Ranges

The $5 cleaning gadget you didn't know you needed

The tiny tool nixes grime in even the tightest corners

This cleaning gadget is a must-have Credit: Getty Images

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There’s a reason you can’t get to the food wedged between the oven and the countertop. It’s the same reason you can’t get rid of the soap scum stuck in the grout lines between your tub and the tile: you simply don’t have the right tool for the job.

Enter the Lil Chizler, a small silicone tool that scrapes and lifts dirt and grime from the most hard-to-reach places. It doesn’t look like much—it looks more like an oversized and flexible guitar pick, actually. But the tiny tool is mighty.

The Lil Chizler was first produced as a simple tool for safely scraping ice off windshields, but its use didn’t stay one-dimensional for long. This small tool (about the same size as a credit card) can remove burnt-on food from pots and pans, soap scum from fiberglass tubs, tarnish from hardware, oven grease and grime, and even gum from carpets.

Lil Chizler
Credit: Amazon

It has a small divot in the center that makes it easy to get a good, strong grip on the tool, despite its compact size, and its subtle flexibility makes quick work of cleaning hard-to-reach places both in and outside the house.

What you can use it on

Recently, after a particularly easy battle with my dirty stovetop (when do you ever hear someone say that?!), I took the Lil Chizler outside to get our patio furniture summer-ready. They were coated in sap from the trees, but even that was no match for my prized cleaning gadget. That sticky stuff scraped right off the seats and tabletop, and a swipe of olive oil cleaned the Chizler in a flash when I finished.

The best way to clean your kitchen
Credit: Getty Images

I even managed to get a big wad of candle wax off of the delicate brass bar cart I was too afraid I’d ruin with a straight razor. Thanks to the Chizler's smooth plastic construction, it didn’t scratch, nick, or otherwise damage the mirrored surface. It works on glass, metal, wood, soft marble countertops, or delicate Teflon pots and pans, too.

Other surprising uses include removing labels from bottles and jars, chipping paint from windows and doors, and even stripping wax off of surfboards. The Lil Chizler can be used to open mail or packages and apply caulk or grout, too.

When you’re done cleaning, stash the Lil Chizler in your junk drawer, or even in your glove box or wallet—you never know when you’ll need it!

Get two Lil Chizlers for $4.20 on Amazon

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