The $5 Precision Tool I Use to Clean Grout Lines and Other Hard-to-Reach Spots

WD-40 is one of those useful household products that I’ve always had on hand since I moved into my first apartment. Squeaky hinge? Get out the WD-40. Stuck drawer? Hit it with some WD-40. Rusty screw won’t turn? You get the picture.

Up until now, I’ve always used the original aerosol formula — that is until I discovered the brand’s newest offering: the WD-40 Precision Pen. Although I’ve been accustomed to using the spray for more years than I care to say, I was excited to try the latest no-fuss, no-muss version.

The WD-40 Precision Pen is the original WD-40 formula in an easy-to-use pen. It features an angled fiber tip that makes it easy to apply the liquid lubricant in small or tight spots. It looks and feels like a regular marker, too. To use it, you simply remove the cap, place the tip on the surface, and press down several times to release the liquid. For a continuous flow, press and hold the tip down as you apply. Replace the cap tightly when not in use.

As luck would have it, I didn’t have any squeaky hinges or stuck drawers in my house to try the pen out. But lubricating joints isn’t the only way to use WD-40. In fact, one of the reasons I was so excited to try out the Precision Pen was for WD-40’s alternate use: cleaning. Here’s how well the WD-40 Precision Pen worked at cleaning things around my home.

WD-40 isn’t meant to take the place of a good bathroom cleaner, of course, but if you’ve got some stubborn grime in a spot that’s too hard to reach with a sponge or cloth, reach for the Precision Pen. The bane of my cleaning existence is the backsplash of my bathroom vanity. Even though I wipe the surface down frequently, water collects and discolors the grout line. I drew a line over the grout with my pen, let it sit for about 10 minutes, then wiped it clean with a damp cloth. 

I had some tough spots around my kitchen sink drain that I just couldn’t get to with a sponge, so I tried a spritz of WD-40 in the tight spots, then wiped with a damp cloth. It worked! I even tried some on the side of my refrigerator door — a spot that I never remember to clean — and those smudges came off quite easily, too. Of course, I did a spot test to be sure it wouldn’t damage the surface, and you should, too.

Perhaps the best use I’ve found for the WD-40 Precision Pen — and why I’ll always keep one in a kitchen drawer — is to remove the sticky residue from labels and price tags. 

I put my pen to use on what I thought was a formidable task: to remove the entire sticker on the bottom of a Bath & Body Works candle jar. I tried to peel off as much of the label as I could, which turned out to be not much at all because it was so sticky. So I applied the pen to the label and let the liquid soak in for a minute. Then, I gently scrubbed the label with a damp paper towel. It was very satisfying to see the label come off the glass completely, like it was never there in the first place. 

Removing stickers and price tags is reason enough for me to keep a WD-40 Precision Pen in my kitchen drawer at all times. While I plan to replace my can of WD-40 anyway, I have a feeling I’ll be reaching for the pen more often in the future. 

Buy: WD-40 Precision Pen, $4.98