MuddieMae's Profile

@ ASTRID COOK, formaldehyde is part of the formula of melamine foam, but that doesn't mean they're necessarily dangerous. Elemental sodium explodes in water, and is so sensitive it will sometimes explode from contact with water vapor in the air. Chlorine gas will kill you. Put them together and you get table salt.

@PARNASSUS, Magic Erasers work entirely by mechanical action, not chemical - they're basically micro-grit sandpaper. I wouldn't worry to much about them being "bad".

We use two "traditional" cleaners - an abrasive with bleach in the bathroom and Pledge dusting spray because my partner is allergic to many things. Other than that, I clean practically everything with the Mrs. Meyers all purpose cleaner concentrate.

@ MSPICKY, landlord-tenant law is typically a combination of local and state ordinance in the US, so it's not necessarily accurate to say all landlords are only required to provide "useable and safe electrical outlets to run the major appliances provided with your unit". That may be true in your location, but in my city, landlords are required to provide a specified number of outlets per room and all the wiring has to be up to the most recent electrical code. And that's in any existing building - the specifications for new buildings are more stringent.

Tenants would do well to actually look up their local laws instead of relying on their landlord's claims, their friend's opinions, or strangers on the internet that may or may not even live in the same country.

@ carolinazhangdesign, I think that's a pretty bad idea. Many states don't allow tenants to repair-and-deduct, and those states that do allow it have specific rules about notifying the landlord and giving them some time to make non-emergency repairs. Even for emergency repairs you usually have to give them 24 hours before you can repair-and-deduct. Depending on how much of a stickler your landlord is, you could be assessed a penalty for short-paying your rent. And you would probably damage your relationship with the landlord. Is it really worth the slim possibility that you'll get away with it and save a whopping $40?