How to Clean a Mirror with Newspaper

The problem with cleaning glass or mirrors is that more often than not you cannot get a perfect streak free finish.

Using furniture polish is actually the worst product that you could use to clean them as most furniture polishes contain wax which although great on woods and plastics is not really suitable for glass surfaces. The wax in furniture polish leaves a coating on the glass which makes it almost impossible to have a streak free finish.

Using water and a cloth to clean your glass surfaces is also a good option but if you let the water dry out too quickly it leaves a residue on the glass that can be quite difficult to remove.

Surprisingly the best cheapest and most trusted way to clean windows and mirrors is to use some old newspaper and water for a guaranteed shine with virtually no streaks.

Newspaper is not only very effective method for cleaning glass or mirrors but it is also a quick and easy way to get them clean.

You will need two dry sheets of newspaper and one wet sheet for each glass or mirrored surface that you plan to clean.

Firstly you take the wet piece of newspaper ans scrunch it up like a cloth, and wipe briskly in a circular motion over the surface area of the glass or mirror, try to ensure that you get into all of the edges and corners. When you have washed the glass surface take a dry piece of newspaper and dry the glass or mirrored surface again using a brisk circular movement.

Next take your second piece of dried news paper and use it to polish the mirror or glass again a circular movement ensuring that you cover the whole of the surface; It is at this point that you should start to notice just how clean your glass or mirror surface has become and you should also notice the lack of streaks.

Tip 1: add a little white vinegar to your water to guarantee a streak free finish and to repel spiders and flying insects.

Tip 2: If you are in a rush, you can spray water onto the glass surface and buff it dry with a dry sheet of newspaper.

The first thing that you will notice when you dip your scrunched up newspaper into the water is that the newspaper actually repels the water; instead of soaking in the water like a sponge, newspaper has a coating of oil which allows the water to run off.

Because the newspaper repels the water, it stops the newspaper from breaking up, which means that none of the fibers or lint in the newspaper will break off and stick to the mirror or glass surface.

If you are using a cloth to clean your glass, you often find small cloth fibers left behind on the finished surface.

Newspaper inks are often water based which break down with water and you would think that when using newspaper to clean glass or mirrors the print would actually leave a mark on the surface. The ink may come off the newspaper when you are cleaning but it is because the ink is water based that the dry newspaper takes any ink that has run back off the surface.