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Vim and Ajax

(46 Posts)
mrsmopp Fri 03-May-13 23:34:13

Not seen these scouring powders for ages so assume they have been withdrawn. It's a pity because there are times when I wish I still had some. Does anyone know if they can still be got anywhere. Don't say ebay!!

JessM Fri 03-May-13 23:37:01

Been replaced by more expensive products in more wasteful packaging? have you noticed that you can only get plain (cheap) bleach in big supermarkets these days?

Ella46 Sat 04-May-13 08:19:48

Sainsbury and Tesco both still sell Ajax/Vim, I wouldn't be without them.

Stansgran Sat 04-May-13 08:37:24

Can anyone tell me who sells Flash gel with bleach? I know you can get a Flash spray with bleach but the gel is brilliant as it doesn't wander. I used to get it in strange unlikely shops like a small chemist or the Yorkshire trading company. Haven't seen it for ages.

dorsetpennt Sat 04-May-13 09:19:49

Waitrose sells Vim in their 'housecleaning section. It's now in a plastic container.

janeainsworth Sat 04-May-13 09:24:21

I used to like Flash powder. It had a lovely smell sad
Jess agree with you about the expensive products in wasteful packaging, But if people didn't buy them, supermarkets wouldn't sell them.
Why do young people have to spray everything?? confused

sunseeker Sat 04-May-13 09:34:55

As one of my jobs at home was to clean the bathroom (which I hated because my father and brother never cleaned the bath) I can still recall the smell of Vim.

Ariadne Sat 04-May-13 09:44:31

But didn't it eventually take the surface off baths and sinks? I seem to remember it did...

gillybob Sat 04-May-13 09:51:10

My mum always used to have a tin of Vim standing just behind the loo. When my son was about 3 she complained that Vim wasn't what it used to be and that it went solid very quickly. After much investigation my little monkey of a son admitted to "playing this funny game at grandmas where you see if you can fit a your wee in the little holes in the top of a tin" shock

janeainsworth Sat 04-May-13 09:55:44

Gilly we used to live on the 9th floor of a block of flats in Hongkong, which had a small balcony off the sitting room.
I will leave you to guess what my little monkey of a son decided to do when he was attention-seeking after the birth of yet another little sister!!

gillybob Sat 04-May-13 09:58:14

grin janeainsworth I think us girls were short changed in the wee wee fun department don't you?

janeainsworth Sat 04-May-13 10:07:07

Quite so, Gilly grin

annodomini Sat 04-May-13 10:34:00

Abrasive cleaners aren't good for stainless steel sinks and many baths are now made of some kind of plastic which I also think doesn't tolerate abrasives. I sometimes use Barkeeper's Friend on my worktops - it's mildly abrasive and takes stains off perfectly.

Ariadne Sat 04-May-13 11:16:27

I think someone here put me on to Barkeeper's friend (might have been you, anno!) and it really worked wonders on a stained stainless (!) steel sink. (I had splashed Silverdip on it.) wonder where I put it.....

yogagran Sat 04-May-13 13:35:34

I used to like Gumption. A tin of it was always on the bathroom shelf when I was little

Trish45 Mon 20-May-13 19:23:42

Thank you for the tips, ladies. I have looked all over the place for Vim or Ajax including Tesco, Asda, Wilkies, pound shops, Supersaver, but alas never thought of Waitrose [maybe because I never go there as there is a hill to climb as big as Everest]!! I did look at Amazon and they have tons. Barkeeper's friend has been mentioned, and could you please tell me if this is easy to find.

j08 Mon 20-May-13 19:34:22

Lakeland have Barkeepers Friend.

j08 Mon 20-May-13 19:35:28

barkeepers friend

And Amazon have it.

Marelli Mon 20-May-13 21:23:35

Homebargains or Savers both have Vim and Ajax. Fine for sinks but not for bath as I never seem to be able to get rid of all the grainy bits (ouch!) smile

Trish45 Mon 20-May-13 21:40:27

Thank you, but I don't recognize those shops [I live in Ramsgate] although there is one near the pet shop called Home something

merlotgran Mon 20-May-13 22:22:47

Astonish is the new Gumption. You can get it in Wilkinsons. It's the only thing that gets the copper bottoms of my saucepan nice and shiny.

harrigran Mon 20-May-13 23:38:32

Barkeepers friend is a must for modern kitchens, I was worried the first time I spilt curry sauce on my white Corian worktop, but a damp cloth and Barkeepers retuned it to pristine.
When the builder was finished in my second home he tidied up and cleaned the bathroom, sadly he cleaned the brand new plastic bath with a generous amount of Vim. My new bathroom fittings are Villeroy and Boch and nobody gets through the door with cleaning materials unless I have checked them out.

harrigran Mon 20-May-13 23:40:20

Retuned ? of course I meant returned to pristine condition.

seasider Mon 27-May-13 00:37:50

My first part time job, when I was still at school, was at Woolworths. I had to write the price on tubs of Vim & Ajax and individual rolls of Izal toilet paper. I then had to build a pyramid of toilet rolls! We were on the first floor close to the stairs so we used to "accidently" drop some toilet rolls down the stairs so we could sneak down and have a quick look at the Miners make-up! grin

LizG Mon 27-May-13 07:22:51

Like you Stansgran I always used Flash gel because it was good and easier on the old' arthritic hands when I can't keep working the sprays. I wrote to Flash (not sure but I think it's Lever Bros) and was told it was no longer being made because few people bought it. If you take something off the shelves then it is unlikely people will buy it. Profit before what's best every time for big business I'm afraid.