Have you ever used a Magic Eraser? It is a very impressive cleaning tool.  In fact, the Magic Eraser does seem to be, well, magic. So much so that it makes many people a little nervous. Most people’s first reaction is wow, what’s in that thing?  Magic Eraser is the Mr. Clean branded version of melamine foam.  Scotch-Brite also offers a similar product called the Easy Erasing Pad.

Melamine foam is manufactured by BASF. It has been used for over twenty years as insulation and soundproofing. It was discovered that melamine foam products can also be used for many different cleaning jobs; such as: removing crayon, glue, grease and magic marker from painted walls and wood finishings.

Melamine foam, while effective on many surfaces, can be harmful to some. The reason for this is because the melamine essentially works as a very fine sandpaper which can finely scratch certain surfaces. For example, the foam won’t have an adverse affect on a hard surface such as glass or even a treated wooden table, it may however take the shine off of less rigid material such as a shiny plastic. The melamine foam also has a rather short lifespan, as it wears away much like the eraser on a pencil.

Magic Eraser

Additional Resources:

20 New Ways to use the magic eraser.

Does Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Causes Chemical Burn?