Seems like everyone has a few cans of this stuff in the garage or basement. Do you think WD-40 lives up to its hype? Seems people either love it or hate it.
I’ve heard it’s a good lubricant. I’ve also heard it’s a lousy lubricant.
I’ve heard it helps prevent corrosion. I’ve also heard it does nothing to prevent corrosion.
I’ve heard it’s a good penetrant for loosening rusty bolts. I’ve heard Liquid Wrench works much better.
One thing you can’t deny: it smells kinda good. 
Its carpet equivalent, Spot Shot, is the best thing I’ve ever found for getting stains out of carpets.
Personally, I’ll take CRC 5-56 or Tri-Flow over WD-40 any day.
I only use it for squeaky doors, and it seems to fix those okay.
My grandmother swore it helped with the arthritis in her knees.
Don’t ask… I don’t know.
I swear by the stuff. But you have to know its limitations. It can’t replace oil, but it can break stuck parts free. Use it where it is appropriate, and it’s a miracle worker.
WD stands for Water Displacement, and the -40 indicates that it is the 40th attempt at formulation.
It gets silly putty out of carpeting.
If you spray some on your shovel, the snow won’t stick and form a giant clump. Then again, cooking spray can be used for the same purpose.
and crayon…
And to preserve you carved pumpkin. I personally haven’t tried this, but the guy who does extreme pumpkins swears by it.
It makes great mosquito repellent. Poisonous, sure, but worth it when being attacked en masse in Canada’s north with no other option…
It also does a decent job of getting roof patching tar off your hands.
love it, but yeah, as noted, know it’s limitations
Yeah, I never figured it did much, but she was convinced.
Add in a lighter, and it’s great for taking out spiders.
And curtains as I recall…
Twice a year I’ll walk around the garage spraying everything in sight with it… garage door track wheels and hinges, car door hinges and locks, yard tools, the cat, door locks in the house, bicycle parts (along with Tri-Flow), saw blades, etc.
I’ve been wondering about the stuff recently, too.
I am reasonably handy around the house, and do almost all of my own vehicle maintenance/repairs. But despite this I’ve never in my life owned a can of WD-40 - and have never run into a situation where I felt this absence.
When others speak of its wonders, I begin to question my own practices.
It’s kind of like my Dremel. Really cool to have, yeah, but why do I actually use it so rarely?