You say lazy, I say smart, but to each his own. I wouldn't rely on anti-virus software or "cleaners" that claim to remove malware either. Most important thing to do it to keep everything updated to the latest version especially Windows and your browser.
I say lazy because unless you reinstall windows to a clean drive, you still have the junk around. And if you do wipe the drive, you have to copy back all the data, which can still have viruses included (and many of the virus cleaners
do work). Just reinstalling is like a flash diet, you may lose weight for a while, but if behavior doesn't change, you'll gain it right back.
IMNSHO the most important thing is not to bring down the malware in the first place (usually by not clicking weirdo links or opening funny email attachments). Second thing is to use good anti-virus/firewall software to block them before they can get a toe-hold (in the last month, mine has filtered four viruses and 300+ spam out of email, and that's after my ISP's filters); it's easier to block them than remove. Keeping everything updated helps quite a bit, as does a better-than-stock firewall.
I may be wrong about all that, but with over 8 windoze computers in use, I haven't had any malware or virus problems in
years. Kaspersky Internet Security on the traveling laptops, Windows Defender on the desktops, and the entire home-office network is behind a Netscreen firewall. Also Firefox browser with the NoScript plug-in; Chrome incognito windows for unknown sites, etc.
It's working for me.
!
