Sidetracked by a Certain Tub Enclosure

Anita Mailberg of Bellflower is looking for an Up & Away bathtub enclosure , which has a track on its side instead of on top; so far all her efforts to find one have ended up dead in the water. Can you help before Mailberg has to take a bath on this one, or will her efforts to come clean be derailed forever?

Judy Vallembois of Monrovia is looking for acid-free tissue paper , so that she can avoid brown spots when she wraps her linens. Can you help Vallembois wrap this problem up, or will she always be seeing spots before her eyes because she has failed the acid test?

Carol Chew of Northridge needs to locate 90-inch round, flannel-backed vinyl tablecloths in solid colors (no patterns); the stores she has been to no longer carry them. Can you help before Chew really feels she’s getting the runaround, or will she have to pay somebody under the table to keep from going in circles?

Reader-to-Reader Help Line: Marilyn at (213) 485-5301 has an antique compact case that requires 2x2-inch powder puffs and has no idea where to get them. Please be a square and make sure that Marilyn doesn’t waste any rounds of powder. . . . Barbara at (818) 353-6566 is desperately looking for a discontinued baby crib for twins ; it was made by Lullabys and is Model No. 202045, with maple finish, two drawers underneath and a fold-down railing. Please spring into action on the double and make sure that Barbara doesn’t go off her rocker. . . . Hannah at (714) 991-5558 is missing the first two pages of an old Little Golden Book titled “The Golden Egg Book,” first published in 1947. If you can help by photocopying these two pages and notifying Hannah, she’ll consider you a very good egg.

Note: The Reader-to-Reader Help Line is only for one-time items or for products no longer available in stores. And you must give us written permission to publish your telephone number, so that others may contact you directly.

For Jane Larrabee of Sherman Oaks, who was looking for warm undergarments to wear on a cruise into southern waters, we have help from Mrs. James Arrowood of San Gabriel, who recommends the beautiful silk underwear in the catalogue by Norm Thompson, P. O. Box 3999, Portland, Ore. 97208.

We also have news for Mrs. Max Snyder of Calabasas and P. J. Calciana of Los Angeles, both of whom wanted to get their hands on some Safety Etch liquid, which makes showers and tubs slip-proof. Not one reader came up with a source for Safety Etch, but we heard from three manufacturers and/or distributors of similar products. Roether Construction Co., 807 S. Bonnie Brae St., Los Angeles, Calif. 90057, (213) 380-1940, has the Guardian Slip Retardant chemical treatment, which is applied by trained applicators and is warranted for seven years. Donald Reinke of Orbis International, P. O. Box 112, Santa Paula, Calif. 93060, (805) 933-3507, says the company is the West Coast distributor for a paper-thin non-slip surface for baths and showers; this product is not yet in stores (Orbis deals mainly with hotels and motels), but Reinke will sell enough of this surface to cover a tub or shower for $15.95 plus $1 postage. And Bo Roos of G & R Marketing, 7109 Primrose Way, Carlsbad, Calif. 92009, (619) 438-3083, distributes a liquid called No Slip that chemically changes the surface of a shower to make it slip-proof; it is applied with a sponge or rubber glove and is said to be effective in a few minutes.

Herb Hain cannot answer mail personally but will, space permitting, respond in this column to readers who need--or have--helpful information. Write (do not telephone) to You Can Help!, You section, The Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.