Cleaning Up the Brass Sections
Question: We live about a half-mile from the beach and have found that the brass hardware fittings on the French doors and windows on our house have become badly corroded, due I think to the salt air. What will get rid of this and prevent it in the future?
G.B.
San Clemente
Answer: “There are three popular products used to clean outdoor brass,” says Gary Lillge of Crown Hardware in Corona del Mar. “Everyone seems to have their own preferences, but I think they work the same way. Never Dull comes in a can, and you just remove a piece of it and rub it into the brass. Brite Boy is the choice of many boat owners; it tends to be good for heavy marine use.
“Simi Chrome is a German product that comes in a toothpaste tube and is squeezed onto the surface and rubbed in. Once you get the brass clean, you can seal it with a spray lacquer or polyurethane, which will protect it from the salt.”
Q: I have a coffee table with a 1/2-inch-thick glass top. I’d like to mount a permanent vase in the center of the table, and want to know what type of drill bit will cut through glass cleanly.
T.M.
La Palma
A: “Use a glass-cutting bit, which has a diamond tip and an arrow shape,” says Wayne O’Conner of Ganahl Lumber Co. in Anaheim. “You drill straight down into the glass, and with a sharp bit you shouldn’t have a problem with chipping or breaking. You may want to practice using some scrap glass before you attempt using it on the table. To smooth out the edges after drilling, use an emery cloth carefully around the hole.”
Q: In trying to work out a household budget. I was wondering what electrical appliances cost the most to run and what can I do to reduce my electric bill?
E.D.
Costa Mesa
A: “The biggest energy-users are your washer and dryer, lighting, and air conditioning,” says Brenden Lamberth of Greybar Electric Supply in Anaheim, “and, surprisingly, the microwave oven. Despite their size, they use a lot of electricity. If you do a great deal of your cooking with it, you’ll see your bill go up.
“To keep air-conditioning costs down, make sure your home is well insulated, use a new filter each year and only turn it on when necessary.
“Reduce your lighting costs by installing energy-saving bulbs, such as the new compact fluorescents. If you have fluorescent kitchen or garage fixtures, you can install energy-saving ballasts. These may be a little costly, but your energy savings will more than make up for it.”
Q: About six years ago we had a white ceramic tile floor installed in our kitchen. In the center of the floor, we recently found that one of the tiles is cracked, leaving a gap of about 1/4-by-3 inches. Unfortunately, we have no more extras to replace it with. Is there a product we can use to fill in the crack that will make it look reasonably OK?
H.Y.
Huntington Beach
A: “Anything that you use to fill it in is going to be just as obvious as the crack,” says Tony Beeber of Anaheim Centsible Tile. “I’ve seen people use paints or nail polish to cover up chips or cracks, but often it makes the flaw look more prominent. The best solution is replacement of the tile.
“A lesson for anyone having tile work done is to make sure you have plenty of extras and keep them in a safe place. You may be paying a little more for the extra tile, but you have to think of them as insurance.
“I see people all the time who have no extras and need to replace a discontinued tile. One solution if you can’t find a matching tile is to use a contrasting tile and pull out the broken one and several others around the floor to create a random pattern.”
