Just sayin'. Cleaning the damned things is such a PITA. At least now that I've put the shower snozzle on a hose, I can move the thing around to rinse off the chemical shit. But the tub itself is defeating me. I tried every chemical in my arsenal, even toilet bowl cleaner, and not a damn one seems able to dissolve the brown sludge on the bottom of the thing even with help from a scrub brush and a brillo pad. Yeah, it's an old cast-iron tub and it's worn out, but that's not the issue here, both it and the sink (also cast-iron) seem to have sucked the goo into their pores and refuse to look clean. Sigh!
I have a killer headache. Too many chemicals, methinks. Before you ask, yes, I got ventilation out the yazoo -- this was a pretty hot day in the Silly Cone Valley (got up close to 90F), and the fans are pushing air through from the north windows (the cool side of the house) to the south windows (the warm side of the house). Or maybe it's just annoyance...
-- Badtux the Cleaning Penguin
If you have not tried it, give CLR a try. It may be want you need to get the brown goo out of the tub. CLR stands for Calcium, Lime & Rust
ReplyDeleteJust sayin.
Ah yes, CLR! I forgot all about that. Just dug it out of the back of the laundry room closet. I'll give it a try...
ReplyDelete- Badtux the Superfund-site-inhabitin' Penguin
Annnnnd... no dice. It doesn't really look like brown goo. It looks more like a stain. How to get a brown stain out of worn old porcelain is a good question...
ReplyDelete- Badtux the Baffled Penguin
Have you tried dynamite?
ReplyDeleteI think my landlord would object, Phil :).
ReplyDeleteBut yeah, if it was my house, I'd take a sledgehammer to the #$%@! thing and put a new one in. But I can't justify putting a $50K downpayment into a $500K home just to deal with a nasty-looking bathtub, I'll just pull the shower curtain closed when company comes over :).
- Badtux the Practical Penguin
Ask the landlord to spring for a couple hundred, and have it re-glazed/enameled.
ReplyDeleteI've had friends go the re-glazing route, and had the problems return; apparently the re-glazing doesn't always work well.
ReplyDeleteEven with ventilation out the wazoo, those chemicals can get you. Husband does the shower/tub cleaning in our house because the chemicals give me an asthma attack.
There's no such thing as "re-glazing", it's just paint. A *good* paint, a two-part epoxy paint, but still just paint. The other option is a tub liner, which basically converts your cast-iron tub into a plastic tub with all the usual problems of a plastic tub (they're even harder to clean than a cast-iron tub). In any event, none of that's happening at this place, because I don't want to remind my landlord that I exist, because he's forgotten to raise my rent this year, so I'll just pull the shower curtain closed when company comes over :).
ReplyDelete- Badtux the Cheapskate Penguin
If the rubber ducky goes belly up-----Move Mr. Penguin.....Move!
ReplyDeleteBar Keepers Friend, if you're still interested. Comes in both powder and paste forms. Works for me.
ReplyDeleteHave you tried the old stand-bys, chlorine bleach and/or white vinegar? Don't use them simultaneously, of course.
ReplyDelete