Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1888-06-28
CLEANING PAINT.
dow to lSo 1t Without I"ju-inS the RE.
Quently Delicate Surfaces.

" eSAuNtbVS
Dow to Do 1t Without Inju-ins the T1o.
quentIy Delicate Surfacs.
During The house-cleanIny season
he washing of the paint is of great
Importance to the housewife. Where
cleanness is the only thing desired,
there are a number of labor-saving
soap powders in the market that will
10 the work WELL with very little
hard work on the part of the house.
wife. but, unfortupa! ely. the greater
number of them contain soda. and are
for this reason injurious to the paint.
Soda is an excellent thing to remove
dirt, but with the dirt is too apt to
take the paint; therefore. Il woman
wishes to keep her paint looking nice:
she will not use soda as an assistant
in cleaning it. Another objection to
the use of soda is that it Injuries the
hands, making them rough and sore.
This objection is the worst for
with sore hands it Is any
thin. bat a pleasant task to do
the houscwork. To be sure. all
soaps 10 a more or less extent contain
sod;. but most good soaps. and none
but the best should be used in the
kitchen. contain such small proper
ton that thoro is little danger Of their
doing much injury 10 either hands OF
paint
Begin work by busting all the lodges
over the windows and doors. then the
panels aud casings of doors and win
dows. There are many kinds of cloths
used for washing paint but there is
nothing that does the work as well as
old flannel. Old worn-out underfan.
nels should be put aside especially for
this purpose. Always use two cloths.
ono for washing. the other to wipe
dry. The wash-cloth sh(pld be OF
flannel. and the dryer either clean
white flannel or clean crash. Cd cot
ton cloth is often used to wipe dry.
and where crash or flannel is not at
hand, it does very we'll, but it is not as
good in any way as the other cloths.
and should never be used in prefer
ence. Have wooden skewer and a
small flannel cloth to go into crevices
and corners. Have pail half full o!
warm water. and with the flannel
wash-cloth go over the paint using
some good soap. Don't wet the cloth
SO it will run down on the paint,
thereby leaving streaks that will be
very difficult to obliterate. Wet the
cloth and wiring out. not too dry, but
just enough to keep the water from
dripping.
D, not wash too large a space at
time. or there will be difference no.
ticed when the paint is dry. Wipe
each piece first with the wash-cloth.
wrung out dry as possible. then wipe
Immediately. being careful to wipe
well where the spaces join. SO there
will not be any dark mark between.
Before cleaning the paint it is best to
have the floor washed up clean and
thoroughly dry, SO that when doing
the mop boards and lower part Of
doors the cloth will not smut the paint
in consequence of coming in contact
with dusty floor. Have an old
thick mat upon which to set your pail
and cloths when not in use. and
he floor will not be covered with
little puddles of water, as is usually
the case where the pail sits on the
floor When the paint is thoroughly
dry and clean. rubbing it over with
whiting on a soft cloth will give it
nice polish. Delicate shades of paint
that are not much soiled may be
cleaned by using little whiting in
the water. Grained wood can be
cleaned nicely with tea. having it OF
medium strength and we'll strained.
This will not remove the gloss. whicL
the use of soap will surely do. Am
monia in the water should never be
used for cleaning paint, for. although
excellent as cleanser. it gives the sur
face of the paint dull. dead look. as
it removes the polish. Where the
room is to be repainted, ammonia
water will remove the dirt quicker.
and with less labor. than any thing
else. and will be found excellent for the
purpose. Boston Budget.