Milford chronicle., 1929-03-01
WASHING PAINTED WALLS
By Helen Martin


Painted walls, so popular for rea-
sons both aesthetic and practical, are
especially appealing to the fastidious
housewife. This, because they are
so easily kept clean and fresh
looking always their best-and, in
addition, because this cleanliness in
combination with their hard sur
faces, makes painted walls sanitary.
In clean and dry localities the
walls will want washing about twice
a year, the Spring and the Fall,
probably, to keep them in perfect
condition. If, however, the atmos-
phere is damp, smoky or dusty it
will be necessary to wash the walls
about three times during the year,
to insure their best cleanliness and
attractiveness. After each washing
they will look fresh and new as
though they had just been painted.
Special preparations, which make
the cleaning work a very simple
matter, are available now at places
where paint materials may. be OBJ
tanned. A solution of this sort elm
mates the scrubbing and effort Or
dinarily required to obtain a thor
oughly clean foundation-it is effec-
tive no matter how grimy and dirty
the surface may be. This type of
dirt remover should be especially
good for cleaning woodwork as
well as walls, and particularly for
Railways, stairs, ETC., where the dirt
becomes ground in, beyond the hope
of the ordinary scrubbing brush.
Where such a material is not
available the following formula for
washing painted walls and wood
work will tend to make the work
comparatively easy. The necessary
equipment includes water, soap, glue
"a sponge and piece of soft cham
OILS. You will have to shave down
the soap (Which should be pure and
on-alkaline) -and mix it about in a
quart of boiling water until the soap
has completely dissolved. Then dis
solve about two ounces of granulat-
ed glue in little more than a quart
of boiling water. The two liquids are
mixed together an dallowed to stand.
They will form a jelly that can be
used as an effective cleaning COM
pound. It is used as one uses ordi-
nary soap. Put enough in a pailful
of lukewarm water to make good
suds. Then apply the soapy mixture
on the wall with a soft sponge, be-
ginning at the bottom and working
up The mixture is wiped off with
the piece of channels. This is an ex-
cellent way for washing walls, and
does not harm the gloss of the sur
face in any way. It is far simpler
to wash down the entire wall in this
manner than to try to wash off |
spots, since in washing off spots,
particularly if the wall is greasy, I'M
slightly rings will be left.
This wall washing formula can be
used also to wash painted wood
work and furniture. For washing
vanished surfaces, which also are
apt to become dusty and dirty, use
water, to which a small
of household ammonia has
been added.
Surfaces that are to be repainted
Or vanished should be thoroughly
cleaned in the manner already de-
scribed. If you wish to secure a per-
feet paint or varnish job never at
tempt to work over dirt or grease.
Since a drab, shabby home is de-
pressing not only to grown-ups but
to children as well-and since the
which can be matched
only by freshly painted walls is so
easily obtained-it is advisable
while washing the walls to go over
the entire interior of house. The
operation Of the washing is so SIM
pie. No matter what color the sur
face is painted, or what its decora-
tons may be, If the work is done as
has been thoroughly outlined, the eff
feet will be as described.
The popular idea with a lot of