Dickenson County herald. [volume] (Clintwood, Va.) 1939-195?, 1940-10-10
FIRST AID
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Removing Paint.

QUESTION: The plaster ceiling in
" our kitchen was papered sew
eral times, and then painted twice.
Now the paint is coming off in great
pieces. We want to take it all off
and repaint. How can we do it?
Why is the paint peeling off?
Answer: Walls and ceiling Of
kitchen become covered with fine
film Of grease. This may not be
visible, but it is there, and if it is
not removed before painting, the
paint will not stick. This may be
the reason why your paint has
peeled. The paint is evidently loose,
and you should be able to scrape 1t
off with broad putty knife. A So
luton Of three pounds of washing
soda to the gallon Of water will soft
en- the paint after remaining on for
few minutes, but you should be
careful not to get this on the wood
work or any other paint that is not
to be removed. Follow by ample
rinsing with clear water. and allow
the wall to dry thoroughly before
repainting.
Wet or Dry Return.
Question: In one-pipe steam sys-
tenn with an oil burner, is there any
advantage in having a wet return
line? My neighbor has wet re-
turn, while mine is identical except
that have a dry return.
Answer: A wet return is filed with
water for its entire length to the
level Of the water in the boiler.
Water standing in the return may
be chilled before it reaches the
boiler, which will reduce the tenn.
perature Of the boiler water. A
leak in a wet return under the floor
is difficult to locate and to repair.
A dry return is under inspection at
all times. Water in it returns to
the. boiler with but little drop in
temperature. The one advantage OF
the wet return is that it gives the
boiler greater volume Of water,
which would be an advantage in
case of a steam leak. My own pref
erence is for the dry return.
Sticking Leather.
Question: Leather covered chairs
stick to and stain light clothing in
damp weather. have used varnish
remover, saddle soap and wax. but
nothing seems to help. Would you
recommend varnish?
Answer: Varnish remover should
not be used on leather, for the SOL
vents would remove the natural oils.
You may have caused permanent
damage. Stocking Of leather is usu.
ally due to the use of an unsuitable
leather dressing; furniture polish,
for instance. Apply pure neatsfoot
oil to the leather; let it soak in,
and then wipe dry. After a few
days for drying, wash with thick
suds of CASTLE soap. After the leath-
er is dry, rub with beaten white of
egg. If this does not do the trick,
inquire at leather store.
Apartment Roof.
Question: The roof of an apart
ment house, which I manage, has
three-ply tar paper and two-ply roll
roofing; put on seven years ago.
The job was done in November. The
roof is full Of blisters, many of them
extending down to the first layer of
tar paper. I would like to do this
roof over and would appreciate your
information on how to go about put
ting on a new roof.
Answer: Laying fiat roof in very
cold weather will very often cause
the roofing to blister and separate
because Of the difficulty in spread
ing the tar or asphalt. Before lay
ing the new roof, get in touch with
any one Of the well-known makers
Of roofing and get their recon-
mendations on the best way to lay it.
Dark Single Stain.
Question: I want to stain the new
wood shingles on my roof midnight
blue or almost black. I cannot find
such stain. How can I make it?