Tip of The Week

February 3, 2007

This week’s tip comes from our “Buff might be best for the Shower” file.

We answer lots of questions about getting soap scum off of shower walls and shower doors.  Success in this area is usually a combination of routine cleaning and the appropriate chemical.  However, if you are like most of us, every once in awhile priorities get shifted and you just don’t have time to clean the shower door and the next thing you know it has a significant build up of soap residue on it.

Here’s a quick and effective solution.  Buff the residue away. Get out your palm sander or orbital sander and a Scotch Brite™ pad and let electricity replace elbow grease and caustic chemicals.  If the doors are the type that slides in a track take them out of the track.  (Lift them straight up then swing the bottom out of the lower track toward you and the top will follow)  Lay the doors on a flat surface so there is no stress on the glass. Attach the Scotch Brite™ pad to the sander and go to work on the door.  The green Scotch Brite™ pad works best.  It is abrasive enough to remove the scum but does not harm the glass.  Let the sander do the work.  Do not press hard on the glass.  If the door has a towel bar / handle built into it you may want to remove that.  It is usually as simple as removing 4 screws.  This will also give you a chance to clean up any residue that may have gotten into hard to reach places on the handle.

Once you have the soap build up removed you can give the doors a good cleaning with a glass cleaner then apply Rainex™ per the directions on the product.  The Rainex™ will make the glass easier to clean next time.

Thanks for visiting Ask John and Dave.com and we’ll see you on the air,

John and Dave

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