Chrome Cleaning, Care and Repair
Chromium, a hard blue white metal, has a brilliant luster used as a plating on other metals. Chrome bumpers, auto body trim, appliance handles and electric fry pans are examples of chrome plating. If grease builds up and is baked on it will burn and be hard to remove. Washing chrome plated items in greasy dishwater leaves a greasy film that will burn on.
Allways wash in sudsy water. Rinse and wipe to restore the shine. Never use abrasive cleaners on chrome as it will scratch and dull the surface. IUse baking soda to remove gummy residue sprinked on a soft damp cloth or sponge. Vinegar can also be applied if you rinse and buff with a soft dry clost. Difficult spots can use a metal polish made especially for chrome and soft metals. For baked on grease on small appliances try a mixture below. Baked on grease may require several applications.
Vinegar: To clean chrome, wipe with a soft cloth dipped in undiluted white or cider vinegar.
Baby Oil: Apply baby oil with a soft cloth and polish to remove stains from chrome trim on faucets, kitchen appliances, vehicles, etc.
Aluminum Foil: Briskly scrub rust spots on car bumpers with a piece of crumpled aluminum foil, shiny side up. Also works well on the chrome shafts of golf clubs.
Chrome faucets: are easily cleaned with soapy water. Rinse and wipe dry with a paper towel to restore luster. An old toothbrush helps get deposits of dirt out from under edges of faucet. For hard-to-remove spots, use silver polish, rinse, and wipe dry.
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![Doityourself Staff]()
![H.R. Helm]()
H.R. Helm is an accomplished DIY craftsman. He has been DIY since childhood and is now a septuagenarian. He is experienced in wood and metal construction, having designed and built several houses and metal buildings. He built every permanent building on his current homestead and did all the plumbing and electrical work. He has several years experience as a professional cabinet builder, and he is an accomplished auto repairman, having operated an auto repair business for many years. He currently has a home shop where he sharpens and rebuilds saws, repairs lawn mowers, mobility scooters, hydraulic jacks, and anything else that comes along. He also builds custom tools for metal working. Invention prototypes are another of his many accomplishments. He owned and operated a manufacturing business building Compact Utility Vehicles for homeowner use. H.R. enjoys making jams and jellies during fruit season along with cooking meals. He is committed to outdoor cooking in a Bar-B-Q pit he welded together several years ago. He maintains fruit and nut trees along with helping his wife with a vegetable garden. He farmed commercial garden produce for several years. It helps to have over 50 years of farming and ranching experience. Employment/Education Highlights ASE Certified Master Auto Technician Certified Welder Cross country truck driver -- over dimensional freight Design Engineer/Project Manager for injection molded plastic company Bus Driver/Substitute Teacher Inventor with two patents (weight training – anti-rollback for manual wheelchair) BS in Industrial Technology
