Spotted

Wayyyyyy back last July when we painted the exterior of our house, we had used a cleaning product called 30 Seconds Outdoor Cleaner to de-mildew our siding.  It did such a fabulous job of removing gunk from everything it touched.  In fact, maybe it did a little too fabulous of a job?  Check out what our front door deadbolt and handle looked like after experiencing a shower of 30 Seconds.

Spots everywhere!

When it first noticed what had happened, I thought the handle was just dusty.  Once I discovered wiping the spots didn't help, I tried a variety of soaps, wash cloths and sponges to no avail.  I admitted defeat and started planning on saving up for a new deadbolt and knob.

Fast forward 13 months.  I was watering the plants and scowling at the spots and decided to give cleaning those dang spots off the oil-rubbed bronze one last-ditch effort.  I decided to try a cleaning product that'd have some abrasive muscle behind it.  What did I have to lose?

Canned air, baking soda, and an old sock.

I got our sock- er, rag- damp on the toe, poured a little baking soda onto it, and then started scrubbing away at those spots.  I scrubbed for a good five minutes or so and then blew all the excess baking soda off with some canned air (nobody said it was just for dusting electronics!!).  Prepare to be amazed.

Second life.

No more spots!  To be fair, the oil-rubbed bronze wasn't a gorgeous lustrous finish like it was when we first bought it, but it's now over 5 years old (we brought it with us from our first house), so gorgeous lustrous finish is no longer required.  And it's going to save us from having to buy a new deadbolt/latch/knob combo, which will save us about $125.  Not to shabby for some baking soda and an old sock, eh?