Diasfora
General Category => Chaos => Topic started by: 8ullfrog on January 16, 2013, 06:56:19 PM
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The other day I was taking a shower, and realized I don't have to live in a house that looks like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre house. So I got a scrub brush and got all the yeuch out of the tub. M had previously used white spray paint to deal with mold. Not the best method, nor does it work.
I got the most egregious of the poo, but I'm going to have to get a sander or something to get all the paint off the shower stall. He'd also spraypainted the tub, but that came off with a simple sponge.
Next came roller replacement on the shower doors. They seemed to be about stock circa 1972. One was missing, and the "Solution" was to leave that door stationary. Both doors now roll freely. I also had trouble with the snapped off door handles. The stubs of the handle had been left in place to slice hands. CLR is a calcium lime and rust remover, and not good to get directly on your hands. WD-40 is water displacement formula 40. Most people use it as a lubricant, but it is also a fairly efficient penetration oil.
One door needed CLR and WD-40, but gave in, albeit stubbornly. The other one laughed at WD-40 and CLR. I gave it repeated treatments, scraped away gunk, and gave it time. After a week I'd lost my patience and broke out the saw. The screw was tough as hell, I was wearing the blade down while it laughed at me (Yes, the blade was designed to cut metal)
However, the vibration of the saw loosened the screw enough that I was able to remove it with my fingers. So Project One: Operation Shower Door is complete.
Project Two: Operation Shower Shell is in preliminary planning stages. So far I'm thinking solvent and sandpaper.
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you might want to try wire bristle brush to help get the spray paint off...
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What kind of material was the spray paint applied to? Plastic? Fibreglas? Will a chemical stripper remove it?
http://www.ehow.com/how_6977943_do-remove-paint-fiberglass-shower_.html (http://www.ehow.com/how_6977943_do-remove-paint-fiberglass-shower_.html)
You can pick up a gallon can of denatured alcohol for about 18-20 bucks at most hardware stores. It should do the trick. It works with rags, stinks a bit, but is less toxic than many commercial strippers. Sandpaper isn't advisable especially for surfaces that might be rendered porous in environments that will be subjected to constant water spray. I'd try using old ripped up t-shirts or other soft rags and the alcohol first.
I salute your efforts to fix that place up. It sounds like your heroism is paying off.
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You want to be careful they don't put the rent up.
Most things can be painted but only when using a necessary primer first, and using a paint suited to the job. That said, paint is usually just a "sin" cover-upper in these cases, and you are far better off stripping things back as you have, rather than layering more poo on top.
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Yeah, it all flakes off, it's more the time investment and the roommate angst.
As to the realty company, they give no naffs whatsoever about anything. Which is good! Because rent is low.
I'm not going to put in new flooring or anything like that, I just like things to not be like a horror movie.
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Most paints, unless they are marine paints for boats, aren't intended to be constantly exposed to water, so flaking off is to be expected. I've had pretty good luck with a metal scraper. You might just go to a dollar store and invest in a few stiff nylon spatulas from the kitchen section--the kind you'd normally use to flip eggs in a non stick pan. I bet those would do a pretty good job of removing most of the paint from the shower stall with a little elbow grease without damaging the surface too much.
A sponge w/a nylon scrubby pad side would probably be helpful for removing the remaining odd loose bits of paint. It's key to avoid having it go down the drain, though.
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Tile paint is waterproof and hard wearing, and some don't even need a primer. I have only used it on tiles (it could work on a variety of surfaces) in a shower area (re the instructions of the client), but it did work and lasted well as far as I know.
Not the sort of thing I recommend or use for that matter, but it's worth noting.
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I knew I already made this thread, but I couldn't find it for the life of me.
I mentioned how mom knocked the curtain rod out of the wall, leaving an angry scar. The good news is I got the blinds back up. The bad news is that my window is west facing. That's right, my room turns into a bless'ed OVEN at 2PM. On top of that, it's like having a florescent light taped to the right side of your head, even with blinds. So the wind blows, and you get blinded by the sun.
So I manfixed it.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/8ullfrog/PUBLIC/IMAG0112_zps0c5be074.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/8ullfrog/media/PUBLIC/IMAG0112_zps0c5be074.jpg.html)