Stain Removal from an Old Sink

Stain Removal from an Old Sink

     I think I fell in love with this home when I bought it 5 years ago because it reminded me of my grandmother's home.  It just 'felt' like coming home.  Who can argue with that?  It did have its problems but nothing that I could not live with.
     Over the years last few years in my new home, I have found that it is decidedly difficult to clean old fixtures.  One of my favorite pieces is the old farm style kitchen sink that I have in my kitchen.  I don't want to replace it!  So I searched for and tried many different ways to clean it so that I could be happy with it once again.  

This was after I had used an SOS pad and lots of 'elbow' grease.

Even after a regular cleaning my wonderful sink STILL looks filthy!

This is after I tried my new solution.

     Finally, I found something that worked.  Not only did it work, but it worked with almost no effort on my part.  So I must share it with you.  It worked so well in fact that I am also going to try it on the older fixtures in my bathroom too.   I will let you know how that goes.

     The trick?  It was a solution of:  1 part bleach to 2 parts baking soda.  I made enough to fill the 1/2 pint jar on the sink about 3/4 full and I still have half of a bottle left.  I mixed the two together with the handle of a spoon.  (The solution separates so you will have to remix it each time you use it.  For this reason, I don't recommend making a larger amount.  It would be too difficult to mix and you may end up splashing it all over yourself.  WEAR CLOTHES THAT YOU DON'T MIND GETTING BLEACH STAINED TO DO THIS.)

     

     Unfortunately, I could not find my gloves but I wouldn't do this again without them.  It did dry out my hands quite a bit.  To use this mixture, I took the corner of a green flat plastic scrubber and dabbed a bit of the solution on it.  I then went to work rubbing it on the sink.  At first I scrubbed hard but I found that this was not necessary.  Just make sure to rub it into every area and let it sit.  You might want to ventilate the room as well because the bleach smell is very strong.  It took me less than five minutes to do this!  Cleaning IS really all about having the right tools!