Q: I have a GE microwave oven. The white interior has yellowed in several areas. I have tried numerous products, scouring pads (Brillo & SOS), Comet and even bleach, with no success. Can you suggest something that might remove this discoloration?
A: Julie Wood, who manages public relations for GE Appliances, consulted with a home economist on the company’s cooking team and wrote back.
Severely burned food, such as popcorn, can cause a yellow stain, Wood said. GE recommends placing a glass bowl with a cup of water and a tablespoon of lemon juice in the microwave and heating it until it is steaming. This should help loosen whatever is on the oven’s interior. Then scrub the interior with a damp cloth and baking soda. Wipe off the residue, then wipe again with a clean damp cloth to make sure you’ve removed all of it.
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“We do not recommend any additional cleaners beyond what is in our use and care manual and what we’ve listed above,” Wood said.
Without knowing the model number of your oven, it’s not possible to find the precise use and care manual that applies. However, one posted online that applies to numerous GE models says that you should unplug the oven before scrubbing the interior, and it lists only baking soda as suitable for the main interior. For the door and the surface of the oven that come together when the door closes, it recommends “only mild, nonabrasive soaps or detergents.”
A couple of years ago, I painted my concrete patio with Sherwin-Williams concrete paint. The label said “Porch and Floor Enamel-Waterborne Formula for Concrete and Wood Floors.” I followed all of the instructions, including etching. The paint has started peeling and blistering. Another problem is that I had grit added to the paint to help reduce the risk of slipping on it. The grit distributed itself unevenly with some thicker spots and almost no grit in others. I am willing to try again but do not want to try to strip off all of the old paint. Any ideas?
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Eagle, Idaho
Rick Watson, Sherwin-Williams’s director of product information and technical services, sent a long e-mail responding to your query. He said the product you used is suitable for outdoor patios, just not for concrete that vehicles drive on. There could be several reasons why this paint peeled and blistered, he said.
Etching doesn’t always work to prepare concrete for paint, he said. The way to check is to sprinkle water on the surface after it has been etched, rinsed and dried. If the water beads up, the surface is coated with something — perhaps a form-release agent or a sealer applied when the concrete was new. That would need to be ground or sanded off before the surface would be ready for paint.
Or the peeling could be caused by moisture from below or above, especially if a gutter empties water nearby or if the concrete isn’t sloped properly so that puddles collect from rainstorms. Instructions for checking for moisture underneath are on the paint label; the test consists of taping down a piece of plastic and checking to see whether water beads up on the surface against the concrete.
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“Has ice melt or salt been used to de-ice in the winter?” he wrote. “Does grilling take place here? These are all things to consider. Oil and grease can soften the coating, causing it to peel and blister.” Heavy use, such as scraping furniture across the patio, could also cause the paint to fail.
What to do now?
If the peeling and blistering are severe, you might take that as a hint that paint probably isn’t the best coating for your patio. A penetrating stain is likely to be more trouble-free, although to apply that and get a uniform look, you would need to completely remove the existing paint.
If the problems aren’t that severe and you just want to repaint and have it look good for about as long as the last paint job lasted, you just need to remove the loose paint. However, Watson said, it’s very important to prepare the surface with the right sequence of steps. First, clean the patio, using a good degreaser and a power washer. Rinse thoroughly, and let the surface dry. Then scrape off loose paint and sand the well-adhered paint so it looks dull. “If you sand/scrape first,” Watson said, “you will grind dirt and grime into the existing finish.” Vacuum up the debris and you should be good to go. You can recoat with the same paint product. It doesn’t need a primer.
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As for the grit, the prep steps and the new paint should help cover over the worst areas, and you can even out the finish by applying fresh grit along with the new paint. If you decide to sprinkle the grit onto the fresh paint, put it in a saltshaker-type container (homemade with nails through a metal lid is fine). That makes broadcasting more uniform than when you sprinkle it by hand. For this approach, Watson recommends adding a layer of additive-free paint on top, once the first layer is dry.
Or you can use a product such as H&C SharkGrip Slip Resistant Additive, which is designed to be mixed into paint. "Stir into the coating slowly, adding a little at a time, until it is mixed in," Watson said.
Have a problem in your home? Send questions to localliving@washpost.com. Put "How To" in the subject line, tell us where you live and try to include a photo.
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