Strong detergent may solve soot problem
Q. How can I get soot off a white enameled mantel? Nothing seems to help with this sticky stuff. Even Mr. Clean Magic Eraser did little good. Also, my wife's bureau is dull with a rough finish. I think it was sprayed with hair spray. But no, it was furniture polish. How can it be cleaned and how to get rid of the roughness?
JIM DRAKOS, Canton
A. I'm surprised the Mr.Clean eraser did not work. Try this: Make an extra strong solution of Spic and Span and water, put it on the mantel lavishly, and keep it wet for up to 5 minutes. You want the detergent to dissolve the soot. Add more if it starts to evaporate. Then scrub hard and long. As you said, use elbow grease.
As for the hair spray, clean it off with alcohol. If it was furniture polish, dissolve it with paint thinner. In the future, use very little polish and use it sparingly; maybe not more than twice a year.
Q. My fireplace is covered with tile that I don't like. I'd like to cover it with real brick that is only a quarter-inch thick. But where can I find that thin brick? I know that it used to be made.
RICHARD DAIGNEAU, Woburn
A. Yes, it used to be made; I suggest you start with Google. I checked it, and could only find the half-inch stuff. You could try putting on the half-inch stuff, using thin set mortar and mortaring the joints. Or, if the real brick doesn't pan out, try this, and I realize you don't like any tile. You can buy brick red, brick-shaped tile, less than a quarter-inch thick, and you can grout it, instead of mortaring it. I have used it on my floor, and while it is not brick, it has a rough finish and is glazed, and certainly gives a brick look.
Q. How can I get the rust off my nice steel patio pieces. I don't want to sand, but the furniture is a mess, rustwise, and I want to paint them. What can I do?
ROSALIE, Scituate
A. You do have to do some sanding, to remove flaking and otherwise loose rust, and any loose paint. Then you can use Rust Remover, or another brand treatment, which contains phosphoric acid. This will turn the rust black and make it paintable. Mention of Rust Reformer reminds me of a traumatic experience I had with Joe, my painless dentist. He was preparing to fill a cavity when he said to his assistant, "phosphoric acid." Nearly leaping from the chair, I cried, "Oh my God, am I rusting away?" "No, you big sissy," said Joe, "it just etches the cavity so the filling will hold." "Oh."
So, Rosalie, you don't have to go to the dentist to get phosphoric acid. It is sold in paint and hardware stores. Then you can paint with an aerosol paint. Krylon makes some good ones.
Q. My interior doors are hardboard molded hollow doors, some with some good-size holes, or indentations, from angry teenagers, or at least over-enthusiastic ones. Some are three to four inches large. How can I fill them? They don't respond to my attempts to push out the indentations. Can I fill them with spackling or other plaster?
RICK MCCIUE, Waltham
A. Sand the indents with coarse sandpaper to roughen the indent, then apply joint compound, which contains glue, to fill the indent. Smooth it with a wide smoothing blade. After it sets, sand smooth and repaint.
Q. Help! My refrigerator smells to high heaven, a fishy smell that will not go away. Twice I emptied it and bleached everything and rubbed with lemon and put in rolled up newspapers, all without success. What is equally annoying is that the unit is only two years old.
DISGUSTING, DISGUSTED
A. Call your appliance dealer or the manufacturer to see if he has any bright ideas. What the Handyman can offer is hope, and a few home-grown tricks. The main need is to absorb all those odors.
Wash with baking soda, and keep a box of baking soda in fridge. Or a dish of vinegar or vanilla extract . Put a bit of sage in a dish and ignite, then put residue in fridge. After five days, wash with baking soda and air dry for a week. Charcoal briquettes. Activated charcoal even better; in aquarium shops. Oil of wintergreen, be careful, it can be toxic. Pure vanilla on ball of cotton, wipe all gaskets and around all doors.
Fresh coffee grounds (right from can). Roast old coffee grounds until they smell burnt. Place on cookie sheets in fridge.
One of the best absorbents is baking soda. Dampen the insides and sprinkle lots of baking soda on all wet surfaces. If the odor has gotten behind the fridge's inner walls, I think the battle is lost.
Globe Handyman on Call Peter Hotton is also in the g section on Thursdays. He is available 1-6 p.m. Tuesdays to answer questions on house repair. Call 617-929-2930. Hotton also chats online about house matters 2-3 p.m. Thursdays. To participate, go to www.Boston.com. Hotton's email is photton@globe.com 
