Cleaning Can be Scary

I can’t say that time off work during the holidays was completely enjoyable since time off also means no money. But I did manage to learn a few things having spent entirely too much time in front of the television.

The wood-burning capabilities of the fireplace in the living room have been changed to gas logs, thank goodness, but the happy fires of years gone by certainly left their mark on the brick fireplace surround. Black streaks from smoke and soot mar the surface and while some folks would see this as a mark of character, I see it as needing to be scrubbed clean.

One of the programs I watched was one during which the host tested commercially available products and then rated them according to their claims for success. The one I really zeroed in on was trisodium phosphate or more commonly called TSP. According to the guy on TV, this is THE product to use to clean away the remnants of wood fires from fireplace surrounds.

When I was in the eighth grade or so, Mom and Dad decided to add a den onto the house. Included in this plan was a fireplace. One afternoon after the work was all done and the carpenters and brick mason gone on to other things, I came home from school and decided on the spur of the moment to build a nice cozy fire in the new fireplace. Well, obviously I needed to know that fires in the house involved more than just piling up wood and paper and striking a match: I didn’t know to open the damper in the chimney. The smoke which quickly filled the room and the licking flames left black streaks on the new brick. The mason was called back in to clean up my mess.

The brick mason used, of all things, Coca-Cola to scrub the brick clean, explaining that the acid in the drink ate away stains, with a lot of elbow grease applied as well. (I just checked the Pepsi bottle sitting beside me and sure enough, there’s citric acid and phosphoric acid listed as ingredients.)

Now, in spite of the damage rampant phosphates can do to the environment,* the be all and end all in heavy duty cleaning is supposedly TSP. It is used for cleaning surfaces prior to painting and if bleach is added will also do away with mildew. This is a strong cleaning agent, the common dilution being ½ cup TSP to two gallons of warm water for really tough jobs. While scrubbing brick, one is advised to completely protect finished wood, tile, metal, plumbing fixtures, grout and glass in the area. One is warned to wear suitable clothing and eye protection and keep the solution away from skin and out of gloves.

Okay, I’m convinced: I’m not going in search of TSP. I think instead I’ll simply grab some rubber gloves, a stiff brush and a Coke and go to work. The rating that the TV host should give this product is “effective but too dangerous to use.”

*The release of vast quantities of phosphates into the open environment caused a shift in the balance of life in lakes, rivers and streams. Phosphate-loving algae flourished, removing much of the oxygen from the water due to their rapid reproduction, leaving other plant and animal life at risk. In the early ‘70s, limitations on the use of phosphates were implemented in the U.S. and Canada. – The Natural Handyman