A Stained Sink

New Zealand Listener, Volume 2, Issue 46, 10 May 1940, Page 44

A Stained Sink

Dear Aunt Daisy, I have been listening to you reading the letter from the lady who has a badly discoloured sink, and I feel that I must pass on my experience. I purchased some time ago a tin of chloride of lime to make the Javelle water, and made it according to instructions. But the next time, instead of making the Javelle water, I used the directions on the tin of lime, which are — 2lb. of washing soda dissolved in 2 gallons of warm water. When dissolved, add the contents of the tin of lime, stir thoroughly, and allow to settle. When it has settled, pour off the clear liquid, bottle and cork it. This makes a mixture of different consistency to the Javelle water, but no doubt has the same uses, though less trouble. Now the point is that, for a discoloured sink which all the scrubbing in the world will not whiten, just pour a little of this liquid in the sink, keep moving it about, and in a few seconds the sink should be snowy white, This is my experience; it needs doing only about once a week, and does not seem to have any ill effects on the surface of the enamel, I should think that these sinks are not porcelain, but a mixture of some kind of lead material, and finished off to look like porcelain. Of course, the mixture also has its other uses, such as removing stains from linen, and generally whitening, the same as Javelle water. Now for a problem which puzzles us here. It is about salting beans. We have done them for years, using, of course, the common dairy salt, and they have always been a success. While away. in the Auckland district last summer, we did some for some of the family, in our usual way; but they said afterward that these would not boil soft, although quite all right in other respects. We had never heard of this before until yesterday, when I heard of another lady from up that way who said if she had boiled the beans all day they wouldn’t have been soft. Now what would be the cause of this? We wondered if too much salt would do it, because anything in the meat line is tough if oversalted, isn’t it? Maybe it is that, but if you have dis- cussed this and know, just mention it, will you? It is puzzling to us-when we have never had it happen except to some we did for someone else away from home! I remember last year a discussion on tomato sauce going fermenty. This was (continued on next page)

(continued from previous page) @ great worry to us, too, but last year we left out the apples, and never had a scrap of trouble with it, though previously we had taken every precaution with the fruit and bottles; so it looks as if the apples may have caused it to bubble when opened to the air. I can’t always listen, so these problems may have been discussed. However, here’s luck.-"Interested,’ (Dannevirke), Perhaps someone else has had a similar "bean experience," and will write to us about it. Thanks tor yodr letter. Here is another idea about cleaning a stained sink: Dear Aunt Daisy, Hearing you speaking of the lady who was in trouble over the discoloured sink, I send this recipe for a sink cleaner. It is excellent, and keeps the sink very white. Put some hot water into the sink, and pour in a little of the mixture. Leave it in all night, If the stain has not all come off in the morning, you can give it a brisk rub with a cloth. If the sink is very bad, repeat until it does shift it; about twice a week is enough to keep it white. The recipe is: 4lb. of washing soda, 1 gallon of boiling water, and 1 tin of chicride of lime. Mix all together, and strain and bottle. Another hint for anyone who has a blue frock, especially anyone who has children’s frocks which are always in the wash — blue is a colour which fades badly, so, after washing, put the garment through strong blue water, which will keep it bright-"A New Plymouth Listener."