Topic: Restoring cloudy glass using metal polish....an amazing result.

[Paul S.]

Oh, I know what that 'brown' stuff is               Whenever I went to the Highlands and drank from the mountain burns, you could always tell you were in Scotland .........    most of the stones and other bric-a-brac in the streams were covered in this substance   -    it's called Scottish tarnish, and arises because the natives are too mean to buy, and use, a descaler
I've a feeling there's something similar in Welsh mountain streams  -  assume it happens due to the acid/peat soils, as opposed to the chalk/limestone in the south of the U.K., where our water is very hard in some places.

[Baked_Beans]

Sorry Anne T. I thought I could have saved you from the sink  .... I guess it's a good temporary fix 

I'm just worried that some unscrupulous sellers might use these methods to disguise cloudy glass !! Never heard of silicone grease Paul ...but thanks for the tip !!

Sue you could try to find out from your local water authority about your water . They should be able to give you an analysis of it ...might give you a clue as to why your kettle turns brown ...unless it's rust !!    Sorry Paul our posts crossed ...I was going to mention peat and whisky flavours but thought it might complicate things !!   

[Paul S.]

silicone grease helps to keep two mating/contiguous surfaces from seizing or binding together (preventing them from coming apart).       Not necessarily metal surfaces  -  could be wood or plastic.          When I've finally managed to get the two main parts of a fountain pen barrel apart, a small amount of silicone grease is then applied to the plastic threads which in theory then prevents them locking up again......   some surfaces of similar material when together, under pressure, seem almost to weld themselves into one.

Wish I could lay original claim to the idea of using this stuff on glass - it was a suggestion from the other side of the pond some years back at a time when we were very keen on chatting about this subject.

[Baked_Beans]

These methods of disguising cloudy glass are a real eye opener for me  Paul ....I'm a bit worried now i've mentioned it  ....the huge / vast majority of the World's  population however are good honest people ...just something to be aware of I guess ...if buying glass of value 

[Anne Tique]

 Ivo mentioned the silicone grease/oil as well, but he also mentioned that my vase shouldn't be sold like that ... I don't know why ... must be bad for flowers I guess

[Paul S.]

I should think it's quite inert and waterproof, and the flowers are going to die eventually anyway   -  but selling a piece of glass which had been treated would of course give a false impression of the clarity of your vase - not being honest maybe  -  perhaps that's why Ivo suggested not using it prior to selling.

[Anne]

Pineapple juice worked for me, she said, again. And it stayed clear! Thanks to Sue for explaining why it works.

[Anne Tique]

I should think it's quite inert and waterproof, and the flowers are going to die eventually anyway   -  but selling a piece of glass which had been treated would of course give a false impression of the clarity of your vase - not being honest maybe  -  perhaps that's why Ivo suggested not using it prior to selling.

Sorry Paul, i was only being silly, of course i understood what Ivo meant. 

[Paul S.]

actually, I only come here for the kisses, and Belgian chocs. are very good too

So very glad to hear the fruit juice worked Anne, and very clever of Sue to know the reason why - but makes you wonder quite what pineapple juice might be doing to our insides

[Anne]

Paul!