Reader Erika Rae found these instructions about how to clean St. Charles steel kitchen cabinets, enameled right inside of one of her cabinet doors. I presume these instructions still hold. Errr, umm, does anyone know where to get St. Charles Cleaner & Polish?
Interestingly — if you look at my cabinets, there *is* rust on the bottom of the base cabinet doors, close to the floor. Ahhh, the janitors at the cooking school (my cabinets’ original home) did not take care to “always wipe off sub base and bottom of door or drawer above sub base with clean cloth after kitchen floor has been washed.” Alas, but fortunately the rust does not seem to be spreading. Thank you, Erika Rae!
Meanwhile, this is a good opportunity for Renovate-Safe-Pam to remind readers: Remember that old painted surfaces on metal cabinets (and other places in your home) may contain lead (and asbestos may be elsewhere in our vintage homes, etc.), so take responsibility to inform yourself and consult pros about proper attention to environmental and safety issues. For example, the EPA hosts a website on lead in the home and a website on asbestos in the home.
Awesome!! Thank you!! Just bought a 1962 house with steel cabinets and have been looking up all sorts of info on how to repaint, care for and maintain the cabinets!!
Two suggestions for a cleaner/polish–
Meguiar’s products from your local autobody supply house or through your local NAPA jobber…
Mirror Glaze #6 cleaner/wax is a very fine hand compound combined with a caranuba wax in liquid form.
Mirror Glaze #7 is a “finishing/reseal glaze” and works well by hand. Would be a great last step to make the cabinet faces gleam.
So little of the product is left behind I really wouldn’t worry about using it on a countertop myself…if that is a concern, there is an old-school paste wax that’s pretty much straight caranuba called “Trewax”. Follow the instructions carefully, and don’t use it on the enameled fronts!
Dave
ooooh, Dave, I know what I’m doing over the Xmas break: Polishing my Genevas!
Pam,
Have you tried contacting St. Charles Cabinets to see if they still make the clearner. They are owned by Viking now.
http://www.stcharlescabinets.com/products.php
I just went to the link for St. Charles that Frank posted.
I will spend my Christmas vacation cleaning all the slobber marks off the keyboard at my work computer!
It took restraint not to lick the screen.
Yumm!
Dave