Home improvement/repair questions, for the DIYers here.

[Cerridwen]

Kitchen counter tops white tile with (used to be) white grout. How to clean the grout? Also, there's something on the tiles which looks like original owners (DIYers without a clue or talent) may have used to touch up grout but just looks like yellowing glue. How to remove/clean?

And finally, 6' brick wall around back yard which my wonderful little terrier has managed to scale in order to chase the neighbor's rabbit. Any suggestions on how to mount something on top of wall or against wall which will deter darling terrier without harming him.

I need inexpensive solutions as I'm a renter (and not financially rich) and I don't mind caring for the place, it's my home even if not my house after all, but whatever I put into it stays behind when I move on.

I have limited skills as a DIYer but I'm rather quick to learn.

Thanks for all who have ideas.



:hi:

[shraby]

1. For the tile grout

try Tilex you can get it at the grocery store in the cleaning supplies. Spray it on and let it set, it should clean it right up.

For the fence, depending on how long it is, can you put some plywood or something like that on top and let it overhang a little on your side so he can't jump up on top of the wall, or if he climbs it he can't manage the overhang.

[Cerridwen]

3. Great. Thank you. I knew there was something but I haven't

had tile to care for in a while.

:toast:

[GOPisEvil]

2. Clorox makes a "pen-style" bleach gel.

It fits into grout lines easily, and the bleach cleans the grout right up.

[Cerridwen]

8. Hiya, I actually tried the pen. It didn't work for me. Since I still

have some, I'll try again. Maybe leave it over night.

Thanks. Oh, and I found the cap for the honey bottle. It was "hiding" in the bottom of the dishwasher. Yay. No plumbing to worry about on that account.

It was the name change, ya know.

:P

[GOPisEvil]

13. There is this stuff called X-14 that works on mildew.

It's strong though. Turn on the vent fan.

Glad there's no plumbing problems in your future! Whew! :hi:

[Cerridwen]

23. Yeah, I remember hearing of that. I'll try it. And open all the windows

and the back slider after aforementioned terrier is tied down.

[Droopy]

4. I think your terrier is setting a new world record for terriers

Scaling a six foot wall? How in the hell does it do that?

Sorry I can't help you on the home improvement.

[Cerridwen]

12. Not a freaking clue. It was night, he's a black dog, and I was

inside when I noticed something wasn't right. The "mom" instinct, I think. Anyway, I go out back hollering for him and the neighbor hollers back that "he's over here chasing my rabbit."

She handed him back over the fence.

He now has to be tied up on a 30' lead when I let him out. I didn't see it happen, don't know how he did it. And I feel like a monster for keeping him tied up.

:shrug:

[Droopy]

17. I don't think he's scaling the wall

There's probably some small place where he just sqeeze through to the other side. Also, if you have a little time, you could let him out off the leash and just watch him. He'll probably tell you how he's getting into the neighbor's yard.

[Cerridwen]

26. Nope, I checked, he went up and over. I think he finally just got

a good enough run at the wall and was able to jump just high enough he could propel himself the rest of the way. He also scuffed up his "shins" a bit in the process.

I have thought of following him around, but 1-he's a sly one and 2-it's been cold and rainy and he won't go outside.


:shrug:

[havocmom]

14. Had a terrier/dachshund cross that could scale a 7' wall without even taki

a run at it. He would just sit, stare, visualize himself over the wall, crouch and spring. He could take an 8' wall, but had to get a run for that.

[Cerridwen]

29. Er, yep. I swear that's what they do. Just visualize then do.

I could learn a lot from my dogs.

[AVESGA]

5. Grout

Try Tilex... it's hydrochloric acid (hypochloric?) Not sure, but it's real nasty stuff, so open a window and don't mix it with other types of cleaners. Let it sit for 5 minutes or so and rinse well. If you want to re-grout it (grout is cheap) you can scrape the old grout out with a "church-key" can opener... pointed end into the grout seam. No ideas on the brick wall, aside from a coat of axle grease ;-) sorry.

[Cerridwen]

15. Thank you. Yeah, the little bugger would eat the grease, get sick,

then scale the wall when he was feeling better.

Bit of a "Houdini" is my dog.

[exJW]

6. Score out the old grout

with either a cheap little hand tool called a grout saw, or a motorized dremel tool with an abrasive tool hard enough to eat away the grout, but not hard enough to hurt the ceramic tile.

Then you just re-grout with new white grout. It'll look new. Be sure to seal your work with grout sealer after you are done.

[jmowreader]

60. If you're gonna do that...

try Stainproof Grout. This stuff has Scotchgard in it; the vendor was showing it off to us one day and demonstrated how you could splash all manner of stain-causing things on the grout without damaging it--without grout sealer! A very neat product.

We got the Stainproof Grout in a month and a half ago. Since then we have clearanced off the non-stainproof white grout--no one wants it anymore.

[Cerridwen]

63. Wow. Thanks for the head's up. I'll look for that if it comes to

having to re-grout.

[Astrochimp]

7. Try bleach on the grout, if no work, ........

you can buy a grout cleaner at hardware stores, if no work, <G> its grind and re-grout time.

[Cerridwen]

16. Thanks. As you maybe can tell, I'm trying to avoid the re-grout

option.

Irk.

:-(

[havocmom]

9. Bleach for the grout. Then try re-sealing it to help is stay nice.

About the dog and the fence: I had a really nifty apartment with a 'cat fence' put along the top of the grape stake fencing. It consists of a stripe of mesh 'deer fencing' about 24 inches wide. That is mounted on these cool arms which extend from the fence at an angle (up and in) If you got a masonry bit for a drill and some masonry screws, that would hold them on the brick wall. The arms have a sort of hinge which eventually will give if enough pressure is put on it. They give in a downward direction.

The mesh deer fencing adds some height to the wall and the inward facing supports make it so the critter can't actually reach the top of the fence. Worked really well for two large and determined cats. May work for a terrier.

Of course, if it does work for a terrier, he will just start tunnels, won't he? ;) All terriers are secret MIT grads.

[Cerridwen]

18. LOL. Wow, do you know terriers. A couple of days after the

aforementioned fence scaling, he managed to displace/remove a screen from a vent in the garage and squeeze out of the house. I returned home from work to a couple of neighbors asking me if I have a little black dog.

I used to leave the doors leading into the garage open while I was at work so the dogs can have more space and a place to do their business.

Thanks, I think your idea is sort of what I was looking for. Just wasn't sure what it was or how it was described.

[havocmom]

24. Hey, I googled cat fencing and found what I was telling you about

This really did the trick for my huge male cats. They tried for 3 years but never managed to beat this system. Might work for a smallish dog.

http://www.catfencein.com/index.php

edited to ad:
http://www.catfence.com/pictures.htm

[Cerridwen]

27. Thank you so much for line. That will help loads.

:hi:

[baldguy]

10. I've tried cleaning the grout in my bathroom w/o success.

But then, it's in real bad shape. I decided to regrout it - remove it with a grout saw & put new stuff in. Yeah, its a pain but what else can I do?



As for your dog, I don't know. My parents had a Silky terrier that could jump 4ft high easily. Maybe planters on top of the wall?

[Cerridwen]

19. Wow, planters. That might work. Thank you.

:toast:

[bettyellen]

43. OR SHELVES JUTTING OUT FRM TOP ... SO THEN YOU INCREASE YOUR STORAGE TOO!

[Cerridwen]

54. Yeah, I like that idea. I can put shelves then put plants on the

shelves. I wonder...

A lot of great ideas in this thread. Thanks for yours, too.

:hi:

[bettyellen]

70. the idea is they shldn't be able to take a running jump up-- you have to

figure out the angles and eliminate opportunity for them. pots sound good, but somehow they usually get knocked around alot. it can be really messy if they are not really stable and if they are, the animal starts to use em as a staircase or whatever.
your welcome!
good luck!

[AlCzervik]

11. There is a product especially for white grout

i hate to send you to home depot but i used to by mine there. It's a small bottle with a top that looks like a shoe Polish applicator. After you clean the grout let it dry over night and then apply said product, it's re whitens the grout and seals it at the same time. I'll look on google and see if i can find a picture of it for you. Works like a charm.

Ding ding ding...hree it is


Dont buy at homedepot, but it online here.
http://paint-and-supplies.aubuchonhardware.com/patching_and_drywall_compounds/adhesives_tile_grouting/tile_guard_tile_grout_coating-282669.asp

[Cerridwen]

20. Cool. Thanks. Well, Home Depot's closer to me than Lowe's.

But maybe Lowe's would have it?

Regardless, thank you.

:)

[AlCzervik]

25. It works really well

when we were selling our condo i had to use that in the guest bathroom, that was the one my husband used and the grout on the floor was just nasty, i bought that stuff and some rubber gloves and when i got done it looked brand new.

[Cerridwen]

31. What is it with men and bathrooms, anyway?

Thanks, I'll give that a shot. I'm really not wanting to re-grout.

[Sabriel]

32. That's what we did when we sold the house

It worked pretty well, although it was hit-or-miss in spots.

[AlCzervik]

34. some spots took 2 coats but i couldn't believe how well

it worked and how little it cost.

[yardwork]

21. It's probably a bad idea, but in Mexico they put broken glass on walls

to keep critters from scaling them. They smash up old bottles and cement the shards on top of the walls. This creates a very durable deterrent. It is pretty too, in a ghastly sort of way.

Probably your landlord wouldn't like it, but maybe....

[Cerridwen]

28. I actually thought of that for another reason when I moved in.

The neighbor kids like to use the wall as a shortcut from one street to the other. I saw one when I was home from work one day. But aside from the fact I don't truly want to hurt any one (tho my vindictive side is arguing that point) I don't want my dog to wind up sliced and diced either.

[oregonjen]

22. Try a toothbrush with the bleach

I use Clorox Clean-Up and spray it in the grout. Use a toothbrush to scrub and then wipe clean. Works like a charm.

[Cerridwen]

30. That didn't work for me. I'm starting to think the grout is too far

gone for a "normal" cleaning and may actually have to be re-grouted. Ugh. There's a w/e project I don't look forward to with anticipation.

[pink-o]

33. I have a Sharp Steam Blaster

Which did a great job on my friend's grout, but if you can't find someone who owns one, try one of those Tilex or other products and scrub it with a battery-operated rotating toothbrush.

Swear, that is the best cleaning tool for small spaces! Just be sure you don't mix it up with your REAL toothbrush!

[Cerridwen]

35. lol. I'll be careful. I keep a special scrub toothbrush under the

kitchen sink. Faaarrrr away from my real one in the bathroom.

:D

[CAcyclist]

68. I don't know if this would work on white grout but

in my business, I had been trying to clean the tile floor with everything under the sun with no real success (the grout is chocolate but had built-up black grime on it) until I finally decided to strip the floors and rewax. The floor stripper got the grout all nice and clean.

[Cerridwen]

69. Cool. I'll keep that in mind. Sort of a backup plan "C" as it were.

Thank you.

[AlCzervik]

37. Does that work on shower door?

we have very hard water hear and i've tried everything to get the lime and calcium off but with little or no results and i've seen various steam things but i dont want to buy one unless it can get the stuff off those doors.

[Cerridwen]

39. CLR works great on hard water build up. We have extremely

hard water here, too. I've used it for years.

Works grand.

[AlCzervik]

41. oh i've have many bottles of that, i'm afraid it wont get it off

i think the doors may be etched. I hate glass shower doors. I should have but some car wax on them or rainex when we moved in but i forgot...again!

[Cerridwen]

47. Wow, really?! No, I mean I believe you, it's just it's always worked

so well for me and we have some serious minerals depositing on our water faucets here.

If they're etched, can you "sand" them or something similar? Just asking, first thing that came to mind.

[AlCzervik]

50. i went to an auto glass place and got some supplies

after i tried everything else and that didnt work wither. I think before we put our house on the market i'm gonna have to bite the bullet and just replace them. I though of spraying the outside with a frosted spray paint but a home inspector will pick that up.

[GOPisEvil]

36. Oh hey...while we're DIYing...anyone wanna help me fix my fence?

Just thought I'd ask in case there are any fence experts out there. :D

[Cerridwen]

38. I'll help you fix yours if you help me fix mine.

:P

[GOPisEvil]

40. Deal!

:bounce:

[Cerridwen]

42. m'kay, mine first. flights to Vegas are pretty cheap even

during the holidays.

:evilgrin:

[GOPisEvil]

44. Ya know, I've never been to Vegas!

:D

[Cerridwen]

45. Two spare rooms. Not well outfitted, but livable. One sofa bed

in the living room.

Two rather interesting dogs.

A "guest" bath.

And a freaking block wall that my dog can scale!

:D

[GOPisEvil]

46. Nice!

It's not all work and no play is it? :D

[Cerridwen]

48. In Vegas?! Surely you jest. 'Specially you've never been here.

I'm born and bred here. I even know where fun stuff is that's NOT on the freaking strip. Of course, if you're the gamblin' type, you can all but live in any casino and never leave. And we DO appreciate any contributions to our state coffers by way of casino taxes; such as they are.



:evilgrin:

[GOPisEvil]

49. I am the worst gambler!

Does't mean I won't gamble...but I have definite limits.

[Cerridwen]

51. But, but, you're the kind we need here.

I've grown up here and the only time I gambled was when I did 8 years working in the casinos; even then not much.

It's not wise to be a gambler in a gambling town unless you have a definite and consistant talent for it.

The rest of us just work like the rest of the world and try to make ends meet.

[GOPisEvil]

52. lol...I see...

I'll contribute a bit to the local economy. I definitely don't have any talent for gambling - I have a small daily limit when I go to the horse track. When that's gone, I just watch the races.

[Cerridwen]

53. I have never been to a track of any kind. I'm thinking my

background just isn't conducive to gambling. I don't bet sports, blackjack, the machines, nothing. Oh wait, Publisher's Clearinghouse. That'd be about it.

I guess I just work too hard and long to throw money to "the house."

Besides, I have fence pieces parts to buy at this point in time.

:D

[GOPisEvil]

55. I haven't been to the track since Derby Day 2003.

Took $50 - lost it...at least it wasn't the rent money. I'm not big into gambling either - too easy to lose.

I have a house to DIY myself, ya know? Say...isn't that how this conversation started? :P

[Cerridwen]

56. Oh, hey, yeah, you're right. Oh, yep, I do talk in commas.

So what's your fence needing? I just realized I said I'd help with yours but I don't know what it needs. Erk. Could be funny.

[GOPisEvil]

57. It's just falling down.

I need to stabilize it. It needs some slight repair, too. Nothing too serious, I don't think.

If we decide not to tackle the fence, I'm thinking about doing some painting, so maybe you can help with that.

[Cerridwen]

58. Cool. I enjoy painting. The little bit I've done. Er, what are

the dimensions of your fence?

:scared:

So, are you gonna just put up some 4"x4"s and attach what's already there? Or does it need a complete overhaul?

I watch HGTV, can you tell?

LOL

[GOPisEvil]

59. I only need to fix 1 side of it. Maybe 40 feet.

They sell premade sections of fence that I might buy. Then, it would just be digging the holes, setting the sections of fence and making sure it's solid. But, maybe I can set in a new post and reattach what's there.

Edit - only about 10 feet is in bad shape.

[Cerridwen]

61. Can you just repair the 10'?

So, you're talking Quik cement stuff; the name of which I can't spell; and posts. Not horrific. Sounds like a w/e. Kinda like my freaking grout. Not huge, just not necessarily lots 'o fun.

[GOPisEvil]

62. Yeah, it's just kinda leaning over slightly.

I think one post will fix it, actually. I just need to get out there and take care of it. I need to do some landscaping, too. OK, a lot of landscaping. :-)

[Cerridwen]

64. Just do what we do here. Buy rocks and put rocks all over

the yard. Ewww. It's ugly and someone's idea of xerascaping. It can be done well, but rarely is.

edited to add: can you just "correct" the post or posts that are leaning? Rather than doing the whole fence, I mean.

[GOPisEvil]

65. I think I can correct the offending posts.

Believe me, I've thought about xeriscaping. But, I do like some plant life and some lawn.

[Cerridwen]

66. The front of my house has a nice layout with a small lawn and

rocks, trees, shrubs, and a couple of plants. It looks pretty good. I say that because you can have a lawn and still xerascape. Of course, I won't use my front lawn as an example because it reminds me of a putting green the way it's put in. I've seen some nice examples of lawn and ground covers that are drought tolerant and still look lush.

[GOPisEvil]

67. I have weeds and small trees I don't like.

I'd like to just start over. A friend has offered to help now that it has cooled off. I'm ready!

[Carla in Ca]

71. For the fence...

We have a block wall in the back but we wanted more privacy so we attached a row of framed lattice panels across the whole wall. They are 2' by 4' and really improved the look of the yard. We planted one potato vine plant 2 years ago, and it has already filled in the entire wall.

Let me know if you want a picture of it.