The Counters Blog

How To Finish The Edge Of A Laminated Countertops Banding How To Bake Bacon In The Oven

How To Remove Spray Paint From A Driveway

If you have a very small area on your driveway or patio that needs spray paint removed, these products work well and you should consider using them. This product is a pure phosphate and must be used carefully. Scrub the area vigorously using back and forth and circular motions. I accidentally got spray paint on my driveway when repainting some table lamps.
Remove Nail Polish Stains On Quartz Granite Countertop With Acetone | Duration 2 Minutes 52 Seconds However, if you have multiple and or large areas that need spray paint removed, these products may not be enough to remove the spray paint overspray areas. Use a heavy duty scrub brush with ultra hard bristles with a broom handle attached to it.

Miracle Sealants WATRINEREM12 Water Ring and Etch Remover Restorative Products 4 Oz. – by amazon.com

Use to enhance and restore the natural polish on your vanities, counters, floors, walls and more. As one of you has figured out, acid immediately etches marble since it’s basically calcium carbonate, and you need a very tiny amount of the powder, which is almost certainly a weak acid (probably uric acid based on the smell) and a polishing compound like tin oxide. Use as a polishing powder and polishing compound for interior and exterior use on tile and natural stone surfaces. I literally buffed each area 10-15 times and the stain was gone! I ruined this table but this product brought it back to life. Fewer revolutions of polishing provide less complete mark removal. A hand buffer, even at extra cost, should be offered with this product. Wet the stained area, sprinkle on a tiny amount of the powder, mix it up with a paper towel, and buff each stain one at a time with a car buffer and felt pad. It would have taken me days instead of maybe 8 hours (!) trying to do it by hand. I worked it in by rubbing circles until my arm got tired and it brought the stone back to its shiny state!

Amazon: Instant Install 29~20 Oz. Knife Grade Epoxy Kit Simple Stone Crack and Chip Repair by amazon.com

Razor off the excess and continue shaping with safety razor. Allow to self level for a glossy finish or once excess is dried, razor the surface level for a matted, travertine type finish. I had many, over 40 small and two very large– 1/4″ deep and 1″ long and wide, craters in my marble countertop in the bathroom. I used this fill the seam between to pieces of granite countertop and also to repair a broken piece of granite on the sink cutout. Make sure you knife off the excess after 1-2 hrs otherwise it will be extremely hard to cut off. I was extremely careful removing the tack strips so as not to damage the surface. When you have removed all the dirt that will come out, swab the inside of the hole with undiluted household bleach. Unmixed bits will not harden but will leave you with a sticky mess. Resist the temptation to use a putty knife or some such to level it off. Do not try to save time by attempting to shave or plane it off with the blade. Always clamp for the most invisible of seams or tape tightly down with duct tape. Remains flexible for hours if you decide to dig out attempt until you get exactly the finished look you desire. Have a terry cloth towel nearby to wipe excess material from your razor blade. They told me– that you must mix equal amounts of both products together. I decided to go back to the terrazzo and up the carpet came. The most amusing recommendation was to fill the holes with concrete and paint faux terrazzo stones on the surface with acrylic paint. You may need to use a dental pick or something of that sort to get out the tenacious bits, then back to the toothbrush. This will leave you with holes that are the color of the concrete (or epoxy, if yours is a newer floor) with bits of the color chips visible. Fill the holes, leaving a slight excess so that the mass of the epoxy is a bit above the surface. Now go read a book or watch a football game for half an hour. Just patiently scrape until you have a flush, perfectly smooth finish. If you finish your floor to a high polish, you will want to buff the surface of the patch with some very fine steel wool before applying the floor finish. You’ll be surprised, however, at how well the concrete showing through the transparent epoxy fools the eye.

How To Take Care Of Granite Countertops With Pictures by wikihow.life

It also received 15 testimonials from readers, earning it our reader-approved status. The perks of the stone are that it’s durable, beautiful and does not require much maintenance. The sealant will give your countertops extra protection against spills by making a moisture-resistant surface even more moisture resistant. If your countertops are a part of a newly built home, the builder probably already sealed them. The sealer product should last ten to fifteen years and be oleophobic (resistant to water and oil or fat based stains). Wipe the granite down with a damp, soft cloth and a bit of dish soap, or multipurpose cleaner. If you don’t know your countertop’s history, like if it’s used, consider using a commercial degreaser product first. Your countertops must be bone dry, before you apply a sealant. Every manufacturer will have slightly different instructions for sealing the surface of granite. Spread the sealer over the counter top with a paper towel, foam brush or rag. Use a clean, dry terry cloth to buff the sealer left on the surface off. Use a cordless, orbital buffer if you have one and want to get the job done quicker. Granite countertops are delicate and require sealant for long-term protection. Most don’t require sealant, but added protection can never hurt either. If you bought your home new, the countertops probably aren’t sealed yet. Make sure your countertops aren’t sealed before you apply sealant to them. You won’t ever have to worry about spills ruining your counters again. If you haven’t resealed your countertop in the past 4-5 years, the sealant has probably worn off by now. After applying sealant you shouldn’t need to reseal your countertops for another 10-15 years. While granite is very durable, acidic cleansers and sponges that can scratch will wear down a sealant. Keeping the surface free of dirt and grime will help preserve granite. Rinse the surface thoroughly with clean water and dry with a soft cloth. If you spill something on the surface, blot with a paper towel or soft cloth right away. Use a dry, dishcloth to dry your granite after any spills, so moisture does not seep into the pores of the stone. Hot cooking pots will not damage the surface and granite can withstand high temperatures, but extreme or constant temperature changes can harm your stone. Be especially careful with dark colored liquids, like red wine or juice. The acidity can eat away at the sealant protecting your countertops. The washcloths you use to wipe down the counter tend to spread the mess across its surface. If your granite countertops are properly sealed and maintained, you only need to wipe them dow n thoroughly with water, a rag and a gentle cleaner. If you spill oil-based liquids on your granite, like milk or grease, you may need to remove some stains. Add just enough hydrogen peroxide to baking soda to make a paste. Mix the solution up with a 50/50 ratio, spray it on the countertops, and let it sit for three to five minutes. A baking-soda solution will help you remove any stains in the event. But you still need to do regular cleaning and upkeep on a daily basis to keep them in top condition. Once the glue cures and the tape is removed, use a razor to scrape off the excess for a smooth finish. If water or other liquids are being absorbed in the stone and not sitting on top of the stone, then the tops need to be resealed. The sections that are used daily for food prep have gotten darker then the rest of the counter top. Is a damp dish cloth sufficient or shoud we be using a dry towel? Do not put flowerpots, containers or glasses that leave water marks on the surface. Afterwards, rinse thoroughly with water and dry with paper towels or a soft cloth. For oil-based liquids like milk or grease, cover the spill with a paste of baking soda and water, and let it sit for several hours before wiping with a clean rag. Granite countertops are a popular style used by many homeowners for new building and kitchen remodels. However, granite does require minimal care to ensure that it stays in great condition, including removing stains, and sealing and wiping down the surface. Most granite countertops do not require a sealant, but they may benefit from a quality sealer product. Do not use lower-priced, lower-quality sealants that are less than ten dollars. Make sure your work area is well ventilated before you seal the countertop. Dry the surface with a dry, soft cloth and buff it as much as you can. Let them sit for 24 hours after you wipe them down and clean them. The colors in granite should look less deep after it’s completely dry. Allow the sealer to penetrate 5 to 10 minutes; if the sealer is completely absorbed in 5 minutes, add more. Use ph neutral soap to clean your countertops and steer clear of windex or vinegar. Clean your countertop regularly with warm water and a few drops of dish or antibacterial detergent using a soft cloth. Do not wipe spilled liquids, like juice or milk, because this can spread them around your countertop. Granite countertops and properly sealed stone will repel most stains if the spills are cleaned promptly. For instance, avoid leaving hot pans sitting on granite in a chilly room. Protect your granite from moisture absorption by using coasters under anything filled with liquid. Make a paste out of baking soda and water, slather it on the oil marks, cover it and let it sit for several hours or overnight. Coffee, juice and wine may leave marks if it’s not cleaned up immediately and penetrates the stone. Apply it to any water-based stains or marks, cover it and let it sit overnight. Granite naturally repels bacteria, but if you want to disinfect your countertops more than what soap and water can, use water and 91% isopropyl alcohol. If your countertops are properly sealed and regularly maintained, a thorough wipedown with water and soap may be all you need for a deep clean. Sometimes you may find that an alcohol-based solution necessary to disinfect your counters. Tape off the area using sellotape and apply just enough glue to fill the chip and rise just slightly above the surface of the stone. We have been told to wipe around faucets or the granite could turn green. If you spill something on the surface, blot it right away with a paper towel and dry with a dishcloth to prevent moisture from seeping into the pores. For more advice, including how to protect your granite countertops with a commercial sealant, keep reading.

How To Fix Dull Granite Countertops by homeguides.sfgate.com

With more serious dullness, though, you may need to call a professional for assistance. The powder is slightly abrasive, so it removes shallow scratches, stains and other residue that might be causing the granite to look dull. Instead, use a soft cloth to apply acetone to the dull areas. After scrubbing the countertop with the acetone, rinse with warm water. If the surface of the stone beneath is still in good condition, however, you usually can repair the countertop by resealing the granite. You can use a rag or a spray bottle to apply it, but work slowly to ensure that you cover the granite in an even coat. You can also prevent fading before it happens by resealing your counter each year to renew the protective coating. In that case, the faded areas must be completely refinished or repolished to remove the etched surface. Contract your installer to see if he offers repolishing services or can recommend a stone restorer for the job. In some cases, you can take of the problem yourself by using the right product to clean the surface. To use the powder, you usually must mix it with water to create a paste that you can work into the granite with burlap or a felt pad. Rinsing the area with water and an ordinary household detergent may not be enough to break down and remove the film. Because acetone works as a solvent, it is extremely effective in dissolving thick, greasy stains. Be sure to use a sealer product that is recommended by your counter’s manufacturer or installer, and thoroughly clean the surface before applying the sealer. After the sealer had dried completely, you can apply as many as three additional coats to provide the most effective protection for your countertop. Because granite is such a hard stone, though, it requires specialized equipment like a grinder or stone polisher, so it’s usually best to hire professional stone restorer to handle the project.

Heat Treating and Cryogenic Processing Of Knife Blade Steels By Jay Fisher by jayfisher.com

While people in this field often generalize the relative performance of steels based on anecdotal tales, amateur testing, and popular gossip, most inferior blade steel performance is based on the geometry of the blade and the processing during heat treat. I am certain that after you read this page, you will have a greater understanding of modern, high alloy steels used in the finest knife blades, and how steels are physically processed to achieve the very best knife blades ever made in the history of man. The performance issue is then about durability, longevity, and strength. This is the working end of the knife, the cutting edge, and performance has to be built into the blade alloy and brought to its most effective physical state by processing, typically done by the knifemaker himself. The way you describe it amazes me; you do it as like you are a lecturer. This may be fine for blades made in the 1800s, but the very best blades are never, ever treated this way. Due to the complexity of the process and material, there is no way—for the sake of brevity—to sum it up with the four steps above. I do not want to be part of a profession that allows lies to stand for the sake of egos, tradition, or profit, and the best way to eliminate them is with knowledge and scientific facts. This page will also make it clear why factory and manufactured knives often cut corners to increase their profit while offering a lower-performance knife overall. It will also clearly show why simple, low alloy carbon steels and hand-forging are crafts based in the romance and antiquated tradition, and high alloy scientifically-processed steel knife blades are the present and future superior performers and premium value. Heat treating is not mystical wisdom, not a mystery of scientific knowledge, and not an unobtainable goal: it is simply a process. It’s numbers, it’s temperatures, it’s logical, like any process. It’s everywhere, fro m the nails and screws that hold our homes together to the vehicles we drive. Steel is part of just about every device, machine, or object that requires some level of durability, and steel is definitely part of the machine or process that allows us to make every device or object we create. Though meteoritic iron was used throughout ancient times, it’s a modification of a rock, in essence, and not a direct creation of man. Some ancient man skimmed off the iron he had used to protect the copper. Because the melting temperature of iron was so high, they could not do with iron what had been done with copper. The iron is high in phosphorous, so because of this, has formed a passive protective film of oxide on the surface that inhibits corrosion. What we see sold as wrought iron today is simply mild steel, or low carbon steel. What would you think of the architectural railing, table stands, and garden furniture if they sold it as “mild steel, painted black”? Bronzes disappeared, and more and more, metalworkers turned to iron. They left behind the physical evidence of improved iron, and an iron culture that continued widespread. This they repeated over and over to keep the iron hot enough to forge. That was the final blow for the bronze age, and the addition of carbon could be directed by exposure in the forge to just the tip of an iron shaft, turning it to case-hardened steel (c. Maybe they were just tired of waiting for the steel to cool, and wanted to get their projects done, so they quenched it in water. His lids and brows were scorched by flame from the burning eyeball, and its roots crackled with fire. Iron is not the most plentiful element and steel is more expensive and complicated to produce. As little as a few hundredths of a percent of carbon in iron makes it steel, and the percentages top out in the standard steel types at about one percent. Standard steels also contain varying amounts of other elements. Silicon (sometimes called dirt) is harmful to the surface finish, is hard on cutting tools, and is regulated to low limits by steel manufacturers. Sulfur is strictly regulated and considered an impurity in steels. In high alloy polished stainless steels, high sulfur gives the steel a yellowish cast, not the bright bluish-chrome appearance. Remember the ancient iron pillar loaded with phosphorus described in the previous topic on this page? Cobalt is a hot hardness alloy, typically used in high speed tool steels which may work at elevated temperatures. It also contributes to wear resistance by working with carbon, chromium, and tungsten to form critical carbides. Nickel is used, particularly with chromium, to increase toughness of the alloy, but is limited since it’s an austenite stabilizer and can inhibit the formation of martensite. It also contributes by improving wear resistance by creating tremendously hard niobium carbides. Copernicium is a laboratory-created element and an extremely volatile metallic compound, adding multi-species erasure capabilities to any knife blade. Of course, taking a time to build a handle on the copernicium alloy knife blade is impossible, so it’s limited to skeletonized blades. Carbon is the most important alloy in steel and you’ll understand why as you continue to read. This doesn’t mean you can hold them up in the sunrise light beams and call the forest nymphs to do your bidding with a chanting spell; it simply means that they have a regular, repeating pattern of atomic arrangement. Along with blade shape and geometry, the knife blade’s performance is a result of the knifemaker’s understanding of and expertise in steel heat treating process. Many steels perform well, and properly processed high alloy steels are the very best steels in the modern world. Simple enough; any piece of sharpened metal or other hard material will cut. A knife is not just appearance, it is first about performance, and that starts with an extremely finely-made advanced technology blade. Welcome to what is perhaps the best page about heat treating modern high alloy custom knife blade steels you will find on the internet, and thanks for taking the time to be here. The reality of modern steel and its processing is much more technical. This is why it’s astounding to discover manufacturers and knifemakers who will not tell you what steel they are using for their knife blades! There is nothing wrong with cheaper, lower-performance knives, and here you will learn why they are inferior, and what the cheaper knife sacrifices in function. This page will clarify why modern high alloy tool steels are so special and important to our trade and civilization. I use extremely high alloy hypereutectoid tool steels, and they cannot be hand-forged; they must be treated in specifically controlled processes more like a laboratory than a forge. And like any process, understanding, control, and repeatability is key for reliable results. I appreciate that level of detail to learn more about the process. From the flatware we eat our meals with to the handles of our doors. There is natural iron, and the purest in antiquity comes from outer space. Iron oxide (rust and the powdered rock hematite) was used as a flux, a cap to prevent oxidation of copper melt. About 2500 years ago, an ancient metalsmith created a dagger, with a wrought meteoritic iron blade and a gold hilt (or handle). Uncounted hands have passed by, touching, petting, and stroking the iron and it is polished and oiled by the human tide. Incidentally, wrought iron is a very specific type of iron, iron with less than. 08% of carbon, and it’s creation is described above. This is the practice of using an old, respected, and traditional name to help sell the romance of the past. This exposure forced carbon into the iron, and, simply as a side effect of working with the iron, steel was born. Just. 03% increase of carbon in the iron makes into a steel that is harder than bronze. In his drunken slumber he vomited wine and pieces of human flesh. We took the red-hot stake and twisted it round and round like that in his eye, and the blood poured out despite the heat. As a great axe or adze causes a vast hissing when the smith dips it in cool water to temper it, strengthening the iron, so his eye hissed against the olivewood stake. Carbon is the number one element in steel that affects its alloy properties. Silicon is a deoxidizer also, readily attaching to oxygen in the pour. Phosphorus is a solution strengthener in steels, and will increase both the yield and tensile strength of steels, aid in machinability, and aid somewhat in corrosion resistance. There are many other alloy elements in modern tool steels, but just for the carbon steel discussion, these are the important and prevalent players. Unlike carbon steels, most of them cannot be hand-forged and must be machined (with power tools and by hand) and processed in a clean, scientific, and highly controlled environment. It is the hardest metal on the periodic table; it’s incredibly corrosion resistant; it forms extremely hard complex carbide particles; it adds toughness and wear resistance; it stabilizes steels in wide-ranging environments; and it works in concert with other alloy elements to increase all strength, corrosion resistance and wear resistance properties. Also contributes to forming extremely hard molybdenum carbides. Not fairly common in knife blades, it has been on the increase in use in recent years. Toxicity of cobalt and exposure to the metal’s dust and sharpening swarf is a concern. Niobium this element is used in stainless steels because it stabilizes the steel against intergranular corrosion in heat affected zones, strengthening the metal microstructure which improves toughness. Since it only has a half-life of 29 seconds, you’ll have to be really quick in dispatching your alien invaders. This can be a lot to take in; don’t bother trying to remember each specific alloy and its contribution. Thank you for your wonderful and well informed site about knives. Like quartz crystals and other mineral, rock, and gem crystals, there is a uniformity of structure based on the bonding of molecules. If iron h as less than. 002% carbon, it’s considered pure iron.