Does anyone have suggestions or remedies for the following?
Yes, I know the best remedy is a good prevention (thanks mom), but it's too late, I've already crossed that line with these things, and nothing else seems to work, so I turn to you, the community:
Hard water mineral deposits on a glass shower door. (I've tried LimeAway, baking soda/vinegar, Scrubbing Bubbles, after-shower sprays, and a whole lot of elbow grease). Oh, the drinking glasses are also hazy.
Stinky shoes. (I've tried powders that you put in the shoe, powders that you put on the foot, those little air freshener ball things, throwing the shoes in the washing machine which made it worse, letting them air out in the sun for days). *Note - This is not just one particular pair, it's pretty much all shoes (however it is much worse in my athletic shoes)...they start smelling bad and they still have tons of life left.
Sloooooow sink drain. (I've tried the snakes, I cleaned the pipes under the sink, Drain-o, boiling water, etc.)
Will add more later...
by
oo7slice
asked 4 months ago
Drinking glasses: hand wash them, with a little vinegar in the dish pan or sink or whatever you use. There may be other ways, but none I've found. As to the shower doors, no suggestions. Your water sounds as hard as mine, and coping with the mineral deposits is all but impossible.
Stinky feet: you may have over-active sweat glands. Make an appointment with a podiatrist, or at least talk to your family physician. There's topical medication you can get that will usually help it.
Slow drains: stop fighting it and call a plumber. On the off chance you have a septic tank rather than city water, get the tank pumped out.
@magic cave: Awesome..I will definitely try the vinegar on the glasses. As for the drains, I do have a septic tank, but it was just pumped this year..so I can rule that out. You're probably right..I will probably need to get some professionals involved.
I have heard of people using Listerine for the shoe/foot odor read here http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/2007/08/30/solutions-for-s-2/
Parents had septic with slow drains, turns out the main pipe between the house and the septic tank cracked and a tree root had been growing inside, slowly creating a blockage, but a very healthy tree.
I asked my doc about my my stinky feet. He told me that deodorant doesn't have to just be for your underarms. I think he told me that he uses Powder Secret on his feet. Apparently it's a woman's deodorant, but he said it works good. He also recommended changing socks at least 2 times a day, but if you can, 3 times is better.
Do you have proper venting in your drainage system? Maybe a better question to ask is: Is this a new problem, or have you always had it? Is it only one drain in your house that is having the trouble or is it all of them? If your drainage system isn't properly vented, it will create vacuums and serious problems with drainage that nothing but a good vent can fix.
How about 409 and a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser? I have no idea what it would do, if anything to hard water, but I know that my wife swears by that combo. Probably won't do much to hard water, but it's a great way to clean a grimey bathroom.
@dw1771: Woah, nice link...kind of gross, but nice..looks like soaking the feet in vinegar is what worked the best for most people (and it's much cheaper than Listerine)..might have to try that out. As for the septic, we have no trees anywhere near our pipes, so roots aren't an issue. Your parents' tree must be awesome, hopefully not a fruit tree though.
We have a place that shoes are stored in a cabinet by the entryway and it can get stinky! What we use are some bamboo charcoal packets. They seem to absorb the odor well. They come in various sizes and they even make insoles and sizes you can tuck in the shoes. Perhaps try that?
http://www.amazon.com/Bamboo-Charcoal-Insoles-Sport-Shoes/dp/B00193UMKU/ref=sr_1_14?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1328328398&sr=1-14
If the vinegar doesn't work, give citric acid a go. It's a little stronger than vinegar.
@stupimlico: Hmm..never thought of deodorant on the feet. Powder Secret though? I don't know...if I'm gonna be caught putting deodorant on my feet, I at least want it to be something like Old Spice Swagger or something like that.
With the drains, yes they are vented, but I have no idea if the vents are working like they should be. Do you know how to check or is that a pro's job? The sink hasn't always been this slow..seems to be getting worse, and it's only one sink, the rest seem to drain fine.
With the hard water, I have tried the magic erasers, but not with 409..could be a winning combo, we shall see.
@kophia: Bamboo charcoal..that sounds like a whole lot of awesome. I do not know if I am that awesome (although according to my awesomeness meter, I am pretty awesome).
In any case, one of the things in the description says "Emits negative ions and far infrared rays." Anyone know what that means and why I would want that? I don't want to accidentally open up a black hole, although that would probably get rid of my foot odor.
Ok, time for bed..can't wait to check in the morning for more remedies. So far, the community is coming through. Just a few more clarifications before I log off:
*My feet don't smell bad when I don't wear shoes (so sandals, flip flops are fine)..just when they are trapped inside of shoes do they stink. I don't know if this will help anyone with remedies, but thought I'd throw that lovely piece of knowledge in there.
*If possible, I'm looking for cheap, do-it-yourself remedies. I should have put that in the original post, but didn't think about it. So if it's going to take some special tool or a professional, well, I'll probably not choose to do that until I've spent a considerable amount of money on things that don't work. Hey, I'm a wooter, I look for deals, bargains..yeah, I know it would probably save me money if I would just call the pro from the beginning, but that just takes all the fun out of it.
Ok, goodnight. And thanks for all the help so far!
@oo7slice: lol - Perhaps it might come from the package translation or something. In Jpn, they like to use quasi-scientific sounding things as a reason why something is superior. Looks like this is a South Kor. company, so maybe the thinking is similar? http://www.c60bamboo.com/content/What_is_Bamboo_Charcoal.htm
or you could just imagine that using their insoles w. far infrared rays gives your feet superpowers.
@oo7slice: Well, checking your vents can be a DIY job if you can access your roof (most vents are sticking through your roof). Figure out where in the house that sink most likely vents to and go up on the roof and make sure that it looks clear, that's about all you can do yourself. Also, since you seem to be familiar with snaking drains, it can be done from the roof through the vent pipes. Just, please don't fall!
I really hope something I have said helps, I know that slow drains are a pet peeve of mine and all my shoes reek, so I feel your pain.
For the shower, I use Mr Clean magic erasers to get the hard water deposits off. It takes some scrubbing, but seems to work. To keep the deposits from coming back, I squeegie after every shower and sometimes use RainX (like for car windshields). That seems to help.
Shower.... I squeegie after each shower which helps but deposits still gather near the bottom. Every couple months or so, I'll take a widget blade and just scrape the gunk off the doors. Then clean them to get the rest off.
I was trying to find an answer linked to Billy Mays for all 3 problems but as far as I got was Kaboom/oxiclean and Zorbeez.
A steam cleaner may help for the shower doors. Woot occasionally sells them at a very good price if you're not in a hurry to purchase one. I have one and use it for just about everything, including outdoor grills and oven during which becomes incredibly gunky with holiday cooking. Hope this helps.
does someone shave over that drain perhaps?
I can't help with the other issues (soft water here and no septic tank), but I find that I MUST wear socks, trouser socks, rights, or (gasp) knee-hi's with any shoe that isn't open or my feet are miserable and hot. The extra layer of material absorbs the sweat and can be easily washed, saving the shoes. I don't know how so many folks can wear shoes ( especially heels) over bare feet. Ouch!
@stupimlico: I love new socks! Once I make a billion dollars I am going to wear a brand new pair each day.
For the drainage; I don't think anyone else has mentioned this. I use it and it works well. Get as much baking soda as you can in the spout. Pour some vinegar in it and close the spout quickly. Let the solution do it's work (you'll hear it fizzing). When it's stopped, pour a kettle of boiling water down the drain. You may have to do it twice or even three times the first time. After that, every couple of months, for prevention. Good luck!
@susan11125: be careful doing that. different types of pipes (steel vs pvc vs copper) can cause issues.
moosezilla.. thanks for the tip. I've done this for years; back when I had a well on the property and now, where I have "city" water. Have never had a problem perhaps I've just been lucky.
@stupimlico: I've long thought that 409 and Mr. Clean Erasers should both be elevated to the Pantheon of Perfect Solutions currently occupied by duct tape and chewing gum.
Boil it! Make a game out of it.
Regarding the roof-top vents: if you clamber up to the roof, check to make sure the vents have a protective grate or screen over them. You'd be surprised how much air-borne junk (leaves, twigs, seedlings, etc.) can find their way into the pipe over several years. It's possible your roof vent is partially blocked, which would tend to make the drain empty slower and slower.
We just went through this entire scenario earlier this week, with fully blocked kitchen sink, DIY attempts, plumbers, snakes, and climbs up to check the roof vent. When the blockage/slowness recurred two days later, we had the septic tanked pumped out, which solved the problem.
Try the following remedies for the feet - tea tree oil, and antifugal spray. If you are sweating (feet) in your shoes, nothing will work to get rid of the smell, you have to treat the problem. This can be as simple as a diet change (reduce carbs) or a need to exercise (or exercise differently).
The vinegar thing is usually the fix most people use, but google things like athlete foot, and tinea, and you should find some links. I don't have a foot odor problem, But I stumbled upon the information when I was researching a way to prevent ringworm. I get ringworm from juijitsu training, and it is a fungus like most foot odors and foot ailments.
@gt0163c @thunderthighs - I do squeegee after each shower, but I like the razor blade idea, followed by a layer of rain-x for prevention.
@meems212 - I don't have a steam cleaner, but if some of these other solutions don't work, I may be in for one next time woot has them up for grabs.
@sadsephiroth - Yes, it is the bathroom drain where shaving occurs.
@susan11125 - sounds like fun and reminds me of volcano experiments from the past... @moosezilla - I have PVC, is that good or bad for this situation?
@magic cave: Thanks for the tip and nice usage of the word clamber. Fortunately, there are no trees anywhere near the house, so it would take a pretty precise wind to blow something into the vent, which is a pvc pipe sticking straight up in my case. I've tried snaking it from the roof but nothing seems to come out. Now you have me worried about the septic possibly not draining properly, and I finally got the big patch of grass grown in again from where it was dug out earlier this year...hopefully some of these other remedies will work.
I use deodorant (spray on, not roll on LOL) on my feet too. I run a bit and the easiest way to blisters, broken nails, and a whole host of other runner's maladies is a wet foot.
For the shoes - there's a product called stinky feet... lol. I found it helped out well with stinky shoes. Also - your socks might be contributing to the smell.. i find that cotton/nylon blended socks with a higher nylon percent make the smell worse. I stick with 100% cotton, and it's fine.
regarding mineralized water - if your problem is so bad that vinegar/baking soda doesn't help - you can consider a whole house RO (reverse osmosis) setup. Other filtration types will have you changing filters at an alarming rate with scale, and it gets expensive. RO upkeep exists, but it's not nearly as bad as the filter-cartridge type solutions. RO uses several pre-filters and 1 or more membranes, which tend to be very efficient. Sized properly, you'll be changing filters every 8-12 months.
@oo7slice: you mentioned you would consider trying the steamer method if else didn't work, so i thought i would mention that over at 1saleaday today only (saturday) on their flash site (you must register to see the products, but can uncheck the email box) they have variety of shark brand steamers at 70+% off. they are referbs, but at 70+ what more would you expect?
for the shoe issue: don't wear the same pair two days in a row. also, i've decreased the amount of time i have shoes on. for instance, if you can take them off a few times a day, that will help air the foot and shoes out. additionally, if you can wear sandals or some other vented shoe, that will help as well.
i just got some VFF komodosport ls and they have decreased my sweat level (wearing them without socks). perhaps trying a different shoe could be helpful too.
mineral deposits: try jet dry rinse on the dishes and shower doors. for the shower, we also squeegee as you already do as well. we find though we have to use elbow grease every couple of weeks via a Mr. Clean Bubbles hand scrubber. it only takes a minute during the shower, but the glass is squeaky clean.
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