Have you ever invited all your friends for a fun, outdoor party? You’re giddy and hopping around your patio excited to spend time with your friends. While you’re setting up the table, you drop one of your forks. As you reach to pick it up, you look up and see rust underneath your patio armrests. What do you do?
According to the Hankey Law Office, “Not only does rust destroy clothes but it is actually a process that eats away at metal, weakening it. For many things, this is not a problem because the metal object is not expected to hold any weight. For load-bearing items, on the other hand, this can be extremely dangerous.” You can’t have your friends sitting on your rusty chairs to then have it collapse under them. But don’t worry. You can fix this and have your furniture looking great in no time.
How badly is your furniture rusted? Just a few orange spots? Is the underside completely covered in rust? Is it less chair and more rust? Once you know this, you’ll know just how intense your inner cleaning goddess will need to be.
Sounds whacky, right? Well, according to Home Crux, “Potatoes contain oxalic acid that can easily dissolve rust, so you can use a potato for effectively removing the dirty brownish stains from metal. You need to cut a potato in half and spread some salt on the cut surface. Scrub it firmly over the rusty surface until it’s completely clean.” However, this works for light rust only.
This can sound counter-intuitive since moisture and oxygen causes rust in the first place, but trust us, the fibers in the cloth will get most if not all of the rust off your furniture.
Baking soda is the do-it-all cleaner of the past. Once water is added, baking soda removes rust with its coarse texture. Make sure that when you’re scrubbing the paste on your furniture that you use a soft rag or any other cleaning tool that won’t scratch the furniture. Also, pay attention to the moisture level of your paste to make sure it doesn’t get too dry. Otherwise, it’ll look like you had Wolverine over to your house for lunch.
If the stubborn rust persists, then it’s time to go heavier with your arsenal. Use a steel brush and water to scrub off the obstinate rust. Be cautious, as you don’t want to ruin your lovely furniture.
This should be more effective depending on which methods you combine. Just as milk is great with cookies, so can one method be great with another. Don’t be afraid to test out each technique and experiment at your own discretion.
Some rust is too much for one goddess to handle and it’s perfectly OK to admit that. There is still a solution. Home Guides recommends that when utilizing this technique, wear old clothes, gloves, and protective eye and hair wear. Work in a well-ventilated area, preferably outside, and dip your furniture in rust stripper. After all that, your patio furniture should be looking as good as new and your friends won’t even know the difference.
Now that all your hard work is done, you can go back to planning that party for your friends. You’ve earned it.
