formula for wood/glass cleaner

[ryanne]

I thought I'd share a great formula that my Grandmother uses on all her
glass, mirrors, and unsealed wood floors:
4 oz rubbing alcohol
4oz non-sudsing ammonia (may not say nonsudsing, but shake too see if it
bubbles)
8 oz of distilled water

I have started using this on a lot of things from my wood cabinet fronts,
coffee tables, and it even got 20 years of tar residue off the windows in a
house we recently purchased. I'm not sure if there's any long term effects
that may come into play down the road, but for now, this is great!

[Tom Miller]

On Sat, 2 Oct 2004 13:40:31 -0500, "ryanne" <ryannebeth@yahoo.com>
wrote:

> | I thought I'd share a great formula that my Grandmother uses on all her
> | glass, mirrors, and unsealed wood floors:
> | 4 oz rubbing alcohol
> | 4oz non-sudsing ammonia (may not say nonsudsing, but shake too see if it
> | bubbles)
> | 8 oz of distilled water
> |
> | I have started using this on a lot of things from my wood cabinet fronts,
> | coffee tables, and it even got 20 years of tar residue off the windows in a
> | house we recently purchased. I'm not sure if there's any long term effects
> | that may come into play down the road, but for now, this is great!
> |
> |
> |
Sounds great for glass, but I wouldn't use it on wood objects. This
would be like spraying Windex glass cleaner on wood, except that it
appears to be much stronger than Windex. All three ingredients can
potentially damage wood and wood finishes over time, especially
ammonia which darkens wood and will eventually remove many common
finishes. Alcohol can damage varnish over time and will dissolve
shellac. Water will darken and dry out wood.

[Phisherman]

On Sat, 2 Oct 2004 13:40:31 -0500, "ryanne" <ryannebeth@yahoo.com>
wrote:

>I thought I'd share a great formula that my Grandmother uses on all her
>glass, mirrors, and unsealed wood floors:
>4 oz rubbing alcohol
>4oz non-sudsing ammonia (may not say nonsudsing, but shake too see if it
>bubbles)
>8 oz of distilled water
>
>I have started using this on a lot of things from my wood cabinet fronts,
>coffee tables, and it even got 20 years of tar residue off the windows in a
>house we recently purchased. I'm not sure if there's any long term effects
>that may come into play down the road, but for now, this is great!
>
>

This sounds good for glass or plastic, but definitely not for wood.
Ammonia may discolor (darken) wood, the water makes wood swell, and
alcohol will ruin a shellac finish. You will be better off with an
oil soap or mineral spirits for the cabinets.