Chapter 5. SPECIAL UPSTAIRS PROBLEMS

With the vogue for ranch and other one-floor houses-not to mention apartments-you may not have an upstairs, but that doesn't mean that you can sidestep second-floor problems. Bedrooms and bathrooms will be somewhere about.

BEDSTEADS AND MATTRESSES are of top importance because your proper rest depends upon them. Lumps and depressions in your mattress, inner springs that emit musical notes when you turn, soiled ticking, and lack of bounce are warnings that your bed is no longer what it used to be, but a new mattress may not be necessary. Available almost everywhere are firms that specialize in renovation. They will repair springs and clean, sterilize, or completely remake your mattress at a nominal cost; they can even change its size.

ROUTINE CARE OF A MATTRESS includes periodic dusting with a stiff brush or the upholstery attachment of your vacuum cleaner. Do both sides, the edges, and the springs underneath. Then, if possible, freshen it with sun and air. While you have the bedding off, dust the bedstead too, getting into all the corners and crannies, and then give it a beauty treatment. (See Furniture Care for various materials.) If your mattress shows soil, you can clean it with a good upholstery shampoo, following the directions on the container, or with the dry suds from a rich solution of mild soap or detergent, and lukewarm water. Be very careful not to get the mattress too wet. Rinse with a sponge wrung out of clear water and let one side dry thoroughly before cleaning the other. Quilted pads or envelope-style covers protect mattresses from dust and stains and make beds more comfortable too.

HAIR MATTRESSES should be kept free of dust and about once a week they should be turned over and the top and bottom reversed. This gives them a chance to recover from pressures and stains. At this time a thorough airing (windows wide open even if only for a little while) will help rejuvenate mattresses, and pillows too. It's surprising how those pillows fluff when freshened near an open window or outdoors.

FOAM RUBBER MATTRESSES AND PILLOWS keep fairly clean and dust free. Their makers say "they breathe out the dust"; however, they can be dusted with a brush or wiped with a cloth wrung out of mild soapsuds if you feel you really must. They do not need turning.

KAPOK MATTRESSES AND PILLOWS should be sunned and aired often to keep them in good condition. You can dust the ticking, but the pillows cannot be washed.

GLASS FIBER PILLOWS and crib mattresses stuffed with glass fibers are light in weight, fireproof, don't wad up, and can be washed unless covered with a non-washable material. Do them by hand though, using cool to lukewarm suds made with mild soap or detergent. Squeeze the suds through the material gently, rinse thoroughly, but do not rub or twist them.

FOR STAINS ON MATTRESSES see instructions for the various types in the chapter on Spots and Stains.

FEATHER PILLOWS have been called the most neglected of household furnishings. Many women who are careful about other matters never seem to think of having their pillows laundered or of washing them at home, yet good modern laundries will do them nicely for you and renovate them too if you want this done. In renovating a pillow, as opposed to simple washing, the feathers are taken out of the ticking and washed themselves. New feathers or down are then added if they are needed. Pillows that have lost their spring, that sag, or lump in one end when shaken, need renovating.

TO LAUNDER YOUR PILLOWS AT HOME you can use your electric washer, but wait for weather that is sunny and clear. Don't try to do more than one or two a day because they take quite a long time to dry. Wash one pillow at a time. These are the steps:
Press the air out of the pillow if the ticking is light. If it is heavy, open the end seam a couple of inches and squeeze the air out. Then baste the opening securely or pin it with a safety pin. Use warm water and a good mild detergent, or soap flakes plus a little softener if the water is hard. Run the machine for fifteen minutes. Rinse the pillow at least twice and spin it for at least 15 minutes to extract as much water as possible. Your pillow, when you take it out, will look as depressed as a wet cat, but do not be alarmed. Put it to dry on a clothes rack in the open air. From time to time turn it and fluff it up. It will puff up as it dries and become fat and bouncy. Do not use the pillow until you are sure it is absolutely dry in the center.

IF YOUR PILLOW NEEDS NEW TCKING, or if you want to do an especially thorough job, you can take the feathers out and wash them separately. This sounds fantastic, but it really isn't. Uncle Sam himself tells how, in a release from his housekeeping area of government. You rip out the stitches to make a sizable opening in one corner of the pillow and baste a pillow case or muslin bag securely around the opening. Shake the feathers into that, stitch up the end, and so to the washer. Wash the ticking separately. To help keep the feathers from working through the ticking, coat the inside with a good thick solution of starch. When the feathers are dry, put them back in by reversing the operation described for getting them out. If you want to use new ticking you can buy it by the yard.

WOOLEN BLANKETS, except electric ones, can be dry cleaned if you prefer. All of them can be washed but, during the last few years, the technique has been changed. Recommended today is the "easy soak" method which saves energy and prevents shrinkage. Use lukewarm water and an unbuilt synthetic detergent. (Unbuilt detergents are those are those containing no soap and no "builders" such as washing soda, borax, and other chemical compounds that are alkaline in reaction. All soaps and all water softeners contain alkalis, which are damaging to wool.) First pretreat any spots or especially soiled areas with detergent. Dampen them and apply the detergent with a soft little brush or sponge.

You can use the easy soak method in either tub or washer. Fill the washer with lukewarm water, add the detergent, then put your blanket in. without operating the washer, let the blanket soak for 15-20 minutes. Then turn it over once or twice by hand and spin off the water. Refill the machine with lukewarm water, and then again without operating it, let the blanket soak-rinse for 5 minutes. Extract the water and turn the blanket. Soak-rinse a second time in this same way, then spin and hang it in the shade to dry-lengthwise with the fold in the middle-on a good tight line. Or hang the blanket over parallel lines placed about a foot apart for quicker drying. Do not use clothespins; they will leave a mark. When the blanket is thoroughly dry, fluff the nap up with a stiff clean brush and press the bindings but not the blanket. A mothproofing mixture (EQ-53) can be added to the second rinse if desired. The blanket can then be stored safely in the linen closet without wrapping. This method of washing blankets gives fine results. The detergents rinse out easily, leaving the blankets soft and fluffy, and there is less shrinking, matting, or pulling than when they are agitated in a washer or squeezed and rubbed by hand. This treatment is recommended for all washable woolens.

ELECTRIC BLANKETS can be washed the same way. They should not be dried in mechanical driers and they should not be dry cleaned unless the manufacturer's instructions stipulate that this is safe. Agents used in dry cleaning may damage the insulation of the wires inside the blanket. Mothproofing substances are generally ruled out for the same reason. Store the clean blanket in a suitable box, preferably the one it came in, and arrange the electrical parts as they were when the blanket was originally packed to prevent damage to the wiring. You can then wrap the box securely with paper and seal all the openings and folds with gummed tape to frustrate moths.

ORLON BLANKETS made of 100 per cent Orion fiber, can be either dry cleaned or washed. If they are to be washed, pretreat spots or very soiled bindings by brushing them with a detergent or soap solution. Wash one blanket at a time in warm suds (100^o F.) either by hand or in a washing machine.

For machine washing use a synthetic detergent, or soap and a water softener. Wash the blanket for five minutes and stop the machine after two or three minutes of the final spin dry cycle, or use the complete special fabric cycle if it is available. Dry the blanket in the air, hung evenly over a clothesline; smooth the bindings. Or use a tumble dryer at low heat (120-140^o F.) for about twenty minutes. Don't get it too dry. If desired the bindings can be pressed with a steam iron, or with a dry iron set for rayon. Brush up the nap.

DYNEL BLANKETS can also be washed by this method but they can stand hot water. Don't make it over 170^o F., however, which is hotter than the hands can stand. Like Orion, only the bindings need pressing. Dynel also is unappetizing to moths.

COTTON QUILTS, though heavy to handle, can be washed at home like sheets, if they are colorfast and well stitched. Hang them straight on a tight line and they will not need to be ironed. If you send them to a laundry be sure to mark them for special handling, otherwise they may come back badly faded.

LARGE COMFORTERS AND EIDERDOWNS should be dry cleaned and not washed. They mat and bunch up and are too heavy to handle. A small crib comforter containing a good grade of wool, well stitched, and made with a washable covering, can sometimes be washed safely, but test a corner first to see how it goes. If you decide to wash it make a good thick suds with lukewarm water and an unbuilt synthetic detergent. Immerse the comforter in it and soak-wash it as described for woolen blankets but do it by hand. Fold it loosely to extract the rinse water and hang it straight on a line in the shade. It will not need ironing. Wash crib comforters stuffed with fiber glass the same way. Be especially careful not to rub or twist them.

SHEETS folded hem to hem and hung straight to dry can be smoothed, folded, and used without ironing. This saves work and leaves the sheets with a clean outdoor fragrance. If you like them ironed, fold them in quarters or eighths for easy management Some women just touch up the hems.

WASHABLE BEDSPREADS can be handled like sheets. Fluff out chenilles as they dry. Comb out fringe while it is still wet Stretch crocheted spreads gently to the proper dimensions as they dry.

CLOSETS should be given a complete overhauling at least twice a year. Take all suits and clothes out and if you can, air them outdoors. Remove hats, shoes, and other apparel from shelves and racks and give the closet a complete cleaning. If you wish, follow this with a mothproofing spray. Put fresh paper on the shelves and sort your gear as you replace it-with a rummage sale in mind as you review those things that you never wear.

SPACE SAVERS. There are all sorts of attractive boxes and space savers available in department stores to help you make the most of your coat and clothes closets so, especially if your quarters are cramped, you might want to investigate them. Pretty accessories are an inspiration to neatness.

During this thorough cleaning business you will doubtless want to clean out and straighten chest and bureau drawers and the shelves of your linen closet Surprising, isn't it, the things that get into a linen closet? Old radio parts, stuffed toy animals, outgrown clothes that you have meant to give away. Now is the time to get rid of them and put everything to rights.

AN IMMACULATE BATHROOM is a sure sign of the good housekeeper. Instructions have already been given for cleaning the walls and floors. Here is the rest of the story. Try to train your family to leave bathtub and basin clean after using them, and encourage cooperation by placing bathtub brush, cleaning sponge, and cleansers handy. Hot water, plus a good softener like trisodium phosphate or washing soda, swished with a long handled brush, make light of this routine cleaning. For a thorough cleaning use whiting or a mild cleanser, plus your softener, to remove scum. Detergents, too, do a pretty good job.

COARSE CLEANING POWDERS, aside from being difficult to rinse away completely, should not be used on porcelain enamel finishes. They etch it with fine scratches so that it becomes more and more difficult to clean. Old discolored tubs and basins can be improved in appearance by thorough scrubbing with a brush dipped in a paste made by adding hydrogen peroxide to cream of tartar.

TO REMOVE LIGHT IRON RUST STAINS from sink or tub rub them with a cut lemon. For stubborn stains use a 5 per cent solution of oxalic acid or a 10 per cent solution of hydrochloric acid, which you can get at a drugstore. Both of these substances are poisonous, so be very careful in using them and in storing them afterwards. If you have any cuts or scratches on your hands, wear rubber gloves. Apply the acid with a piece of soft cloth and rinse it away after several seconds. If it remains on the enamel too long, it will etch it. Blue stains caused by copper rust can sometimes be routed with ammonia and soapsuds. If this fails to work, try rubbing them with a little of the 5 per cent oxalic acid solution. Rinse the acid away thoroughly and promptly. Dripping water faucets cause these stains and they indicate that new washers are needed.

SHOWER CURTAINS today are available in so many different materials that, unless you saved the labels with "care" instructions, you might be doubtful about the proper way to clean them. But whatever the material, always spread them out after showering. This speeds drying and discourages mildew stains and odors.

MILDEW STAINS ON DUCK SHOWER CURTAINS that are not commercially treated can be removed with household bleach. There are also packaged chemicals on the market than can be used to give the curtains a mildewproof finish. If you use them, follow the directions on the package exactly. Do not use them on clothing because the chemicals they contain are often irritating to the skin. Duck, a fine canvas material, is an old standby for shower curtains, and if you prefer this sturdy fabric look at the label when you buy. Some are especially treated for water and mildew resistance. Duck curtains can be machine-washed in hot suds and whitened with household bleach. Rinse them thoroughly and dry in the sun, if possible.

RUBBER CURTAINS and curtains of rubberized materials are washed with mild lukewarm suds made with either soap or synthetic detergent Work them around in the suds without rubbing or squeezing them, then rinse in cold water and put them back on the hooks to dry. You wouldn't, naturally, iron a rubber curtain, but a rubberized fabric can be pressed with a warm iron while it is still damp, if you are fastidious about it.

PLASTIC AND PLASTIC-COATED SHOWER CURTAINS should be spread out flat and washed with mild suds applied with a sponge. Rinse and rehang them. Other shower curtains are made of water-resistant cottons, silks, and rayons. These are washed in mild lukewarm suds, rinsed in warm water, and either rehung without pressing or ironed while they are damp, with a warm iron.

NICKEL BATHROOM FIXTURES usually can be cleaned with hot water, plus soap or detergent. Rub them to a polish. If they still look gummy, use whiting or a fine cleaning powder, moistened with alcohol. Rinse and polish. If nickel is not cleaned often it darkens.

FILMY CHROMIUM that win not respond to soap or detergent can be cleaned with the greatest of ease with a little kerosene on a damp cloth. Or use dry baking soda on a dry soft cloth. Harsh cleaning powders and metal polishes should not be used on chromium. It is a soft metal, applied as a thin plating, and it is easily scratched or worn away. While it is resistant to damage from most substances, it is damaged by salts; the only remedy for fixtures that have become green with corrosion is replacement or replating.

TOILET BOWLS should be cleaned and disinfected at least once a week. Use a disinfectant recommended for this purpose, washing soda, or household bleach. After adding the disinfectant, let it remain in the bowl for a while, then swish the bowl clean with a toilet brush or a disposable johnny mop. Flush. Clean the outside of the bowl, die rim and the cover with hot suds or a mild scouring powder. Rinse and wipe dry to avoid streaks.

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