Cleaning up with Newspaper

jonbeeza

jonbeeza

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Just cleaned the car with nothing more than Newspaper and a small bottle of water in a spray bottle. Took me half an hour and the body, glass and wheels are sparkling. I got the idea to do it that way, as the missus told me to use Newspaper on the windows in our flat, and the windows came up sparkling clean, again with nothing more than a touch of water, sprayed lightly on the windows. No need for fancy and expensive car shampoo and glass cleaners. :)
 
My one dislike is cleaning windows, I was told newspaper but still haven't got round to actually putting it to the test..
You'd think I would as it might stop the curses and foot stomping :D
 
Cg_Girl said:
My one dislike is cleaning windows, I was told newspaper but still haven't got round to actually putting it to the test..
You'd think I would as it might stop the curses and foot stomping :D
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First time I have ever used newspaper to clean, the glass comes up lovely and sparkling. No messing with glass cleaners or soapy water. That is how I will be doing things in future :)
 
I did the Mirror in the Living room with the Mirror (newspaper ) and it come up lovely. You can now see yourself in the Mirror, in the glass Mirror that is lol
 
jonbeeza said:
I did the Mirror in the Living room with the Mirror (newspaper ) and it come up lovely. You can now see yourself in the Mirror, in the glass Mirror that is lol
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Haha... I'll try it on my daughters mirror, I don't have one, hate them :D
 
Newspaper on windows used to work far better when the ink contained lead :-)
 
viv1969 said:
Newspaper on windows used to work far better when the ink contained lead :)
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So it is the ink, and not the soft paper?
I wondered why normal towelling paper did not work as well...
 
Pretty sure the window cleaning soap I got from Screwstation or Toolfix smells slightly of vinegar/acetic acid as well as being sudsy when watered down. Wouldn't do the whole car with it - acid + metal = metal oxide...
 
Nod said:
Pretty sure the window cleaning soap I got from Screwstation or Toolfix smells slightly of vinegar/acetic acid as well as being sudsy when watered down. Wouldn't do the whole car with it - acid + metal = metal oxide...
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Vinegar does tend to knacker wiper blades and window rubbers. The car came up really clean, as did the windows in our flat sparkling clean in fact. Looking at the windows now, really chuffed I am. Old Newspaper fresh water, plenty of elbow grease, jobs a good un :)
 
Mum used to get a few sheets of plain newsprint from the chippie for cleaning her windows (with vinegar).
 
Nod said:
Mum used to get a few sheets of plain newsprint from the chippie for cleaning her windows (with vinegar).
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And we thought it was the ink that was the magic ingredient :thinking:
 
The windows were always sparkling clean!
 
Nod said:
Mum used to get a few sheets of plain newsprint from the chippie for cleaning her windows (with vinegar).
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I/we still use newspaper & vinegar, same as my Mum & before her, my Gran.

A lot of the window cleaning products leave a `bloom` after a while.

Any larger windows & patio doors etc, just get a wipe with water (with a few drops of vinegar added) then use a squeegee/wiper, same as widow cleaners use on the outside.
Just put a rag at the bottom of the window to catch the drips.......easy & quick. :cool:


tbh it's a job I hate, moving everything off the window bottoms, then going round to do about 50 pieces of glass! SWMBO wonders why they only get done about 4 times per year. :LOL:
 
At one time old newspapers were cut up into pieces about 6 " square. They were then stacked and punctured near a corner. A piece of string was laced through and they were hung in the toilet. People wiped their aerosol with them. They could be quite difficult to flush away.
 
Newspaper as said, because in the old days, the lead was the magic ingredient. Interesting that the newsprint today still has the same effect.

.....and as my uncle once told an apprentice after being asked how he got the surface so shiny......."go to the stores and ask them for some elbow grease oil" ;)
 
arclight said:
At one time old newspapers were cut up into pieces about 6 " square. They were then stacked and punctured near a corner. A piece of string was laced through and they were hung in the toilet. People wiped their aerosol with them. They could be quite difficult to flush away.
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You had a flush???
POSH!! :eek:
 
I much prefer to use newspaper for cleaning my windows than anything else. I've tried all of the various products now offered for this task but they always leave them smeared. A good wane with a chamois leather and a quick polish with the newspaper does the trick.
 
viv1969 said:
You had a flush???
POSH!! :eek:
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My thoughts too.
'twas a long drop in them days. (although it was flushed to an extent, by the `tippler` from the kitchen sink)

Just remembered, my Dad use to tell us that he could remember, as a kid, the `midnight mechanics` :eek:
 
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Yep been using newspaper for years on glass, a drop of vingar for tough marks and stains, as said though I doubt that I'd use it on my car's paint work.

omens said:
(To a detailer, this is like cleaning sensor spots by sticking your camera in the washing machine).
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No don't do it like that, do it like this :thumbs:

https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/cobra-school-of-sensor-cleaning.181757/

And don't forget to do the lens's as well :)
https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/cobra-school-of-lens-cleaning.370637/#post-4231644
 
That's why the rhubarb triangle exists - "night soil" was dumped (pun unintended but rather appropriate!) on it and is remarkably good fertiliser!
 
I had the problem of lint or fluff etc staying on the window, even if I used a soft cotton cloth I still seemed to get it. Now with old Newspaper, seemed to have cracked it. The polishing strokes with Newspaper, seem to have a nice satisfying grip on the glass :rolleyes: Deffo be doing it that way from now on..
 
If using a drop of acetic acid in the mix, would that make the last swipe the vinegar stroke? :P
 
arclight said:
At one time old newspapers were cut up into pieces about 6 " square. They were then stacked and punctured near a corner. A piece of string was laced through and they were hung in the toilet. People wiped their aerosol with them. They could be quite difficult to flush away.
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Lol I remember this well! Hanging on a nail on the back of the outside loo door, along with all the spiders.
 
Maggie52 said:
Hanging on a nail on the back of the outside loo door, along with all the spiders.
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Why did you hang spiders on a nail in your outside loo? :thinking:

:D
 
Looks like I might need another Newspaper, with all this wind and rain the car and house windows are filthy again :mad::mad:
 
jonbeeza said:
Looks like I might need another Newspaper, with all this wind and rain the car and house windows are filthy again :mad::mad:
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Perhaps you should have waxed the paintwork instead of scratching it with newspaper.
 
nilagin said:
Perhaps you should have waxed the paintwork instead of scratching it with newspaper.
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Don't do wax, keep things nice and simple. I did not scratch it, I scrunched paper up nice and soft. I am pleased with the results :)
 
Cobra said:
Looks like The Sun shining in a Mirror Eh Sport ? :D
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One you would read if you wanted news, the other for headlines a five year old might believe, leaving the other to be used as bog roll (y)
 
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