Hi

I put some fertiliser on my lawn yesterday and it was windy. Over night I
find my curb stones are now stained brown - quite badly in places.

Any advice on how to get these stains off ........ I am nearly in tears.

David

David wrote:

I put some fertiliser on my lawn yesterday and it was windy. Over night I
find my curb stones are now stained brown - quite badly in places.

Always read the instructions.

Any advice on how to get these stains off ........ I am nearly in tears.

It is tricky. Most things that will remove the iron stain will attack
concrete or limestone too. The least aggressive thing that might work is
citric acid available from any wine making shop.

No guarantee though. Iron stains are remarkably resilient and the
attempts to clean it off may cause other colour changes. Try any
proposed treatment on a sacrificial corner. Whatever you use rinse well
afterwards or you will get the iron stain back over a wider area!

You could also try turning the iron stain damage nearly black by adding
tannins (cold tea) - it might disguise it on an old limestone pavement.
Or at least avoid doing this by accident if it isn't what you want...

Regards,
Martin Brown

On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 10:33:14 -0000, David wrote:

Hi

I put some fertiliser on my lawn yesterday and it was windy. Over night I
find my curb stones are now stained brown - quite badly in places.

Any advice on how to get these stains off ........ I am nearly in tears.

You could try rubbing the stains with rhubarb leaves, these contain oxalic
acid, which is very good at removing iron stains.

--
Ian Cox
Sutton-in-Ashfield
icq 116510696
Remove my hat to email me.

"Ian Cox" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 10:33:14 -0000, David wrote:

Hi

I put some fertiliser on my lawn yesterday and it was windy. Over
night I
find my curb stones are now stained brown - quite badly in places.

Any advice on how to get these stains off ........ I am nearly in
tears.

You could try rubbing the stains with rhubarb leaves, these contain
oxalic
acid, which is very good at removing iron stains.

--
Ian Cox
Sutton-in-Ashfield
icq 116510696
Remove my hat to email me.

Best to contact the manufacturer of the fertilizer and seek some advice
from the technicians.

Regards,
Emrys Davies.

Best to contact the manufacturer of the fertilizer and seek some advice
from the technicians.


thanks all,


will it fade over time ?

David

Best to contact the manufacturer of the fertilizer and seek some advice
from the technicians.


Anyone know who makes evergreen complete ?

David

On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 12:49:38 -0000, David wrote:

Best to contact the manufacturer of the fertilizer and seek some advice
from the technicians.

Anyone know who makes evergreen complete ?


Scotts?

http://www.scottsukonline.com/produc...gcomplete.html

--
Tim C.

David wrote:

Best to contact the manufacturer of the fertilizer and seek some advice
from the technicians.

will it fade over time ?

Only very slowly. Ironstains are remarkably persistent.

Regards,
Martin Brown

Only very slowly. Ironstains are remarkably persistent.


The nice man at Scotts recommends vinegar !

will give it a try

David

http://www.scottsukonline.com/produc...gcomplete.html



The guy at Scotts told me to apply vinegar, I have tried this and I can not
see really any difference.

How long would it take for the stains to go on their own. - It is terrible
looking at the minute.

I was wondering about power hosing ?

David

On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 18:53:00 -0000, David wrote:

http://www.scottsukonline.com/produc...gcomplete.html


The guy at Scotts told me to apply vinegar, I have tried this and I can not
see really any difference.

How long would it take for the stains to go on their own. - It is terrible
looking at the minute.

I was wondering about power hosing ?

Might work, but have a look he

http://www.factsfacts.com/MyHomeRepa...anDriveway.htm

and he

http://www.pavingexpert.com/stains.htm (about halfway down).

and he

http://members.tripod.com/~Barefoot_Lass/index-2.html (about halfway down
again, this one mentions rhubarb, although I would use the leaves rather
than the stalks, which (I believe) don't contain any oxalic acid. It's
*poisonous*!

--
Ian Cox
Sutton-in-Ashfield
icq 116510696
Remove my hat to email me.

On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 18:53:00 -0000, "David"
wrote:

~
~ http://www.scottsukonline.com/produc...gcomplete.html
~
~
~
~The guy at Scotts told me to apply vinegar, I have tried this and I can not
~see really any difference.
~
~How long would it take for the stains to go on their own. - It is terrible
~looking at the minute.
~
~I was wondering about power hosing ?
~
~David
~
~
I use lemon juice to remove iron stains in the kitchen on on clothes.
It works best with direct sunlight so pick a sunny day. It takes quite
a while to work, but does in the end. I managed to salvage a white
t-shirt which had got rust stained.

I don't know if it works on stone, but I can tell you it works on
melamine worktops too as I once put a pair of scissors down which got
wet from the sink splashes and stained the surface. I tried everything
I could think of, bleach, vanish, laundry detergent, stain devils, put
up with the stain for some months and then read about lemon juice. An
hour later, no stain.


--
jane

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone,
you may still exist but you have ceased to live.
Mark Twain

Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks!

jane wrote:
On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 18:53:00 -0000, "David"

wrote:

~
~ http://www.scottsukonline.com/produc...gcomplete.html
~
~
~
~The guy at Scotts told me to apply vinegar, I have tried this and
I
can not ~see really any difference.
~
~How long would it take for the stains to go on their own. - It is
terrible ~looking at the minute.
~
~I was wondering about power hosing ?
~
~David
~
~
I use lemon juice to remove iron stains in the kitchen on on
clothes.
It works best with direct sunlight so pick a sunny day. It takes
quite
a while to work, but does in the end. I managed to salvage a white
t-shirt which had got rust stained.

I don't know if it works on stone, but I can tell you it works on
melamine worktops too as I once put a pair of scissors down which
got
wet from the sink splashes and stained the surface. I tried
everything
I could think of, bleach, vanish, laundry detergent, stain devils,
put
up with the stain for some months and then read about lemon juice.
An
hour later, no stain.

Lime-scale-removing lavatory cleaner is a wonder-drug! When we had a
bore-hole, the water stained everything with iron, and the loo
cleaner always took it off porcelain and plastics in seconds. A
little dab of the stuff will get a curry stain off your shirt (white
or coloured), too! But always be ready to rinse very well as soon as
the stain's gone: the active ingredient is hydrochloric acid.

I'd experiment on two tiny areas, one with the stuff neat, and one
with it diluted with two volumes of water. Use a scrubbing brush if
necessary, then hose down, also using the scrubbing brush. I wouldn't
worry if the result isn't as-new condition, as it'll probably look
better than before (if, like me, you find new concrete and limestone
a bit raw and regimental).

I doubt if power hosing will have much effect on its own, as the iron
oxides will be in the pores of the material.

--
Mike.