On wooden cabinets, take a gentler approach. To get off stubborn dirt, wash around all handles and any other grease zones first with hand dishwashing detergent. Then wash the entire cabinet, including the handle areas, with an oil soap solution. Just wipe lightly with the solution and buff dry immediately with a terry cleaning cloth. Always wipe dry with any grain or pattern. Seldom do you need to add any polish because the surface has its own sheen when clean. If your cabinets are dull from wear or age, spray furniture polish very lightly once a year or so to fill in the pores and bring back some life.
Fireplace Hearth
Cleaning the face of a fireplace is a project that demands patience. Fireplace stone and brick may be hard, but they’re also porous. This means it has plenty of tiny holes for soil to accumulate in.
First, make sure the floor around the fireplace is well covered with dropcloths. Mix a solution of high-alkaline cleaner and one ounce of chlorine bleach per gallon of warm water. Wet the surface of the fireplace well with the solution, but don’t use so much that it runs. Dirty water running down the face may cause hard-to-remove streaks. Then scrub the solution in with a brush. You should see the suds getting dark and dirty as the buildup comes off. Rinse well. If the surface is shadowy, a light cleaning with a phosphoric acid cleaner may be enough to brighten it the rest of the way. Don’t use any acid stronger than phosphoric as it will damage the brick or stone.
If the results still aren’t satisfying, make a poultice of heavy-duty cleaner, bleach and diatomaceous earth and apply it to the areas needing attention. This should draw out any remaining residue. If necessary, repeat these steps until you get the result you want. The color of the brick or stone determines how aggressive your use of bleach can be. Heavy bleaching will whiten a dark surface and cause it to look out of place. You can use a stronger solution on white or light surfaces.
If you’re not comfortable taking these kinds of chances with your fireplace, you may want to call in a professional chimney sweep.