On 3/4/2010 6:34 PM thermo102 spake thus:

While visiting my sister-in-law in Suffolk, Va. a couple years ago, she
asked if I knew of a good way to clean or brighten up the paneling in her
kitchen and dining room. It just looked too darned good to give her an
off-the-wall answer. (read as I didn't have a clue)

The house was built approximately 1965 and I'm sure she has used lots of TLC
because the paneling looks great, but I'm sure it has darkened considerably
over the years. Because of waxing, cooking, or cigarette smoke I've no
idea. I suspect all of the above, and maybe more.

The only thing I can think of offhand is TSP. Any hints or suggestions
would be greatly appreciated!

TSP is a really good cleaner, but unfortunately it will probably
de-gloss whatever finish is on the paneling (I'm assuming the paneling
is either varnished or lacquered and not just raw wood). This would be
OK if you were planning on putting more finish on it, but otherwise it
probably wouldn't be a good choice. I'd try to find something a little
less aggressive, like probably any good household cleaner. (My own
favorite is Simple Green, which can be used on just about anything and
can be mixed in various dilutions depending on how bad the dirt is.)

To get off things like sticky grease that may have accumulated over the
years, you may need some kind of petroleum solvent, like naphtha,
mineral spirits, paint thinner (thinner, not stripper!), etc. Can be
used when you can open up doors and windows to air out the room.

By the way, none of this is going to affect the darkening of the
paneling. That's due to darkening of both the wood and the finish over
it, and cleaning it isn't going to lighten it.


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