Get your grill ready for entertaining this summer

It's a good thing I didn't want to use the grill for our last party. I was moving it and saw just how dirty it was right before the party started. I have devised a basic plan that you can use to spruce up your grill. This will make it bright and shiny, and ready to use before the next party.

If your grill runs on gas, always make sure the gas supply is turned off before doing any cleaning or adjustments.

Remove all parts that can be taken out so you can really get in there and clean it well. Baking soda and water make a great cleaner. The mixture will remove even tough, greasy messes from surfaces. You can make a thicker paste from it and leave it over especially bad spots, and come back and clean them off later. If you want to use some extra muscle, grab a plastic scrubber pad from the kitchen.

The grates easily can be cleaned just by placing them in a garbage bag with some ammonia on them. Tightly seal up the bag and let the fumes do the work overnight, if you can wait that long. A little scrubbing afterward will remove the stubborn stuff.

Clean gas jets on gas grills with a toothpick or some wire straightened out.

If your grill has an igniter, make sure it's working. These need to be replaced after a year or two, and it's easy to do with a screwdriver. Check your local grill dealer for supplies, or order parts online for your grill.

Make sure handles are firmly attached, and tighten any loose or missing screws before using it.

If you are missing dials or other parts, order these when you get a chance so you can replace them.

If your grill runs on gas, spring for a gauge that shows you how much gas is left in your tank.

You also might consider getting a nice cover for your grill. This will prevent it from getting rusty from weather conditions, too.

Good garden cart

A good garden cart is a wonderful thing to use when working in your yard. It can be used to haul plants, mulch, fertilizer and other goodies. I added a couple of containers to the side of mine to hold even more stuff. I drilled several holes into the top rim of the cart, and then drilled holes in some empty, cleaned aluminum cans. I attached these cans to the cart with some cable ties. This provides a great place for seed packets, gloves, garbage and anything else I might need while on my rounds.

Seal your attic

Attic access can offer some great storage solutions. Pull-down stairs are fairly easy to operate and can make carrying things into your attic a lot easier to do, too. Hold the railing while you climb and don't carry too much at a time. One drawback to having these types of stairs is that they also can be a source of air leaks in your air-conditioned or heated home. Take the time to add some weatherstripping around that "door." This is an inexpensive thing to do and, once completed, will save you money on your utility bills every month.

Super hints

• If you have a screen door and a dog, you'll be needing to replace that plain, lightweight screen wire with hardware cloth. Use wire snips or hardware scissors to cut the wire large enough to cover the opening, plus an inch all the way around the edges. Use heavy-duty staples to hold it in place.

• I have a 3-tier shoe holder that is made of two horizontal bars for each row. It's fine for heels, but flats and sandals just slip right off. I fixed it by running wide masking tape around the bars from one end to the other to fill in the areas between them. The shoes stay put now. You could even run the tape the other way, with the sticky side out, for even more effective storage.

• If you are going to paint a bunch of cabinets or a dresser and all of its drawers, number each, both on the door or drawer and on the cabinet. When it comes time to reinstall them, they will fit like a glove when matched properly.

Q. We just had carpet installed in our bedroom. It's nice and all, but the door seems to drag on it a little bit. Is there some easy fix for this?

A. Ideally, you should take the door down and trim off a quarter-inch of the wood. Just seal this wood with paint and rehang it. This should be fairly easy to do with a circular saw.

Q. I've just replaced several boards on my planter boxes. I'm sure they will age soon enough, but I really would like to see if you know of a way to make them look old quicker. Got any ideas?

A. I've used this myself on a birdhouse that I made from new fence boards. You can use vinegar, mixed half and half with water to wet it down with. This will age it quickly. I've also heard you can use baking soda and water to do the same thing, but have not tried this one myself.

Q. I really like expanding foam, and have used it to fill in gaps in several spots around my house. I've put up with some of the mess, but got some on my favorite shoes. How does one get this stuff off things?

A. Sadly, I know of nothing that will remove it. If it were me, and it has been me before, I would get an old toothbrush and some Spray 'n Wash and see if I could get as much off as possible. Good luck, and wear shoe covers or old shoes next time.

Reader tips

• We plan on upgrading our son's bed to a big-boy bed this summer. I'm really looking forward to it. I think he will really benefit from the move. I thought about replacing the fan in his room since it was really wobbly. But after cleaning it and tightening up a few loose screws, I can see no other problems with it. It does come in handy during the summer, too.

• I've tried to find better ways to clean things around my house other than spending a lot of money on cleaners that you have to buy, use once or twice and throw away. I found a good way to remove rust by using table salt and lemon juice. The salt acts as an abrasive and the lemon juice is very acidic, so it eats the rust right off the surface of lots of things. I just cleaned up an old lamp, and it looks new now. I apply a layer of paste wash to prevent more rust from forming before wiring it up.

• I like glow-in-the-dark paint and have used it in several spots in my home. My favorite is on the lamp bases around the house. During the evening, the lamps are on, "charging" the paint. When the lights go off at bedtime, the bases are lit up with the paint and they will stay "lit" for several hours. This would be great to do in kids' rooms if you have children.

• My wife told me our bathroom toilet was leaking. I had checked it several times throughout the past couple of weeks, but I could find no leaks. Finally, I got there at the right time and could see that it was sweating, not leaking. I found some thin Styrofoam liner panels made to insulate a toilet tank and installed them. This seems to work pretty well and she's stopped complaining about the "leaks," so I guess it solved the problem.

• We have a beach house and, because it's located near drilling wells, we get some oil and tar tracked in every year. I've experimented with several cleaners and found that mayonnaise works better than anything else. I keep a jar on hand at all times and feel great about letting the kids use it, too.

Shoptalk

• Cleaning the grout between your tiles is a tough chore - and for large floors, it's an epic chore! I just ran across a cool product called the Grout Gator. The specially designed head has five adjustable brushes, just wide enough to scrub those dirty grout lines. Set the Grout Gator on your floor or wall and clean it the easy way. You can install an extension pole on it, if you want to. You even can add more brushes for smaller tiles or to replace any that might become damaged. Check it out at www.groutgator.com. You also can find out where you can purchase one for your home. Clean grout lines are a beautiful thing!

• Most standard kitchen cabinets are just boxes for storing items in a kitchen, no matter how much you spend on them. But to really get the most from your cabinets, you need to store things in an organized way. That's where Shelves that Slide comes in handy. They provide a huge variety of organizers for just about every size and shape of kitchen cabinet. Most pieces are easy to install, and with the super guides they have available, can be done in just a few minutes with basic tools. Their products will add a lot of value to your kitchen, in addition to convenience and organization. They also carry a lot of other goodies to make cooking in your kitchen a dream. Go to www.shelvesthatslide.com and see what they have. You also can get a catalog from them. You will be amazed at what you can do these days with a plain kitchen cabinet!

• Write to Kelly Carrell in care of the Daily Herald, P.O. Box 280, Arlington Heights, IL 60006 or visit online at thesuperhandyman.com.

© 2015, Cowles Syndicate Inc.