HUGE MISTAKE - NEED ADVICE

[Kathleen]

So, all seemed going well today as I was moving at a nice pace today, putting the finishing touches on a kitchen before walking out the door of a clients a home when I made a HUGE mistake.

I was polishing up a stainless steel fridge and when I went to remove the only 2 stupid magnets that were on the fridge. The first one came off easily and the second...well it flipped and slipped ..leaving two scratchs the front of the fridge in two nice lines about 2.5 inches long. I almost wet myself and then felt sick to my stomach. The stupid magnet were made of metal. I was like What the Heck...not really what I said but you get the idea. Now here is the kicker this home is brand new and everything in it is "brand new" ....The first time I was ever in the home during the quote the owner poiunted out 2 scratches on the hardwood floor that the construction crew left and went on about it for 20 minutes. So here is me thinking about that and getting sicker by the moment. The owner came home just as I was riffling through my numbers to call her. She just looked at me with disbelief. I told her that I would do what it took to make it right for her. I looked up the cost of a new one and it is over $1800 bucks!!!

Is there any way to possibly buff out the scratches on the stainless steel? (please folks tell me so...praying to all Gods on this one) Or am I buying a new fridge?


Here it is:
www.us-appliance.com/kski25cuft354.html

Any thoughts or prayers - much appreciated!
thanks-
Kat

[Wendy]

I would think that you could order a new panel or door cheaper than the entire fridge. We have a place here in MI, repairclinic.com, that might be able to help if you don't have a place near you. When we originally bought our fridge we had an extended warranty and the salesman told us it would cover anything including damage. I feel for you, that makes for a stressful day.
Wendy

[logan5127]

Wendy, that is some great advice.

I had an employee spraying acid on a bathroom wall and he oversprayed onto the stainless steel doors. I didn't notice until it was to late and it had etched the stainless steel. We got some powders that where made to clean stainless steel pots with. I can't remember the name of it.We hand buffed out the etches and polished it . Turned out great. Not sure if it would work on your problem. If I am in the grocery store I will try to get the name of it.

(ZUD)

[Kevin]

Oh NO! ..Kat give this company a call and ask about MX-90 METAL FINISHING KIT. Doing a online search it seems like a popular item for removing scratches from stainless.

www.micro-surface.com/default.cfm?page_id=175

There is a online discussion on this topic here
www.finishing.com/4000-4199/4148.shtml

or

ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/cleaning/msg0413574213076.html?15

[rusty]

So what was the outcome? I have plenty of horror stories about breakage. Accidents happen, and if your like me you play it over and over again in your head. It almost drives you crazy. Just part of the business I guess. Rusty

[Kathleen]

Things are going OK ... After waiting 2 weeks for the owners toget back to me with a what they wanted to do...(the woman had a surgery 2 days after this happened) so they put it on the back burner understandably and have calmed down quite a bit..thank goodness.

They want to try to buff it out first. I have made some calls to Kitchen Aid and waiting on more info on how to do it or if a service call person can do it for them. The owners want a profession to buff it out first ..if it can't be fixed then onto plan B, which is to replace the front panel. If that does not work out then it is the whole door.

I was sick to my stomach over it but I have learned that we all make stupid mistakes or have accidents. And that I can't control everything to the perfect outcome at all times despite how careful I am not to damage something. it's not like I am "oh well" its just that I need to remember to learn from the experience and move forward after something like this happens.

On the flip side of it .....is just that it comes at a bad time (like there is ever a good time) but when I am busting my bum to make the extra money for my wedding which is 37 days away and counting down from today. Just seems like everything is coming to a head right now and one more expense and headache is just bending me to close the edge. Ya Know what I mean.

Thanks for all the advice and help. Now say a prayer or two that the buffing works out!

-Kat

[Grizzly]

There is definitelya combination of polishing powders and pad to buff it out. One of my clients manufactures stainless steel restaurant equipment right from welding the stainless together to the polished and buffed finished units. I have the pads at the office so I'll try and find the manufacturer for you. The powder, I don't know, however try and find a manufacturer in the area and they will certainly be able to help you out. However, from experience when you are polishing , make sure and go with the "grain" of the stainless. Otherwise it looks like crap.

Bill

[caprem]

I know the feeling
Last year I was doing a tile floor and all seemed well the floor looked bad and I got it back to looking new again. The customer was really impressed with my work and all seemed well.
Later that night I got a call and it was the home owner she said after I left she started to notice some spots on the stainless steel refrigerator at the bottom and that it appeared that I must have sprayed some cleaner on the bottom while I was spraying the floor.
The next day I went back to have a look and couldn’t believe it there were dark spots all across the bottom of the refrigerator and I knew it was from the acid product that I used on the grout and it etched the stainless steel and when I thought it couldn’t get any worse that’s when she told me it was a $6000.00 refrigerator.
So I got all the info on her refrigerator and told her I would do some checking and get back to her at the most I would I to have new panels put on the door but if I could get the spots out that would be even better.
I did a lot of checking and finally someone told me to try Mothers Mag Polish and it worked she was pleased and I was off the hook.

You can buy Mothers Mag Polish at any auto part store

[caprem]

I have before and after Pics if I can put them on I will but im not sure how to

[Kevin]

Thanks for the tip on Mothers Mag Polish!



You can email pics to [e-mail] , i`ll place them for you.

[Kathleen]

Oh Geesh...Mother's Mag Polish...I have it in my mudroom ....lol going to give it a try. It does work well on my Ben's car Let you know the results.
Thanks Caprem

[johanna]

This is good stuff guys. My fave client of 1 year at twice a week, just pointed out a few months ago that her stainless steel stove was all scratch up, not deep scrates but nevertheless... I felt bad, she didn't make a big deal of it but asked that I would be careful when taking it apart to clean. It's good to know I can try Mother's Mag Polish and at least fix it for her.

[glosgoodies]

Wow, I hope it all works out for you Kathleen, oh congrats on the wedding, I also do Passion Parties full time so if you are interested or anyone for that matter in a free catalog and sample, please let me know. You can contact me at [e-mail]
Good luck with this and please let us know how it turns out.
Have an AWESOME ONE!
Glo