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Ron Stygar Carl Buckland Dale Beuning Forums Help
From bmw-digest.v4.n528 Tue Apr 30 16:06:08 1996 Two questions kept coming up on the list after I posted the TSB (bulletin # 61 02 94) on using Bon Ami(R) to clean your windshield (e-mail me directly if you want a copy of the TSB):
I checked my can of Bon Ami(R) and there's no warning against using it on glass. So, I went down to my local grocery store and saw that it's been relabled. There's now a warning on the new cans. I called Bon Ami and spoke with a lab tech about this. She said that they got a couple of complaints of it scratching glass and wanted to cover thier butts. But, she personally has tested it on glass and mirrors with out any scratching and uses it herself on glass (as do the others in the lab). She was guessing that in the cases where people thought it scratched, that it cleaned the windshield so well that nicks and scratches were then more visible or that they used an abrasive pad (like the ones to clean pots and pans). Those abrasive pads can easily scratch your glass. When using Bon Ami you should use a soft cloth or sponge. When I cleaned my BMW windshield, I saw many more small stone chips that were not clearly visible before. Also, windshields can be scratched over the years by your wiper blades. The windshield on my '67 Mustang had been scratched so badly over the years by the wipers that at night, it was like a rainbow with oncoming cars headlights shining through the glass. I also called BMW NA and my local dealer (Allison BMW in Mtn View) and asked them about it. They had no complaints come in about Bon Ami(R) scratching or damaging windshields. Bon Ami(R) did not scratch either of my windshields. 2) I live in Canada and can't find Bon Ami(R). Where can I get it? As for buying it in Canada, Faultless Starch Company has the rights to sell it in the USA. Up in Canada, it's sold by the S.C. Johnson Company. If you can't find it, check out some other stores. Perhaps someone up there could call S.C. Johnson and ask them who carries it? If anyone has other questions for them, you can call them directly:
Faultless Starch/Bon Ami Company
Kansas City, MO 64101-1200
816-472-4987
800-821-5565
Hope this helps!
Larry.
Lawrence R. Schwarcz, Software Design Engr/NCD Internet: lrs_at_cup.hp.com Hewlett Packard Company Direct: (408) 447-2543 19420 Homestead Road MS 43LN Main: (408) 447-2000 Cupertino, CA 95014 Fax: (408) 447-2264 Internal-only WWW: http://hpisrhw.cup.hp.com/~lrs/homepage.html O- "More hay, Trigger?" "No thanks, Roy, I'm stuffed!" From digest.v4.n621 Mon May 20 14:39:49 1996 Ladies and gentlemen, I believe I have discovered the definitive word on the Bon Ami controversy: should I use it on my windshield, or not. You may recall many postings in the past asking this question, and many other postings, some of which recommended it, and some of which advised against it. The problem we were facing, although I didn't realize it, was that there are two different products. The product that is most often sold in grocery stores comes in a round can and is called "Bon Ami Kitchen and Bath Cleanser." It has a very low abrasive content. It is not, IMHO, what you should be using on your windshields. There is another Bon Ami, made by the same company (Faultless Starch /Bon Ami Company, right here in Kansas City, MO). It is "The Original Bon Ami Cleaning Powder" and it comes in a rectangular box. This is the stuff that goes on the windshield, if you're so inclined. The Bon Ami Kitchen and Bath Cleanser, according to the label, contains feldspar, calcites/calcium carbonate. The package lists the types of surfaces it recommends the product be used on. Window glass is not on the list. The Original Bon Ami Cleaning Powder contains only feldspar and soap. This product's package specifically lists instructions for using it on glass and mirrors. This quote is from their catalog, "NASA even used Cleaning Powder to clean the windows on Skylab." (Okay, so we all know what eventually happened to Skylab, but I don't think it had anything to do with dirty windows.) Therefore, if you're going to use Bon Ami, use the Cleaning Powder, not the Cleanser. The Cleaning Powder is probably not in your local grocery store, but it might be in a hardware store, especially if it's an old-fashioned hardware store. Or, you can call the company's catalog outlet at 1-800-892-8022. It costs about a buck a can. (That's a buck (U.S.), not a buck (Cdn) for our friends to the North.) That ought to do it for the Bon Ami topic. BTW, if someone already explained all of this when I wasn't looking, then never mind.
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