Sure-Fire Paint Remover....

Some years ago when I decided to paint the fireplace bricks, I painted the cheap-looking ceramic tile hearth as well. (Painting With Brownie Mix) The tiles are bland beige squares, and the former owner must have gotten a deal on them because he used them all over the house on both sides, on walls, floors, counters - places where floor tile has no business being.  We've gotten rid of all of them, except these.

The ultimate goal is to install a gas fireplace insert, and when we do, we'll upgrade the sad little hearth to something pretty.  Poured colored concrete, perhaps, or quartz, or Italian tile, or ANYTHING but these sad, boring beige babies.

Painting them brown helped a little, but paint doesn't really stick too well to tile unless you rough it up a little first, so over the years it has chipped away.  I've convinced myself that it's charming.  It's either self-delusion or go find the rest of that can of paint and touch up, and THAT always sounds like work.

Enter.....Larry.

You can see the "charming" tile next to him on the floor, under his Sudoku book.  He's chill that way.

We've had him since mid-May, and he's been a perfect gentleman.  Or he WAS, until the Great Backyard Apocalypse engendered by our neighbors' July 4th celebration began.  Apparently setting off fireworks less than 30 feet from his head was more than he was prepared to take. And thus began Poopmaggedon.  It took us nearly two weeks of leash-walking the poor boy into the backyard every day to convince him no one was going to kill him.  And in the meantime, his guts were in a total, uncontrollable uproar.  His location of choice to let go?  The tile.

It could have been worse.  He didn't select the Chinese rug, and he (mostly) avoided the hardwood. And the tile is not in a path that anyone has to cross in the dark. But let me tell you:  Dogshit is fabulous paint remover. Every successive cleanup peeled larger and larger circles of paint off of those tiles, leaving the left side completely, well, unpainted.

If it weren't for the smell, there'd have to be a patent here someplace.  The supply appears unlimited, it's cheap to produce and probably not hard to package and ship if anybody needs some.  I'd be happy to help out.

DeeDee

PS Some crating, probiotics and regular walks have him set right.